Julie Hollis Artist

Julie Hollis Artist Artist working between analogue and digital art forms to create landscapes that highlight the strength and fragility of the natural world. Hi!

I'm a nature artist, capturing mostly the flora which surrounds my home in south west Scotland. Having lived in Dumfries and Galloway for the last 30+ years, I enjoy long walks gathering inspiration for work which I complete in my studio. I have a bijoux studio in the former office and shop of McMurray's old petrol station on Mews Lane (look for the Thames sign!) Formally known as the Royal Garage

, you'll see my sign above the door on the right hand side of the building. I work with paint, fibre and pixels, sometimes merging these into collage pieces. As a retired teacher I enjoy offering workshops, although the current size of my studio is playing havoc with my plans! Keep an eye open for online courses and me finding solutions! Oftentimes you'll find me at the studio and, if it's possible, you're welcome to visit. I have a calendar on the Contact page of my website offering availability.

Today I’ll be largely indoors, which is a bit of a shame looking at the weather, but I am Artist in Charge (official tit...
21/06/2026

Today I’ll be largely indoors, which is a bit of a shame looking at the weather, but I am Artist in Charge (official title, recklessly awarded) at the Artists and Makers Shop at the Mill on the Fleet.

Fear not though, I’ll have the windows open and will be comforted not only by the gentle flow of the River Fleet, but also the beautiful surroundings of the Mill itself and the wonderful work of my arty mates!

Open 10-4, with the lovely cafe on the ground floor, the museum and information centre on the middle floor and us and the amazing bookshop on the top floor.

PA Pop Up - Gatehouse of Fleet

Tomorrow is my deadline for joining Slow Art Club for July’s post! I’m busy collating things for the bundle which is pos...
20/06/2026

Tomorrow is my deadline for joining Slow Art Club for July’s post!

I’m busy collating things for the bundle which is posted out in the last week of the preceding month. Which means, of course, that it’ll be posted before I head off to Moffat for the car show.

Last month my club members got a mix of things relating to my recent studio explorations, all revolving around being brave and starting afresh (especially when things aren’t going how you thought they would!) Sometimes letting go is the hardest thing, but the best thing, to do. I’m not always as philosophical!

Find out more, and maybe try it for yourself, here: www.juliehollis.co.uk/slow-art-club

At each studio I’ve had I’ve discovered a perfect place for photographing my work. It has to be somewhere out of direct ...
18/06/2026

At each studio I’ve had I’ve discovered a perfect place for photographing my work. It has to be somewhere out of direct sunlight, not too bright and not too shaded. Ideally a grungy background helps my work to pop. I’m not asking for much 🤣

At Cloud 9 I used to nip out of the side door and photograph things against the old door to the flats above The Douglas Arms. Propped on the top step, and against the paint peeling door, everything looked great. The light was perfect and, as I’d spent a long time reclaiming the tiny courtyard from the seagulls, plantlife and decaying matter, I felt I deserved to make use of the space! I dread to think what it looks like now; it breaks my heart every time I venture down Irish Street.

Here, in Kirkcudbright, I’m using the wall and door to the main garage, which Mr H has painted in two shades of grey. The light is great and it’s not difficult to get a good picture. It’s also undercover, so the weather doesn’t affect it either! Bonus!

So if you wander past and see me holding things up to the wall and photographing them, at least you know I’m being artistic (and not just weird!)

So today I have been making candles. The studio smells amazing! I make three different candles to match my lovely soaps ...
16/06/2026

So today I have been making candles. The studio smells amazing!

I make three different candles to match my lovely soaps in these fab curved sided pots, all beautifully fragranced and coloured (although I have to admit, they tend to vary a bit with each making!)

These ones I'm making to take to Moffat Classic Car Show at the end of the month, although it's also about time I put them in my webshop because they're easily posted! Edit: done!

Toby the Studio Dog has taken to snoozing through the entire process! Bless his perfumed cotton socks!

As you can see, I’m making posts to publicise upcoming events. This is so that I can pin them to the top of my Facebook ...
12/06/2026

As you can see, I’m making posts to publicise upcoming events. This is so that I can pin them to the top of my page where events would automatically be posted by Facebook.

Over the Scottish August Bank Holiday weekend, which is of course different to the English one (because we can be, so there!) I’ll be opening my studio door, but also hosting two of my lovely arty friends in venues behind my studio in Grant’s Garage! KGR Glass Design and LittlehavenArt will have their own stalls undercover (because we’ve learned, over the years, that a Scottish August Bank Holiday weekend can be wet!) alongside the garage memorabilia collection Mr H displays. There’s something for everyone!

I’m a bit fed up seeing all these hideous AI generated posters that all look the same. I just look past them these days!...
12/06/2026

I’m a bit fed up seeing all these hideous AI generated posters that all look the same. I just look past them these days! However earlier I spotted one poster which showed a lady with four legs and four arms, which just made me laugh😆

So I’ve turned back the clock and designed this nice simple one, without the aid of artificial intelligence. My picture was created in Canva. There you can use loads of free resources and put together all sorts of designs. They do have an AI element, but you don’t have to use it!

And I didn’t want to create a Facebook event for this either because, when I do, they get spammed by scammers. Facebook is just awash with nonsense and scammers!

So, if you value the integrity of your advertising and posters, don’t use AI. Your marketing might not be quite as flash, but at least it will be unique (and you can control how many limbs you’d like your people to have.)

I’ve not been feeling great lately, but yesterday I had a super clear day when I felt normal, so I took advantage! I hea...
12/06/2026

I’ve not been feeling great lately, but yesterday I had a super clear day when I felt normal, so I took advantage!

I headed for the studio and did some paintings. Sixteen of them! They were some more of my ink sketches, with watercolour added to highlight the landscapes. They aren’t quite finished, they need mounting and signing, but I thought it might be a good idea to replace the ones that sold during Spring Fling.

Today I’m heading to The Mill on the Fleet to woman the desk in the Artists and Makers Shop there so, if you’re wandering the Stewartry, do pop in! The cafe on the lower floor does a fab cuppa and cake (at the very least!) and the history of the Mill, captured on the ground floor, itself is fascinating.

PA Pop Up - Gatehouse of Fleet

The Solway Coast is a huge source of inspiration for me. This was the image that started my desire to pursue digital col...
11/06/2026

The Solway Coast is a huge source of inspiration for me.

This was the image that started my desire to pursue digital collage. It took me a long time to learn the technique and develop the process so that it was uniquely mine. Every layer has been created independently, away from the computer, before being painstakingly merged into one cohesive image. It takes time to get the base image and even longer to find the textures that will make that image more powerful than it was. This edition is the best one of this image that I’ve done.

Yesterday I sold a framed version of this at Gatehouse Artists and Makers Shop in the Mill on the Fleet, reminding me how much I like this picture! The same shoreline as I spoke about before, at Brow Well near Ruthwell, provided the dramatic base image. It was captured on a stormy January day, and I must have looked a bit mad standing on the shore taking pictures of the storm clouds, sheltering in the broom when the rain got too fierce!

The things we do for art!

PA Pop Up - Gatehouse of Fleet

Before moving to Kirkcudbright, I used to live on the other side of Dumfries in a small village called Clarencefield. Fr...
09/06/2026

Before moving to Kirkcudbright, I used to live on the other side of Dumfries in a small village called Clarencefield. From our house, which backed onto Comlongon Woods, I could walk through the woods to Brow Well and the shore beyond. It was a great walk for the dog and provided me with some fantastic views rich for the image blending techniques I now use.

‘Solway Waders’ came from one of those.

When the tide retreats it leaves behind huge flat areas of muddy sand - a perfect feeding ground for wading birds. With their long legs and long, sometimes curved, beaks they form a lovely sight against the shimmering waterlogged surface.

Available unframed and posted from my website shop, or framed if collected from the studio.

https://www.juliehollis.co.uk/product/solway-waders/C75YTND5MUKP6UQJF23OCJ2J?cs=true&cst=custom

Address

Julie Hollis Art Studio, Royal Garage, 10 Mews Lane
Kirkcudbright
DG64HE

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