After admiring Clare Brownlow’s art in several properties we knew Pheasant Feather Art would be a great feature in our ‘Paton Life’ magazine. We so enjoyed chatting with Clare to find out about how she started painting with pheasant feathers, what the inspiration is behind her art and about her new studio space at the Hirsel. Thank you so much Clare for taking the time to chat with us.
Sometimes a random discovery can be the catalyst for a new direction, and this was the case for Scottish Borders based artist Clare Brownlow when she was visiting her parents in Norfolk back in 2009. One day, when sitting at the kitchen table, she picked up a pheasant feather from her father’s collection, dipped it in ink, and started sketching. “I wasn’t thinking, ‘I’m going to make a career from this,’” Clare reflects. “I just liked the energy of it and the dynamic marks it made.”
Thirteen years later, Clare is renowned for Pheasant Feather Art and exhibits widely in art galleries – including her own gallery at Hawico in Hawick – along with festivals and events, and over recent years she has collaborated with a range of high profile clients including Pol Roger Champagne, Bowland Brewery, and the Edinburgh Zoological Society. Producing original works alongside a print collection, as well as cards and homewares, Clare’s bird and wildlife art is distinctive for the energy she brings to each subject. A woodcock is captured in flight, and you can sense the movement of its wings in the way the ink droplets dart across the paper. Grouse swirl in the air, each flap of the wings again brought to life in the movement of the ink.
Working with a pheasant feather has given Clare a very different experience to her original approach as an artist, when she painted atmospheric landscapes and seascapes in oils. “With a feather, although it looks expressive and free, you have to be very specific with your mark making,” she says.
Clare is constantly inspired by the wildlife she encounters around her home in the Scottish Borders, and this spring Clare moved to a new studio within the Hirsel Estate at Coldstream. “I first visited the estate years ago with my sons and had a walk in the grounds, never imagining that I’d have a studio here one day,” she says. Situated in a converted coach house, where arched windows flood the studio with light, Clare is enjoying having a creative space within this rich natural environment. “It’s so peaceful here with beautiful birds around the pond and pheasants everywhere. It’s the perfect location for what I do.”
Clare’s studio is part of a creative hub of spaces at The Hirsel. “Having worked on my own for so long, it’s great to chat to other artists and be able to bounce ideas around.” While you can see Clare’s work at the studio (although do email to arrange a time), you can also view Pheasant Feather Art online where her website includes an Interactive Prints Room – an innovative feature that enables viewers to browse the artworks within a space, as you would in a gallery.
Clare’s collaboration with Pol Roger has also led to similar commissions for clients. “Pol Roger commissioned me to paint on their champagne bottles, and now I do commissions where I’ll paint on a bottle, whether it be bees or pheasants or grouse, and it’s a really lovely gift to keep,” she says. Clare’s art is constantly evolving and this latest chapter, with her studio at The Hirsel, is already filled with new inspiration.
To find out more information about Clare’s art, visit www.clarebrownlow.co.uk
You can also find Clare’s work on Instagram at @pheasantfeatherart
To arrange a studio visit, email Clare at clare@clarebrownlow.co.uk
And for more details about the Hirsel visit: https://www.hirselhomestead.co.uk/
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