Andy Goldsworthy: Fifty Years

Last week I was blown away by Andy Goldsworthy’s Fifty Years exhibition in Edinburgh.

Art made from stone, reeds, water, coloured leaves. An immense Oak Passage formed by windfallen branches, leading the eye to a wall of ferns, pinned with thorns into a snaking pattern. Sheep Paintings (yes!) made from the tread of muddy hooves around a salt lick. A Fallen Elm photographed over many years, its cracks and twists embellished fleetingly with fallen leaves, snow, foxglove petals...

For an illustrator who loves detail and working by hand, the exhibition is inspiring. Every artwork comes from patience, wit and intense observation, using natural materials and embracing their peculiarities.

If you’re in Scotland or the UK then I strongly recommend a visit. On until November and it’s the perfect break from a fast-paced, homogenised, digital world.

Jenny Proudfoot

2 September 2025