Nature has always played an important role in Sarah’s life. Whether it was childhood games of hide and seek in the forests of upstate NY, bike rides on country roads, or skiing every winter in Colorado, her love for nature has always pulled her to the wild places.
Sarah has spent most of her life pursuing an artistic career of some kind. She has a Bachelors of Fine Arts from Alfred University, NY and a Bachelors of Interior Design with an emphasis in Sustainability from RMCAD, CO. Her passion for photography blossomed over the last two decades and is yet another way she connects to nature.
After many years of creative pursuits in the USA, Sarah’s life changed when she boarded a train in Scotland and met who would later become her husband (and reason for moving to Scotland).
About Sketching Scotland
Ever since I moved to Scotland in 2017, I’ve wanted to explore every inch of it. While I enjoy little weekend trips around the country now and then, I decided to give myself a focus for exploring regularly: the coast.
Over the next several years, I will be hiking, cycling, and even kayaking along the coast of Scotland with my sketchbook and cameras. There are over 6,000 miles of coastline in Scotland, and over 11,000 if you factor in the islands which is why it will take many years. I will do it in small sections as time allows and share the journey in video format on YouTube. The artwork will be compiled into books along the way.
This project will take me around the entire coast of Scotland (including islands) over the next several years, but not just for the sake of hiking and sightseeing. My goal is to learn the history and gain a deeper understanding of each area I walk through. I’ll sketch and write about whatever catches my eye or helps me remember the unique details of a place. This will act as a kind of travel journal as well.
I’ve been looking for ways to connect with this beautiful land on a deeper level. I like to give myself projects that motivate me to keep going out and exploring – even through the challenging weather that is so common in Scotland.
The coast has always been beautifully alien to me. Perhaps this has something to do with living in Denver, Colorado for over a decade. Colorado is a landlocked state in the middle of America. Denver has an arid climate and is known as the “Mile High City,” because of it’s elevation of 5,280 ft (exactly 1 mile above sea level). So water is hard to come by, and the ocean was a far-off fantasy world.
Now that I live in Scotland only 10 minutes from the North Sea, I am in a new world. The colors of the sea, the textures of the rocks, the labyrinth of flora and fauna visible in every square foot of rock pools…it’s a true cornucopia for artists and photographers!
When we moved to Moray county in 2020, a beautiful area of northeast Scottish highlands, I was suddenly a very short distance from the coast. Week after week, I started exploring the rocky shores a bit more. Soon I found myself spending day after day walking and painting next to the turquoise waters. I was hooked.
Since then my artistic practice has revolved around how much time I can spend painting outside. Everything I do is the result of the marriage between communing with nature and growing my artistic skills.
But I find it difficult to be a full-time artist without some structure. I thrive when I have a very solid purpose and schedule with concrete goals to work towards. Otherwise I feel like I’m drifting in the wind and I get a bit lost.
When I first conceived this idea to hike & paint the entire coast of Scotland, I was excited yet fearful. I didn’t want to fail or get hurt. I didn’t think I was ready or qualified. I thought, if I never start, how could I fail? That would be safer. So I put it off for years.
But something shifted for me this past summer. I began spending much more time painting outside during longer hikes. Eventually I found courage to admit to myself this project was what I truly wanted to pursue. And I can already tell you that after the first few miles, all of those fears have completely faded. I realised those hurdles were the result of a false construct I created to stop myself from getting hurt – mentally and physically.
So it’s full steam ahead!
Although I have no idea what the future holds, my instinct tells me this is the perfect time for me to chase this dream. This coastal journey has already provided more inspiration than I can use. It has taken over my whole life – thankfully with the encouragement of my loved ones!