Lot 146
JOYCE CAIRNS P.P.R.S.A., R.S.A., R.S.W., M.A. (R.C.A.) (SCOTTISH 1947-) §
A COLD WIND BLOWS OVER THE NORTH SEA (DIPTYCH) - 1988
Auction: Contemporary Art | Lots 1 to 271 | Tuesday 31 March 2026 at 10am
Description
Signed, titled, dated and inscribed with artist's address and ‘Footdee & Aberdeen’ verso to each panel, oil on board (2)
Dimensions
each panel 183cm x 122cm (72in x 48in)
Provenance
Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 163rd Annual Exhibition, Summer 1989, cat. no. 147;
where purchased by the current owner.
Footnote
Joyce Cairns met the love of her life, Robert on 4th April 1987. He was a dashing pilot who had been in the Fleet Air Arm and was now flying helicopters over the North Sea with British Airways. They were married in 1989 and happily together for 37 years until his death in 2024. This painting was painted between their meeting and marrying and is set in the village of Footdee, at the mouth of Aberdeen Harbour, where they lived at that time. It was inspired by contemporary headline stories in the local news about a spate of Super Puma helicopters ditching in the North Sea.
This painting is accompanied by the original wooden frame in parts, its associated fixings and scans of the artist's hand-written instructions of how to construct it, as provided to the current owner.