Moss campion

Oil on board, 38 x 50 cm

Drawn by the descriptions of the dramatic landscapes of the Scottish outer Hebrides, I made a visit to the Isle of Lewis a few years ago. The climate there is rather grim, and the terrain rugged. Although it was mid-summer, the hikes I took made me grateful for hot tea afterwards. The rocks there are some of the oldest on earth. Although the soil is far from accommodating to agriculture, the vegetation perseveres in the form of low-lying mosses and ferns. I was captivated by the contrast between the rough, lichen-covered, 3 billion year old gneiss, and the delicate moss campion, which finds its home in the rock’s crevices.