Artist
My aim is to make paintings that are mysterious; not primarily abstract, or representations of things, but rather things in themselves, like talismans, or icons, or magical objects that you could use to cure an illness.
Every painting is a new experiment, a new exploration. The choice of subject matter, of medium (usually oils or acrylic paint), the canvas, is all secondary to that. My primary focus of experimentation is colour: its beauty, its energies, its effects on the imagination, on mood, on emotions; the reaction of one colour to another, and ultimately, what and how it communicates.
I agree with Kandinsky that ”the colour is the meaning”, with Léger that , “Man needs colour to live, its just as necessary an element as fire and water”, and with Tàpies that “ I prefer to let colours speak for themselves, as they come from so far away, as they are so old and keep so many secrets."
Designer
My rugs are designed individually and to commission. They are entirely handmade by a cooperative in Konya, Turkey, who make carpets of outstanding quality, and have their work in the great houses of England, Europe and America, palaces in the Gulf states, and major contemporary art museums.
I had my own design business , Catriona Stewart Ltd, for 25 years. My work was known world wide, and I designed and made products for The National Gallery, the Victoria and Albert Museum , the Royal Academy , Libertys, and Harvey Nichols, in England, and, in America, for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Opera, Yale Museum of British Art, Barney’s , Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue.
If you would like to commission a rug please contact me for more information.