In the kaleidoscope of contemporary art, certain individuals stand out for their unique ability to capture the essence of a landscape and infuse it with a burst of colours that evoke emotion and connection.
One such artist who has mastered this craft is John Lowrie Morrison, affectionately known as Jolomo.
With a career spanning several decades, Jolomo has become synonymous with the vibrant, expressive landscapes that have earned him international acclaim.
Born in Glasgow in 1948, Jolomo’s artistic journey began as a student at Glasgow School of Art.
However, it was not until the 1980s that he found his distinctive style, inspired by the Scottish landscape and its rich tapestry of colours.
Drawing inspiration from the works of the Scottish Colourists and the Post-Impressionists, Jolomo developed a style uniquely his own, characterised by bold brushstrokes, vivid hues, and an unapologetic celebration of the beauty found in nature.
Gallery Q in Nethergate, Dundee, is the first venue for his new exhibition, On Western Shores/The Hebrides, showcasing 32 canvases.
There’s an emphasis, as always, on his Western Isles family roots.
His paintings are a visual feast for the senses, inviting viewers to immerse themselves in the beauty of west coast scenery.
Jolomo is fascinated by Scotland’s lighthouses – and has a family link too!
In an interview with The Courier, however, Jolomo has revealed that he recently discovered a fascinating family history connection to Scotland’s east coast and his existing fascination with lighthouses.
His great, great, great grandfather Murdo Morrison was a lighthouse keeper who served on the Bell Rock off Arbroath, and also on a lighthouse in the Forth estuary near Edinburgh.
“I’ve painted the east coast before,” said the 75-year-old, speaking from his home in Argyll.
“It was back possibly 15 years ago. I was doing the north part – Banff and stuff like that – then down the east coast.
“I did it for Gallery Q a few years ago – eastern lighthouses.
“I’m a lighthouse fan. I just love painting lighthouses.
“But I discovered recently that my great, great, great grandfather was a lighthouse keeper.
“The age I’m at, I didn’t know that!” he laughed.
“I don’t even know if my dad knew! He’s gone now…He never mentioned it.
“The lighthouses were mainly on the east that he used to go to – the Bell Rock and the one that sits at Edinburgh, where the three bridges are.
“They were all east coast for some reason – although he was a Harris man.
“I suppose they were told where to go – that’s how it would have worked. I’d like to know more.
“It’s interesting looking back. I think it was 1850/60, something like that.”
Jolomo is proud of his Oor Wullie Bucket Trail contribution from 2016
As well as previous Dundee exhibitions, he’s proud of the design he did for the Oor Wullie Bucket Trail in 2016.
Jolomo Oor Wullie was created by Jolomo, raising £15,000 at auction.
It was bought by Norman Sutherland, director at Higher Ground Health and Care Planning Ltd.
Jolomo was pleased when it went on temporary loan to NHS Tayside, including an appearance at Perth Royal Infirmary where he was found makin’ himself awfy comfy in the upper waiting area in the medicine for the elderly unit.
“The medic let it out, taking it round different hospitals, which was really nice of him,” he said.
“It was a great thing to do. I thought it was really wonderful. We need more of people like him!”
Jolomo is renowned for capturing the spirit of Scotland in his work.
His paintings are not mere reproductions of landscapes. They are imbued with the artist’s emotional connection to the land – particularly the Western Isles.
What are Jolomo’s earliest memories of being an artist?
Born in Maryhill, Glasgow, John has vivid memories of the first time he drew aged two.
It was in a Maryhill tenement where he was born.
“I was standing up,” he recalled.
“It was a top floor. I was standing up in the sink and my mum was giving me a bath – because there were no baths in those days.
“I was looking down into Simpson Street as it was called, off Maryhill Road.
“It was snowing and the windows were getting steamed up and I started with my finger going this way and that way and this way and that way doing wee drawings. I still remember it.”
That memory was recreated years later when the first film about him was made by the BBC.
“The director actually got his wee boy to be me naked in the sink, getting washed,” he laughed.
“It just looked absolutely right, the way I said to them. It was just brilliant.
“After that I was four when I made up my mind I wanted to be an artist.
“I wasn’t even at school – I was in nursery or something. I said to myself, I love this drawing stuff and I’m going to be an artist. It’s never gone.”
After leaving Hyndland Secondary School in Glasgow, John studied at Glasgow School of Art from 1967-71.
He went on to train to be a teacher, moving to Tayvallich in the depths of Knapdale in 1977.
He was a principal teacher of art for 25 years, including Lochgilphead High School in Argyll, and was involved in standard grade development for the Scottish Education Department.
It was in 1985, however, that he signed his work Jolomo for the first time.
Fascination with crofts
In 1997 he severed all links with education and became a full-time artist.
He went on to become one of Scotland’s most successful living artists.
In the 2011 New Year’s Honours List he received an OBE for services to art and to charity in Scotland.
He has a particularly enduring fascination with the Scottish croft that goes back a long way.
His family came from a ‘blackhouse croft’ on the Isle of Harris.
The croft still stands although modernised. This has led him to paint crofts all his life.
He’s “obsessed” with the croft gable end. The croft may fall down in ruin, but the gable end remains like an “epitaph”.
It’s these Western Isles family roots that continue to influence his work.
“I’m 75 and I think when you get to my age you are looking back,” he said.
“My father Murdo Morrison was born in the Hebrides.
“When I was a teenager, my dad used to drive us over Skye and over on the ferry to Harris.
“It’s just lovely.
“At the moment I’ve not been up too much.
“I think the last time I was up was 2015 which I remember really nicely because it was a BBC film that they were making, BBC Alba.
“They made a smashing film of my work.”
Western Isles a ‘constant source of inspiration’
Jolomo’s Western Isles paintings are characterised by bold and thick brushstrokes, creating a sense of texture and movement in his pieces.
He is renowned for his use of intense, almost Fauvist colours, which contribute to the lively and energetic atmosphere of his work.
There’s a distinctive blend of representational and abstract elements.
He explains that the Western Isles provide a constant source of inspiration for him.
His paintings often convey a deep connection to the land and its people, celebrating the natural beauty and cultural heritage of the region.
Through his use of colour and form, Jolomo captures the essence of the Western Isles, inviting viewers to experience the unique charm and character of this remote and picturesque part of Scotland.
For him though, whether he’s sketching on location or taking a photograph and taking it back to the studio to paint, one of the greatest attractions is the light.
“It’s definitely a very pure light,” he said, “because it’s out into the Atlantic and that’s the kind of purest light you can get.
“The only other place I know and other artists will say it’s the same kind of place is down in Cornwall.
“The north part of Cornwall – that’s the purest light down there as well.
“It’s a funny thing.
“I think the furthest I’ve been out is beyond Iona in a boat.
“The water was so clear and the air was so pure it was unbelievable.
“I’d love to go to St Kilda because my dad used to talk about it when I was a wee lad because he knew people that were on St Kilda.
“I think one of our relatives was possibly there as well. I can’t remember.
“It’s quite incredible because it takes ages to get out there. It looks really rough!”
Jolomo explains that all of his works now on display at Gallery Q in Dundee were painted between November and January.
They are “very bright and sunny”. But some off them are “quite rough” as well.
Dundee Jolomo exhibition on until April 20
Jolomo is hoping to get up to the Dundee exhibition in person at some point before it ends on April 20.
Conversation