Crail Memories
By John Johnstone

This picture presents the viewer with what at first glance is a great swirling mass of apparently chaotic detail, with no single predominant feature on which the eye can alight. Other than the white of the buildings, boats and the gull in the foreground there are no plain surfaces.

It quickly becomes apparent however that great care has been taken in planning each individual element in the picture, as well as how they relate to one another, so that what emerges is a highly satisfying synthesis. The memories of the title are shown as being all present in the one moment, the theatre of memory being further evoked by the arched shape which forms the top edge of the picture. This hand-finished print is part of a series of etchings produced by Edinburgh Printmaker's Workshop.

Johnny Johnstone has said "My [works] seem to be expressing something, either serious or amusing about life. They depict people acting out minor dramas. Gesture, composition, characterisation and setting are important. There is an element of gravity in them, but the humorous side probably eclipses that aspect."

Johnny Johnstone was born in 1941. He studied at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee from 1959 to 1964, and later was a lecturer there for many years. He is a regular exhibitor at the Royal Scottish Academy and the Scottish Society of Artists, and is a professional member of the Scottish Society of Artists and Visual Arts Scotland.