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Jan Ferguson’s Benmore Exhibition
If you’re a lover of animals, you mustn’t miss local wildlife artist, Jan Ferguson’s solo exhibition at Benmore Courtyard Gallery, in Benmore Gardens. Jan currently has 32 watercolour pictures of animals on display, each one painted in superb detail and set off beautifully against the natural stone walls and woodwork of this amazing gallery.
Accurate drawings and natural colours embody Jan’s particular style. Her clever use of black and white gouache paint is also a significant feature whilst her love of the natural world and animals comes across strongly in each of her paintings.
Jan and her family have their own menagerie at Toward – 3 horses, 2 dogs, 1 cat, numerous goldfish and at the moment, one pet dove. But it has not always been this way for Jan. Born in Newcastle in 1955, the elder of two children, Jan Watling was brought up in ‘dockyard’ country, miles away from any natural landscape or animals. There were no artists in her family (although she wonders whether she may be related to the Dumfriesshire wildlife artist, Thomas Watling) and life was undoubtedly tough. But from her father, she learnt a love of nature, particularly a love of birds and animals. As a child she immersed herself in nature books and demonstrated a particular talent for drawing animals.
After leaving school, Jan trained as a nurse but bronchial problems caused by the poor living conditions in Newcastle in the 50s, always dogged her. Moving to Argyll in 1985, with her husband and two children, “was a dream come true”, she says. Surrounded by woodlands, hills and beaches, all teeming with wildlife, provided her with the stimuli she needed to get going once again with her pencils, paints and brushes. Unable to return to work as a nurse, and encouraged by her husband, she decided to establish her own business doing the thing she loved best of all – painting animals.
Two years after making the decision to paint full time, Jan held her first exhibition at the Boathouse Gallery in Strone. She is, she says, forever grateful to its proprietor at the time, Hazel Edwards, for demonstrating so much faith in her. Since then, Jan has gone from strength to strength. Most of her work is now done on a commission basis as her reputation for detail and for her ability to ‘capture the character’ of a pet spreads world-wide.
“I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved,” says Jan. “Especially when you think where I came from. I’m so lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the world with so much inspiring material on my door step.”
There’s no doubt that Jan’s enthusiasm is infectious. Her exhibition is well worth a visit but you’ll have to be quick – it ends on Sunday, October 5th. You can also visit her in her studio at home in ‘The Old Smiddy’, Toward, by prior arrangement. Just give her a call on (01369) 870346 or log into her website www.janferguson.co.uk
Jan’s Career Highlights
- 1 Exhibition at Olympia, London – 1 of only 20 finalists (out of thousands of entries!) in an international wildlife painting competition organised by the Born Free Foundation
- 2 Regular exhibiter at the annual National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (Liverpool)
- 3 Commissioned for feature labels on Bladnoch Whisky merchandise
- 4 Contributor to ‘Glimpses of Galloway’ calendar
- 5 Public speaker to encourage local artists
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