Jennifer Mackenzie

Jennifer was originally from Coatbridge in Lanarkshire and studied at Glasgow School of Art from 1967-71, graduating with a DA in Drawing and Painting. She continued her education after art school in 1972 at Jordanhill College, obtaining a teaching certificate, after which she taught art and design in schools in Lanarkshire, Inverness and Sutherland. Jennifer took early retirement from teaching in 2001 to become a full time, professional artist. She now lives and works from her studio in Golspie, Sutherland.
 
Jennifer works predominantly in oils to produce beautiful vibrantly textured works. Whilst she also paints landscapes and figurative pieces, she always comes back to still life painting, enjoying setting up a still life, composition, as well as the actual painting of it. Whilst she works from life, she's not looking at making an exact copy - she studies the balance of shapes, colours and tonal values within the group, sometimes exaggerating perspective and colour. Her still life compositions also sometimes feature a book or postcard featuring a Peploe or Cadell - highlighting her interest in the Scottish Colourists.
 
She says: "My paintings are very much a personal response to my environment, in terms of colour, light and space, and in the Scottish painterly tradition, reflecting my time at GSA with tutors such as William Drummond Bone, Sandy Goudie, and David Donaldson. My paintings explore the distinctive characteristics of oil paint through my favoured subject matter of flowers and collected objects in my studio".