Point series
Lucent
Resonance
Contrapuntal
Echoes
Reflex
Studies on paper
Others
Biography
James Lumsden’s abstract paintings seem to emanate an inner light and give the illusion of movement. The complex creative process developed by the artist brings to life seductive, mysterious works that invite the viewer to question their genesis and look beyond their surface.
James Lumsden: abstract painting between Scottish city and nature
James Lumsden (Inverness, 1964) is a Scottish artist. He works between Edinburgh and the Isle of Lewis, moving regularly from one studio to another. The iridescent light of the Isle of Lewis and its landscapes of beaches, cliffs, moors, mountains and lochs provide the painter with a source of inspiration that stands out in certain canvases, notably through the use of opalescent pigments and a cooler palette. His abstract paintings thus find an echo in the environment in which they were created.
A complex technique guided by experience and research
The creative process is at the heart of the artist’s approach. James Lumsden constantly experiments to develop something new in each of his series. He pushes the limits of painting and has developed a personal technique: first the canvas is prepared with acrylic gesso, then around 40 thin layers of translucent paint (acrylic paint mixed with gloss gel) are applied progressively to the surface with a brush.
By pulling, manipulating and sliding paint from each layer using plastic or metal tools, James Lumsden conceals or brings out traces and marks of color, achieving an illusion of light, depth and movement. The artist explains that “the transparency and the fluidity of the marks can give a sense of something caught in motion – an act of movement fixed“. The final work is achieved through a controlled, thoughtful and precise creative process, but at the same time presents elements of chance, mixing accidental and well-calibrated marks and gestures.
“I want to see something brought to life, struggled for, with a sense of having its own history, and reflective of the time spent on its creation. My aim is to create something positive and affirming which is filled with both light and darkness, contrasts, hesitations and contradictions – open paintings which allow the viewer’s imagination to search, wander or react at will.” James Lumsden
Reaching poetry and emotion through light and colour
Two elements are the protagonists of James Lumsden’s work: light and colour. The Scottish contemporary painter admires artists who have demonstrated a great mastery of light in the history of art, as well as some more contemporary figures: from Caravaggio, Vermeer, Turner and Rothko to Joseph Marioni, Pierre Soulages and Ornulf Opdahl. However, he does not treat light as a subject for his works: “For me light is the soul of painting. […] I aim to imbue my paintings with an internal light. Not a depiction of light, but a sense of light emanating from within the painting“.
As for the colours, James Lumsden chooses bold, contrasting combinations: intense turquoises are superimposed on gradations of magenta, icy blues are juxtaposed with delicate pinks. The colours meet on the surface, but seem to emerge from within the painting in a delicate, poetic movement. The artist’s aim of transforming the canvas into an object filled with light, feeling and emotion has been achieved.
“Each individual painting feels like a living organism with layers of connective tissue beneath; a self-reflexive surface, visceral and cerebral, charged with a shifting palette of emotional depth and complexity. This felt sense, experienced by the artist and viewer, creates imaginative spaces for associative meanings and connections with pure elements of light, colour, form and texture.” Georgina Coburn
An artistic career from Scotland to the international stage
James Lumsden studied graphic design in Glasgow and since the 1990s has taken part in solo and group exhibitions, mainly in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. He is a member of the Society of Scottish Artists and he has won several prizes and artist residencies during his career. His contemporary paintings can be found in public and private collections, including those of the City of Edinburgh and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Exhibition view at An Lanntair arts centre, Stornoway
Exhibition view at The Briggait, Wasps, Glasgow, 2021
Exhibition view at The Briggait, Wasps, Glasgow, 2021
And Rubha | The Point Series, personal exhibition at Linlithgow Burgh Halls, Linlithgow, Scotland, 2024
And Rubha | The Point Series, personal exhibition at Linlithgow Burgh Halls, Linlithgow, Scotland, 2024
And Rubha | The Point Series, personal exhibition at Linlithgow Burgh Halls, Linlithgow, Scotland, 2024
And Rubha | The Point Series, personal exhibition at Linlithgow Burgh Halls, Linlithgow, Scotland, 2024
CV
Solo exhibitions
- 2025 – Solo Show, Top Floor Kirkcudbright Galleries (Kirkcudbright, Scotland)
- 2024 – Open Light, duo show, Inverness Museum and Art Gallery (Inverness, Scotland)
- 2024 – An Rubha – The Point Series, solo show, Linlithgow Burgh Halls (Linlithgow, Scotland)
- 2023 – Fugal Paintings, solo show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2023 – Solo show, Holly Johnson Gallery (Dallas, Texas, USA)
- 2022 – Solo show, An Lanntair (Stornoway, Scotland)
- 2021 – Slow Light, solo show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2021 – Solo show, The Briggait (Glasgow, Scotland)
- 2021 – Point Series, solo show, An Talla Solais (Ullapool, Scotland)
- 2019 – Lucent, solo show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2018 – Solo show, Holly Johnson Gallery (Dallas, Texas, USA)
- 2018 – Solo show, Paul Kuhn Gallery (Calgary, Canada)
- 2017 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Gallery (London, UK)
- 2017 – Solo show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2016 – Solo show, MS Gallery (Morges, Switzerland)
- 2015 – Solo show, Paul Kuhn Gallery (Calgary, Canada)
- 2015 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Gallery (London, UK)
- 2013 – Solo show, & Collective (Bridge of Allan, Scotland)
- 2013 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Gallery (London, UK)
- 2013 – Solo show, Edinburgh Art Festival / Scottish Arts Club (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2012 – Solo show, Paul Kuhn Gallery (Calgary, Canada)
- 2012 – Solo show, Rhue Art (Ullapool, Scotland)
- 2011 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2011 – Solo show, An Talla Solais (Ullapool, Scotland)
- 2010 – Solo show, Paul Kuhn Gallery (Calgary, Canada)
- 2009 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2007 – Solo show, Amber Roome Contemporary Art (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2006 – Solo show, Atticsalt (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2006 – Solo show, MAC (Birmingham, UK)
- 2005 – Solo show with Andrew Mackenzie, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2005 – Solo show, An Tuireann Arts Centre (Isle of Skye, Scotland)
- 2004 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2003 – Solo show with Eoghann MacColl, Oriel Capsule (Cardiff, Scotland)
- 2002 – Solo show, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2001 – Solo show, Triskel Arts Centre (Cork, Ireland)
- 2000 – Solo show, The Loft Gallery (Glasgow, Scotland)
- 2000 – Solo show, Aalborg Triennale (Aalborg, Denmark)
- 1999 – Solo show, Gracefield Arts Centre (Dumfries, Scotland)
- 1999 – Solo show, Pump House Gallery (London, UK)
- 1997 – Solo show, Collective Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 1997 – Solo show, Inverness Museum and Art Gallery (Scotland)
- 1996 – Solo show, Compass Gallery (Glasgow, Scotland)
- 1993 – Solo show, Collective Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 1992 – Solo show, Merz Contemporary Art (London, UK)
Group exhibitions
- 2023 – Paintings, group show, Holly Johnson Gallery (Dallas, USA)
- 2023 – Abstraction: Landscapes and Otherscapes, group show, Ballinglen Museum of Art (County Mayo, Ireland)
- 2023 – 30:30, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2022 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2022 – Winter Exhibition, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2022 – London Art Fair, group show, with & Gallery (UK)
- 2022 – On Paper, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2021 – 4th Anniversary exhibition, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2021 – Tiny Yet Mighty, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2020 – Winter Exhibition, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2020 – Room, group show, An Talla Solais (Ullapool, Scotland)
- 2020 – RSA Open, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2019 – Beneath The Surface, group show, City Art Centre (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2019 – Summertime Blues, group show, Holly Johnson Gallery (Dallas, USA)
- 2019 – Left Field, group show, LHQ Gallery (Cork, Ireland)
- 2019 – Winter Exhibition, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2019 – Palimpsest, group show, An Lanntair (Stornoway, Scotland)
- 2019 – President’s Choice, group show, Scottish Arts Club (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2019 – London Art Fair, group show, with & Gallery (UK)
- 2019 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2018 – Unrestricted, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2018 – Not as it seems, group show, Tatha Gallery (Newport on Tay, Scotland)
- 2018 – OPEN 2018, group show, SSA/VAS, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2017 – Connection, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2017 – More Alchemy, group show, Tatha Gallery (Newport on Tay, Scotland)
- 2017 – Inception, group show, & Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2016 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual (Invited Artist), group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2016 – Manmade, group show, Holly Johnson Gallery (Dallas, USA)
- 2015 – RSA Open, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2015 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2015 – The seed of it’s opposite, group show, Kelvin College (Glasgow, Scotland)
- 2015 – Summershow, group show, Paul Kuhn Gallery (Calgary, Canada)
- 2015 – Art Paris, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Gallery (Paris, France)
- 2015 – London Art Fair, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Gallery (UK)
- 2014 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2014 – Re-Define, group show, Dallas Contemporary (Dallas, USA)
- 2014 – Art Paris, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Gallery (Paris, France)
- 2014 – London Art Fair, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Gallery (UK)
- 2013 – Paper Planes, group show, Stow Arts Festival (Stow, USA)
- 2013 – Art Paris, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (Paris, France)
- 2013 – Society of Scottish Artists Annual, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2013 – London Art Fair, group show, with Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (UK)
- 2012 – RSA Open, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2012 – Toronto International Art Fair, group show, with Paul Kuhn Gallery (Canada)
- 2012 – Black & White, group show, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art (London, UK)
- 2011 – RSA Annual Exhibition, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2011 – Perception, group show, Rhue Art at The Dovecot (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2010 – RSA Residencies for Scotland Award, group show, Royal Scottish Academy (Edinburgh, Scotland)
- 2010 – Abstract Matters, group show, Open Eye Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
Collections
- Germain Collection, Montreal and Calgary
- GBI group, Calgary
- MLT Aitkens Calgary
- City of Edinburgh Art Collection
- Royal Bank of Scotland, Edinburgh
- HBOS, Edinburgh
- Mastercard, London
- Mayer Brown International, London
- Aalborg Kommune, Denmark
- Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Ireland
- Edinburgh University Acute Services Trust
- Paintings in Hospitals Scotland
- Inverness Museum and Art Gallery
- Highland Council
- Gulbenkian Foundation
Awards & Residencies
- 2025 – Scottish Landscape Awards 2025
- 2025 – Creative Scotland Open Fund for Individuals Award
- 2023 – VACMA Award
- 2016 – Edinburgh Printmakers Prize, Society of Scottish Artists Annual Exhibition
- 2016 – Invited Artist, Society of Scottish Artists Annual Exhibition
- 2016 – Elected Professional Member, Society of Scottish Artists
- 2015 – B.A.I.R Residency, Banff Arts Centre, Banff, Canada
- 2011 – The Scottish Arts Club Award, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh
- 2011 – Visual Arts Award, Edinburgh
- 2010 – Royal Scottish Academy Residencies for Scotland Award
Publications
- 2023 – Fugal Paintings, exhibition catalogue, & Gallery, Edinburgh. Artists Q&A, 36pp
- 2021 – Slow Light, exhibition catalogue, & Gallery, Edinburgh. Intro text by & Gallery, 40pp
- 2021 – The Point Series, exhibition catalogue, An Talla Solais, Ullapool. Artists text, 24pp
- 2020 – Beneath the Surface, exhibition catalogue, City Art Centre, Edinburgh. Text by Maeve Toal. Essay by Kenneth Dingwall. 32pp
- 2020 – The Scotsman, review of Beneath the Surface exhibition by Duncan Macmillan.
- 2019 – Lucent, exhibition catalogue, & Gallery, Edinburgh. Artists text. 16pp
- 2019 – Art North magazine,review of Lucent exhibition by Clodagh Macalary.
- 2018 – Resonance, exhibition catalogue, Paul Kuhn Gallery, Calgary. Artist text. 24pp
- 2017 – Reflection, exhibition catalogue, & Gallery, Edinburgh. Text by & Gallery. 28pp
- 2015 – Reflex, exhibition catalogue, Sarah Myerscough Gallery, London. Essay by Freya Cooper Kiddie. 30pp
- 2013 – Echoes, exhibition catalogue, Sarah Myerscough Gallery, London. Essay by Georgina Coburn. 28pp
Articles
James Lumsden: light, time and space
James Lumsden’s abstract paintings seem imbued with an inner light. Created over several weeks by applying successive layers of translucent...
