Having been interested in drawing
and painting, including the depiction of buildings, from an early age, Andy
McKean went on to study architecture at Edinburgh University. After working for a short time in private
practice, he joined the Scottish Development Department and spent a 25 year
Civil Service career working in a number of different posts. He accepted an offer of early retirement in
2001, partly to follow his artistic pursuits.
In 2007 he moved home from
Edinburgh to the South West of Scotland where he has benefitted from the
plentiful subject matter for painting in the beautiful landscape of the
Galloway hills and Solway coast, and the many opportunities to exhibit in small
local galleries in the area. He has been
a member of the Scottish Society of Architect Artists since 2002, and has also
participated in ‘Spring Fling’, Dumfries & Galloway’s open studios
event.
Andy works mainly in watercolours
and acrylics and his subjects generally cover old buildings, monuments, houses,
gardens, landscapes and seascapes. His
paintings often feature the strong compositional effects produced by patterns
of bright sunlight and deep shadow on weathered stone or rocks, contrasted with
the soft textures and bright colours of vegetation.
As well as producing original
paintings for exhibition and sale, many of these are available as prints or
greetings cards through local outlets or through his website, and his practice
as an artist has extended into the undertaking of numerous private commissions.
