Maria Cid Castilla is a Scottish-Spanish artist whose expressive, textured oil paintings capture the drama and beauty of landscapes and seascapes. Born in Andalucía, Southern Spain, she grew up immersed in the colours, textures, and rhythmic light of the Mediterranean. Some of her earliest memories are infused with the scent of oil pigments and turpentine during childhood visits to her painter aunt’s studio. It was within this world of Andalusian light and sweeping coastal vistas that her lifelong fascination with painting first began.
After completing an Honours degree in English, Maria moved to Scotland, where she has lived and worked for over two decades. Alongside a career in Higher Education, she has developed her artistic practice through training with established Scottish painters and specialised Fine Art Continuing Education programmes. Her love of Scotland’s wild land and seascapes, combined with her Southern European heritage, gives her work its depth, vibrancy, and unique expressive quality.
Drawing inspiration from Scotland’s rugged coastline, Maria works predominantly in oils. Her paintings are defined by energetic, quickly applied brushstrokes, rich surface texture, and a vibrant palette. Rather than replicating a scene, she conveys the emotional essence of a place -the fleeting shifts of light, the tension between calm and storm, and the powerful drama of natural elements. Her landscapes traverse the line between representation and impression, offering viewers an immersive sensory experience.
Maria continually develops her practice, exploring new ways to express movement, light, and emotional resonance in the landscape. Whether depicting Scotland’s wild coastlines or sun-drenched scenes evocative of Andalucía, her work celebrates place, memory, and the enduring power of nature. Her paintings are exhibited widely across Scotland and the UK, held in private collections internationally, and she is a member of the Glasgow Society of Women Artists.
Artists