Introducing Stuart Murdoch – the life, work and musings of a Scottish sculptor

This is the very first entry in the Blog of me, Stuart Murdoch. Thank you for being here.

A photo of Scottish sculptor, Stuart Murdoch in his studio workshop

A photo of Scottish sculptor, Stuart Murdoch in his studio workshop

A bit about myself
I am a man, accidentally and miraculously approaching a half century on this planet. I was born in Aberdeen in Scotland and, after several years away, am now living back in Scotland. More specifically, I live in Banffshire nearly 1,000 feet up a hill overlooking the River Spey with lovely, unbroken views across woodland, glens, hills and the Cairngorm mountains.  My nearest neighbour is over half a mile away and sometimes my only visitors are the birds and beasties of the Scottish Highlands.

My work

I am a sculptor. I mostly utilise traditional tools and methods to create all manner of pieces out of wood, stone, slate, sometimes metal and occasionally a combination of all of those materials. I started the business nearly ten years ago and moved it to the Highlands seven years ago.

Have you heard of me? Are you likely to have seen any of my work about the place? Probably not. Other than some wood carving evening classes and a weekend stone carving in Dorset, I’m mostly self-taught. Although I do have some of my work on show in public spaces, most of what I do is unique commissions for private clients. As time goes on I’ll share some of the pieces I’ve made here but you can also see them on my website or my Facebook page.

My life

Although I will be sharing my work and ideas on here I will also write about other parts of my life and lifestyle – hobbies, thoughts, dreams etc. These are likely to include –

  • Where I live
  • Places I’d like to visit
  • Hobbies and pastimes
  • My lifestyle choices
  • My Land Rover camper conversion
  • Travels on my motorbike
  • My friends, clients and acquaintances
  • Maybe some politics

Why am I writing a blog?

If I’m honest, I can’t really imagine that many people around the world would be very interested in hearing about my day-to-day life but close friends have convinced me that my situation, my work and my lifestyle are such that a few words on the subject might help others looking to try a similar path in life.

Feedback

Once I have worked out how to set up my theme properly I will add a comments section. I welcome any comments you have and will try and answer any questions as soon as I can, outwith my work times.

Thanks for taking an interest in my blog, I hope you enjoy reading it.

Stuart