Michael Fullerton (born Blantyre, Scotland, 1971) is a painter whose work centres on portraits of figures ‘who embody political commitment or represent strong ideological positions.’ Recent works include portraits of Alan Turing, David Shayler and Lech Walesa. His engagement with a painting style associated with 18th century society portraitist Thomas Gainsborough, points to his interest in what it means to portray renowned individuals in any given period. His current concern with figures associated with internet file hosting systems and online security relate to his ongoing interest in the recording, transmission and ownership of information.

In May 2013, Fullerton travelled to Auckland, New Zealand, to meet and photograph Kim Dotcom, a German internet entrepreneur, charged by the US with copyright infringements worth $500 million, and Peter Gutmann, a computer scientist and specialist in the design and analysis of security systems. The photographs acted as the source material for the print Ultramarine and a full-length painting of Dotcom. A photograph taken by Auckland-based computer scientist Peter Gutmann was the starting point for the print Landscape: Photographed by Peter Gutmann. The works Cypher (MGM. Circa 1936) and Trade-Mark, produced with the same metallic gold inks, represent iconic images of the golden age of Hollywood cinema. Together these editions reflect the artist’s ongoing investigation of media and technology and the social and civic relevance of art in the age of mass media.

Below another sky was the first collaborative programme developed by the Scottish Print Network, a partnership between Dundee Contemporary Arts, Edinburgh Printmakers, Glasgow Print Studio, Highland Print Studio, Inverness and Peacock Visual Arts, Aberdeen.

10 artists from Scotland and 10 from Commonwealth countries were invited to undertake research residencies during 2013 and 2014. Artists from Scotland travelled to Antigua, Baffin Bay, Bangladesh, Canada, India, New Zealand and Zambia; artists from Australia, Canada, India and Pakistan were on residency in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness.

Each artist worked with one of the five print studios on the development of ambitious and innovative new work in print, taking full advantage of the excellent range of resources, equipment and expertise available through each organisation.

Below another sky takes its name from the poem ‘Travel’, published in 1865 by the Edinburgh-born author Robert Louis Stevenson.

http://belowanothersky.org/