Ever since doing an intensive and stunningly informative fungi ecology workshop with Alison Pouliot a year or so back, I have set myself the task of quietly foraging my way through the edible wild mushroom species. It's all fun and adventure.

The trick I have found is to learn all I need to know to positively identify one particular mushroom that I want to find and taste, then get outside and enjoy the forests. It's a slow method, but positive identification is the only safe way. I guess I could also get out there and pick one example of every mushroom I find and them attempt to identify them, but I have found identifying a bag full of unknown mushrooms to be so very time consuming.

Some of these foraged discoveries are a lot more edible than others! It's all part of the adventure.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I have very quickly discovered that edible does not mean palatable or even delicious, it just means it won't harm or kill you. So it is a delight to discover (read - stumble upon while not looking, again while walking the dogs) a new gem.

Coprinus comatus - Shaggy Ink Caps or Lawyers Wigs. Apparently cultivated in China as a food but completely overlooked here. Total waste.

As of last night, I can now say these are wonderful eating.

A wonderful unexpected discovery while walking the dogs and exploring a new patch of ground. A delightful bonus of taking the time to look and breathe. My favourite wild foraged mushroom.

In learning about wild foraged foods, it has been an adjustment to find that although there are many plants which are considered edible, that doesn't mean that you would want to eat them. Technically grass is edible. But why would you want to? Point made?

Edible. Palatable. Delightful. 

There is quite a difference.

So it is a gleeful moment when I find one of the wild culinary delights. A truly delicious treat. This little lilac lovely is my favourite wild mushroom of the ones I have tried so far. It's lepista nuda, the blewitt.

Fried in a little butter and salt. The liquid they give out is a sublime and perfect cream of mushroom soup all on it's own. The mushrooms themselves are divinely flavourful. A simple zen treat.

Artist inspiration and artist influences. No biographies, dates or scholarly research here -  this is a personal response to the work of Sir Henry Raeburn by Australian artist Fiona Morgan.

While I was living in Edinburgh I became fascinated with the stories of the very very many inventive and creative Scots of times past from that city. You may be amazed at just how many breakthroughs we take for granted in modern life were Scottish in origin. Sir Henry Raeburn, as a venerated citizen of Edinburgh, came to my attention.

Anne Raeburn

 It is as much Henry Raeburns' story as his paintings that catch my admiration. He was an outsider to the art establishment, who did the work necessary to become a great painter. Let me summarise:

William Robertson, Lord Robertson

 Henry Raeburn began his working life as an apprentice goldsmith. For a bit of context, his era was 1756-1823 in Edinburgh, Scotland. As part of the job he was required to paint miniature portraits, for which it turned out he had some talent. His employer introduced him to Edinburgh's leading portrait artist of the day who gave him advice and loaned him pictures to practice copying.

Colonel Alastair Ranaldson Macdonell of Glengarry

 He decided to become a portrait artist himself. To increase his skill he sought advice from the best artists in Britain and travelled to Italy to study the paintings there, as recommended. After two years of travel and study he returned to Edinburgh and established his portrait painting business, for which he built his own studio. He was successful and well regarded.

Commander Hugh Clapperton

A bad business investment bankrupted him but did not stop him. He painted his way out of debt, recovered his fortune and ended up being knighted.

Elizabeth Campbell Marchesa di Spineto

 I love his story of perseverance, discipline, study and hard work (with a dash of entrepreneurial chutzpah) that took him from being an orphan with nothing and a complete outsider to the art establishment, to a technically accomplished and wealthy painter of portraits of high society.

Elizabeth Hamilton

Onto his actual painting. Usually this quite old (some would say classic) style of painting bores me silly. Yes, yes, I admire and appreciate the technical ability, but the murky shadows, highly dramatised lighting, period dress and stiffness of the sitters just fails to fill me with enthusiasm.

Miss Eleanor Urquhart

 
However, I do enjoy Raeburn's painting. He only painted from life, and I think it shows through in the way each sitter has a personality and a believably real pose.

Mrs R. Scott Moncrieff

The skin of the subjects in his paintings glow with light. The portraits are of live people! And although the highly dramatised lighting does irritate me (on some days, depending on what I've had for breakfast), I appreciate that the way the light is used to focus your eye is very effective. I find the full range of light to dark contrasts makes for bold, strong work.

Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch

I enjoy the sumptuous texture of the clothing in his paintings which is just tight enough to convey the fabric. In this way that he used his brushstrokes he was ahead of his time, with a confident and masterful square brush technique sometimes bordering on the modern bravura handling so popular today (both which enthrall me).

Sir Walter Scott

More Sir Henry Raeburn links

http://www.nationalgalleries.org/collection/artists-a-z/R/4399/artistName/Sir%20Henry%20Raeburn
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Raeburn
http://www.britsattheirbest.com/archives/002612.php

The Creative Cauldron series of posts explores and showcases the visual styles, techniques, attitudes, ideas, artists and paintings that have had the most impact on me. 

The rest of the series is accessible via the Creative Cauldron page. Have a meander if you please, and remember to check out my artworks on Flickr, and have an insider peek at life as an artist on Facebook.