The son of Anne Redpath, David Michie was was born in Saint-Raphaël in the south of France. For Michie inspiration was everywhere. An avid traveller throughout his life, the collection of sketchbooks from this bequest serve as a visual diary of Michie’s experiences and observations. Colour was central to his work, his expert use of oils and watercolour capturing scenes from nature, garden compositions, and people going about their everyday activities.
In this sketchbook Michie makes studies of everyday life in (what was formerly) Yugoslavia; people walking the streets, shop windows, patterns in the paving. All become art through Michie’s eyes. Lacking his usual penchant for bright colours, the delicate ink sketches in this pocketbook are accompanied by notes describing the scenes Michie wished to capture. These annotations sometimes ‘colour in’ the scene, labelling what parts of the sketch are what colour, filling in what couldn’t be completed while on the move (for example, page 53).
Michie created a series of prints inspired by his time in the former Yugoslavia, a full set of which form part of the RSA Michie Bequest. A study for The Serbian Woman can be found on page 29 of this sketchbook.
