The perfect studio space...for the moment

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Drawing outside in spring can be both delightful and frustrating – just 10 minutes after this idyllic moment was captured the rain was pelting down and my drawing turned into a painting. I chose to embrace the situation and made charcoaly prints on my table top, what else can you do?

Here’s a warm welcome to my studio news…

Artist in residence in the furniture field

Last month I spent an energising week on a residency with Full Grown (Gavin and Alice Munro) in their Derbyshire chair orchard.

We made charcoal with the prunings from their trees and drew together in the rain with a still smouldering stick. I discovered a new way of drawing by scratching marks into paper, then smooshing powdered charcoal into the grooves like a drypoint plate. I also discovered that using homemade charcoal powder this way will swiftly polish off your fingerprints. Reader, there were blisters.

But there was also a blissful focus on drawing to understand, working in one place and one moment with the simplest of materials, surrounded by birdsong, hoverflies and the susurrations of leaves. There’s nowhere on earth like it.

Scratchy drawings in the most local charcoal you could get

As I drew, the striking shapes of the growing furniture mingled in my mind with Gavin’s words on the origins and inspirations around his ideas. I plan to revisit these first drawings this summer to develop in the studio as monoprints or larger scale works in time for my next trip to the Full Grown field in September.

Find out more about growing furniture with Full Grown here.

BLOG

'On the brim' 2026, mixed media on wood panel, 50 x 50cm

Exhibitions

Some opportunities to get close to my new artwork this year…

'Thin Places'

A selection of my new alder-inspired works will be available in at the Kilmorack Gallery near Beauly, Inverness-shire from 5^th June.

‘Seen in the Trees’

My solo show at Arundells, Salisbury, Wiltshire launches on 16^th July and will feature recent works in charcoal, mixed media and printmaking.

I also have work in several group shows this season - you can find details on my Exhibitions page.

EXHIBITIONS

Your invitation to my open studio

It will soon be time to open my studio doors for visitors to this year’s Forth Bridges Creative Trail and I’m getting ready to share the newest of new works, alongside some highlights from the archive and some interesting bargains from the plan chest.

With over 30 creatives taking part in Trail venues all along the southern shore of the Forth, there’s lots to see and do. I’m looking forward to a weekend of conversation and connection.

Join me between 10am and 5pm on Saturday 30^th and Sunday 31^st May at Venue 9 on Shore Road, South Queensferry EH30 9SG.

OPEN STUDIO

Haddon's parkland ash

It’s not something I’m used to finding. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever seen one like it, so it was a rare treat to be able to draw this monumental ash on my recent trip to Haddon Hall for a workshop.

Ash is common in Derbyshire but has been impacted by ash dieback as elsewhere in the country, so sadly I don’t often find old ones like this. What was so striking about this particular one were its huge outstretched limbs, so characteristic of an open grown tree which has had space and light all its life.

I’ve been invited to speak at the Ancient Tree Forum and Arboricultural Association Scotland Branch Summer Forum in June, exploring the importance of open-grown ancient and veteran trees. I’ll be talking about looking at trees through the artist’s eye and why this matters just as much as through any other discipline. There are some places left so if you're going, expect LOTS of pictures.

Finally, I look forward to welcoming some of you in my studio at the end of the month, I’m excited to show you what I’ve been creating.

Very best wishes

Tansy

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Tansy Lee Moir
EO Physical Return Address
86-90 Paul Street
London
EC2A 4NE
United Kingdom

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