Carl Randall brings portraits of modern Japan to Aberdeen Art Gallery But after observing the bustling streets of Tokyo for two weeks, artist Carl Randall wanted to do something different when transferring the city to the page. He wanted to make it grey. It's an idea that may resonate with Aberdonians, as his artwork now hangs in Aberdeen Art Gallery as part of the 2013 BP Portrait Award exhibition. Solitary On the muted tones of Shinjuku, a piece which explores the crowdedness of commuting, Carl muses: "I think it's one of the reasons why I use grey; this scene in life is quite colourful it's quite busy, actually quite noisy. But by painting it in grey, it transforms it into something quite quiet and quite solitary. The prestigious programme, which complements the BP Portrait Award, sees applicants submit a proposal for a grant for a two week research trip before completing a series of works that will travel alongside the main portraiture pieces the following year. Following in the footsteps of acclaimed Japanese painter Hiroshige, Carl travelled across the country on the same route to research city and country life before travelling home to complete the series of works. The pieces Carl produced following his trip range from pencil drawings to oil on canvas and offers an intriguing juxtaposition of colour, medium and subject. Variety "A lot of the works have focused on Tokyo; there are a variety of things about Japanese culture that appeal to me; the large cities but also the countryside, the rice fields," he explains. For the pieces that explore commuting, travel and city life, the majority feature that muted palette that conveys the emotiveness of isolation, but for the countryside, the works are more vibrant. But despite the comparison between the two, the main emotion Carl was trying to capture is the isolation felt by an outsider looking in. "You could say the theme is urban isolation," explains Carl. People are physically occupying the same space but mentally and psychologically they are quite isolated from one another. I think it is about being in a city, but being anonymous. If you missed our interview with BP Portrait Award winner Susanne du Toit last week, you can read it here and find out why her winning portrait wasn't supposed to be hanging in Aberdeen Art Gallery at all.