Jolomo John Lowrie Morrison OBE DA Scottish Artist

Jolomo (John Lowrie Morrison OBE) is one of Scotland’s best loved artists internationally famous for his powerful and vibrant landscapes of the west coast of Scotland, collected by celebrities such as Sting and Madonna. John founded The Jolomo Bank of Scotland Award which is the largest arts award in Scotland and the UK’s largest privately funded arts award.

Born in 1948 in Maryhill, Glasgow, having studied art at Glasgow School of Art from 1967-1971, he went on to undertake postgraduate studies at GSA in 1971-1972 and then a Dip Ed in 1972-1973. For more than 25 years John pursued a successful career in art education from his base in Argyll, West Scotland, rising to Principal Teacher of Art at Lochgilphead High School and Art Adviser to Strathclyde Region. Since his first solo show in 1976 Jolomo has become a highly successful artist. John has become best known for his painting of the West of Scotland, filled with colour and passion.

Giving up his teaching career to paint full time in 1997, John has successfully exhibited his work in solo and mixed exhibitions at numerous galleries in Scotland, England, Hong Kong and the USA. His spectacular career has been captured in film, in the DVD “I Know Where I am Going” by mitchellmcglone and the BBC TV Film, “A Man With the Golden Brush” and in the books “The Colour of Life” and “Jolomo – Retrospective”. John frequently features in the media, most recently on the television programmes “Blethering Scots” and “Elizabeth Queen of Scots”.

Jolomo John Lowrie Morrison donates a percentage of his sales to charity and makes significant donations of art work to charity each year. In November 2012, John and his wife Maureen were invited by HRH The Princess Royal to become Vice Presidents of Carers Trust.

In November 2008 John was presented with an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the West of Scotland and in November 2009 he received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Abertay Dundee University, for “A significant contribution to Scottish culture”. In the 2011 New Year’s Honours List John received an OBE for services to art and to charity in Scotland.

In 2005 John established The Jolomo Foundation, a charitable body aimed at promoting and encouraging the painting of the Scottish landscape. Through The Foundation, the Jolomo Awards were launched in 2006 with the first Awards being made in June 2007 and then again in 2009 and 2011.

The Jolomo Foundation launched the Awards for the fourth time in September 2012. The Awards prize pot will be £35,000, the winner receiving £25,000, making them the largest privately funded Arts Award in the UK.

John Lowrie Morrison’s Retrospective was held in the summer of 2013 in the newly refurbished Clydebank Town Hall, Museum & Gallery.