Shetland inspiration: from brochs to castles

I feel incredibly lucky that my home - the place I grew up in and have chosen to live - also serves as the source of most of my inspiration.
Shetland is a beautiful place and the light can be spectacular, but as well as that, it has some fascinating archaeology. As I wrote about in my last post, Shetland’s brochs have inspired me to create work which has been very popular, so it only seems logical that I should use another of Shetland's landmarks as inspiration. Next up to discuss is castles!
I've used Scalloway castle in my work - my studio looks directly down on the castle, over Scalloway and out towards the islands of Papa and Oxna. We're lucky to have an incredible view.
Built in 1600, the castle is very well preserved and looks fantastic from all four sides. It makes for a great place to visit, as you can explore the inside too.
Scalloway castle is very well known, and is photographed and visited by thousands of people annually. However there is another castle in Shetland which is every bit as amazing, but much less famous!
Muness Castle, in Unst was constructed at around the same time as Scalloway Castle. Though it is smaller it is very well preserved.
I was amazed to stumble on the castle when visiting Unst as I had never heard anything much about it! So I am very excited to feature Muness castle in future artwork. Watch this space!