Welcome to HUMAN CREATIVITY. I'm IB Paterson — an artist working across painting, illustration, and photography.
At the heart of my work is the practice of noticing—observing minute moments and quiet details that so frequently go unnoticed. Based in Scotland, my practice moves between distinct forms of expression: highly detailed illustrations that celebrate delicate forms, field photography, the fleeting choreography of everyday human interactions, and a freer, more abstract approach to painting that offers intuitive interpretations of wild places.
A background in higher education shapes my focus on deliberate observation and technical precision. Blending traditional fine art with digital tools, I make work rooted in real places, careful observation, and hands-on skill. Alongside my studio practice, I draw on a background in higher art education to facilitate workshops that explore the human creative process—helping people navigate creative ruts, understand their natural working rhythms, and champion unfiltered, human-led work.
Studio & Practice: My process adapts to the medium's rhythm. For illustrations and print works, I combine hand drawing, watercolour washes, and field photography with meticulous digital layering and image management. My paintings take a different path—embracing fluidity, gesture, and abstraction to reflect the atmospheric energy of raw landscapes. I explicitly avoid generative artificial intelligence tools, grounding every piece in direct observation, tactile skill, and authentic human handiwork.
Projects & Focal Points
Unfiltered: Exploring Creative Intuition in an AI World: A one-day workshop designed for artists to examine their individual creative processes, break through creative blockages, and reconnect with personal intuition beyond automated tools.
Urban Streetscapes & Botanical Print Collections: A growing body of limited-edition fine-art prints anchored by Edinburgh's Grassmarket and Glasgow Park series—documenting the subtle choreography of everyday human interactions in urban spaces—alongside detailed studies of native Scottish flora.
Wind Photography Series: Ongoing photographic documentation recording meteorological dynamics, light, and motion across coastal and highland locations in Scotland.
Get in Touch: Interested in my work? Contact me here.