I’m often asked where I got the name “Albion” for my paintings of the landing across from the Surf Motel. It’s from a little tidbit of local history.
Albion’s Shadow
The steps across from the Surf Motel that lead to the ocean actually look out to Brotchie Ledge. Brotchie Ledge is a ledge of rock that lay just beneath the surface of the water. This made for dangerous sailing and in 1849 Captain William Brotchie crashed his ship, the Albion, onto its rocks.
I named the first painting from this view, Albion’s Wake. A wake for the crashed ship and a wake of the water. The second painting (above) I named Albion’s Shadow. It’s the last of the flickering light over the landing which resembles a ship on the ocean.
Brotchie Ledge claimed several ships and at first they attached a pole to the rocks to ward them away to safety. A ship crashed there and became the new beacon for 6 years before it was removed. A fisherman would row out every evening and place a light on the mast. They built a light beacon in 1898 and replaced it in 2005.
The beacon is just to the left of the composition so is not shown in the painting. I wanted to leave you the feel of the sea and the timelessness of the location. Thousands of sunsets have come and gone since the crash of the Albion.