About
I live in Edinburgh, UK.
I was born and grew up in a seaside village in Galloway, Scotland. Landscapes and colours of the outdoors inspired me. Every day was a physical expedition. Growing up in such a rural setting, I spent a lot of my time outdoors exploring the coastline, rocks, paths, forests and fields, mainly on my own, observing things in the natural world and relating them to the bigger picture of human existence.
“The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity… and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself.”
William Blake
After graduating from university with a degree in Chemical Engineering I decided I wasn’t ready to go straight into working in industry. Took time out to travel to remote Borneo (primary rainforest); worked on conservation projects. Went on to study postgraduate design at art college and learn about plants, botany and the environment. Next I gained plenty of experience in corporate life, however the 9-5 offered me no real intellectual rewards; I need to learn something new or I get bored. Instead, I prefer to research, learn and write every day, distilling everyday observations to form new ideas and insights. I have a good eye for detail. I make notes on practically everything, noting minute similarities and differences on a wide range of subjects; and most of all I enjoy classifying things into order.
I like to think and write about: ideas, words, science, discovery, exploration, nature, aesthetics, design, shapes, form, pattern, colour, light, people, language, psychology, the search for satisfaction and the fascinating nature of human behaviour. Fun take on my CV here.
Observation is at the heart of all that I do. To supplement this thought process, I have always drawn. My gestural artwork sketches are inspired by the things I see and love on my everyday rambles and help me better understand the nature of things: in particular, colour, people, the sea, coast, boats, trees, flowers, botanical forms, buildings and architectural structures.
Annie
Books which have inspired me and shaped my thoughts:
The ability to describe something in a lucid, creative way which gets to ‘the very essence of the thing’ is incredibly powerful. Below I list some of the books and literature which have either captured my imagination visually and verbally, or else have impressed me with their intellectual rigour:
- The Existential Pleasures of Engineering, Samuel C. Florman, 1976 – I only wish I had read this excellent discourse before embarking on (and perhaps during) my undergraduate Chemical Engineering degree!
- The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas S. Kuhn, 1970
- Discourse on Method and The Meditations, Descartes, 1637 – practically every sentence is a gem of intellectual modesty and self-effacement.