Derek Robertson RSW SSA SAA (born 1967) is a Scottish artist. One of the signature members of the Society of Animal Artists, he is known for his paintings of wildlife and landscapes, and for his poetic narrative work consisting of paintings, constructions and installations. He has been elected several times to the Council of the Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour. He has written and presented five television programs"Around Scotland", The Scots Magazine Dundee. p624, June 1995 about his work and the wildlife he portrays. He has written five books about his art: The Mugdrum,Cyril Gerber, In conversation with Peter Hill. Alba Magazine Edinburgh, Summer 1999 p48 Highland Sketchbook,Wild in de Natuur, exhibition catalogue t' Kunsthuis van het Oosten, Enschede, Nederlands, 2009 p31 A Studio Under the Sky,New Books, Scots Magazine, Edinburgh, February 2001, p143 Otters, An Artist's Sketchbook, Living Landscapes and Puffins: An Artist's Sketchbook. His work has also illustrated many other publications.Art and Observation, Scottish Bird News, Aberlady, p4 No 88 June 2008
Life and work Derek Robertson was born near St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. While at the High School of Dundee,Former pupils: http://www.archive.highschoolofdundee.org.uk/Filename.ashx?tableName=ta_publications&columnName=filename&recordId=162 he attended weekend art classes by James MacIntosh Patrick before completing a BA (Hons) in drawing and painting at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee.Birds in Art exhibition catalogue Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wasau, Wisconsin USA 2001 p101
On graduating in 1989, he was commissioned by HarperCollins to write and illustrate his first book, Highland Sketchbook, which was nominated for the McVities Prize.Alan MacLeod, Painting Paradise, Kingdom Magazine, Dalgety Bay, Fife, Issue 8 Spring 2005, p30-31. He was then commissioned by Grampian Television to present a program about his work for the series Portrait of the Wild.Deirdre Gillespie, Drawn from Wild Places, Scottish Field, Edinburgh, June 1995 pp. 14-17 He went on to write and present a series of four half-hour programs for Grampian TV/STV entitled Drawn From Wild Places.Drawn From Wild Places, Preview, Kelvingrove Museums, Glasgow, July–September 1995 p6
Robertson has won several awards, including the RSW Small Painting Prize, Glasgow Art Club Fellowship and John Gray Award.
He has illustrated many publications, most notably Song of the Rolling EarthSong of the Rolling Earth and Nature's ChildNature's Child by the nature writer Sir John Lister-Kaye.
Robertson exhibits mainly in the UK, but also overseas. His work is held in public and private collections internationally. His wildlife work is noted for his use of outdoor sketching from lifeA Walk on the Wild Side, Artists and Illustrators Magazine, London, October 1999 pp. 42-43 and for often using the unusual technique of watercolour on linen.Painting with Gouache on Linen, Artists and Illustrators Magazine, London, January 2001 pp. 24-24
He has served on the selection and hanging committees for a number of the exhibiting societies in Scotland and on the council of the Aberdeen Artists Society.AAS Annual Exhibition Catalogue, Issue 74, 2008, Aberdeen
He has worked on collaborative projects with the poets Valerie GilliesValerie GilliesValerie Gillies, The Chanter's Tune, Canongate, Edinburgh pp. 15-19 and Rody Gorman.Rody GormanRuairidh agus Ruairidh eile, Stanza Scottish International Poetry Festival Programme 2012, St Andrews, cover and p. 12 Robertson was appointed artist in residence at Tentsmuir Nature Reserve and has worked on numerous collaborative projects with scientists and other creative practitioners.
Wildlife research Robertson is an amateur wildlife researcher. He is a licensed bird ringer and has assisted many research projects which have resulted in co-authored publications, including a collaborative research project on farmland finchesproject on farmland finches with the BTO.Calladine et al. BTO News Issue 247 July–August 2003, pp. 10-11 His own studies have also been published in scientific papers. He has illustrated and edited a number of papers and publications, including the Fife Bird Atlas. He has accompanied research expeditions to Africa, Scandinavia, and seabird islands such as St Kilda, the Shiant Isles and Handa Island, which have all featured in his paintings.Neil Glenn, Scotland's Migrant Magnet, Birds Illustrated, Vol. 5 Issue 4. Summer 2008, Peterborough, pp. 45-49. He has served on many research and conservation committees including the Isle of May Bird Observatory,Ringing Report, Isle of May Annual Report, 1999 the Tay Ringing Group, and the BTO council and ringing committee.
References
Further reading
External links "Interview: Derek Robertson is never happier than when painting in the great outdoors", The Scotsman, 15 August 2008. Retrieved 2012-02-27. Wildlife and landscapes Narrative paintings and constructions