2015 was an outstanding year for artist Gerard M Burns and has brought even more success and recognition his way – and we couldn’t think of anyone more deserving.
You may have come across his achievements in the media throughout the year, but if you happened to miss them then fret not – as *spoiler alert* this blog post will definitely be gushing about them! We also have some amazing news to share with you regarding new works in the pipeline – so read on and all will be revealed…
Since giving up his role of Principle of Art at St Aloysius College in 1999, Gerard has established himself as a commendable figurative painter and his works are often met with comments like ‘It’s just like a photograph!’ -and of course they are impressively realistic, but they go deeper than that. Using relatives, friends and neighbours as models, Gerard paints what he knows. The outcome is a beautiful collection of emotional and engaging images which reveal a fleeting moment in the sitter’s story. There is also a real sense of patriotism in his work and with his pieces often featuring the Saltire and Scottish landscape, you come to understand that this is an artist who is proud of his roots.
But its not just his family and friends that Gerard paints! He has seen massive success with his portraits of some of Scotland’s most iconic figures and exhibiting these throughout the year has raised thousands for charity. In April of last year, Gerard opened the doors to his exhibition ‘A Brush With Inspiration’ in New York city, and it quickly became one of the highlights of Scotland Week 2015. His incredible portraits of Billy Connolly and actor Alan Cumming featured, as did the sitters themselves – who came out to support Gerard on the opening night.
Showing that despite his success, he remains grounded – last month Gerard took the same exhibition to Easterhouse’s Shandwick Shopping Centre to to share his work with the Scottish people. Gerard’s outlook on his work is that it can be taken anywhere and people will get it and should be accessible for all – and this was another great triumph for him.
And have you been to Edinburgh’s National Portrait Gallery lately? Well if you are a fan of Gerard’s fantastic portraits I suggest you head there to see his depiction of former First Minister Alex Salmond, which became a permanent part of their collection in November!
With all this in mind, and the fact his clientele now including A-list celebrities, politicians and business tycoons – it is no wonder he is one of Robertson Fine Arts best selling artists.
We can finally tell you about something exciting Gerard has been working on for the past few months for us- some brand new works of his female models (who are normally painted in the streets of Glasgow) strolling down the Royal Mile! We are delighted to be able to showcase these at our Edinburgh gallery – well, thats if they even manage to make it to our walls!
They will be with us very soon, however there has already been a great deal of demand for these works – so if they sound appealing to you please register your interest to robertsonfineart@live.com to keep updated.
We cant wait to see what else comes Gerard’s way in 2016 and to continue what we are sure will be a very successful year working with him and displaying his incredible art across our galleries (especially our new Edinburgh store!)
As always, thank you for reading.
Kelley Davis
Assistant Manager -Robertson Fine Art Edinburgh.