Local artist brings SCIAF ‘journey’ to life

SCIAF’s Rutherglen roots and 60 years of world-wide humanitarian work has been immortalised by one of its local supporters – artist Mark Armstrong. 

Mark (54), who has lived in Rutherglen since he was a child, decided to mark the charity’s anniversary by creating and donating a painting which summed up its history and meaning. To make it all the more meaningful Mark also involved local schoolchildren in the process. 

Mark said:

“I was at a SCIAF film launch back in January where I met up with Claire Cook, an old school friend who now works for the charity. We got chatting and I came up with the idea of creating a special piece of art to mark this milestone anniversary. That’s when it all got going. 

“Since then I’ve met with SCIAFs community team to get some ideas flowing. I also joined Mark Booker on a visit to my old school St Mark’s as well as Fernhill school, to tell the children more about SCIAF’s work.  

“A few weeks later we went back, and I asked the children to help me come up with ideas for the painting. They were so keen to help and it was great to see what SCIAF meant to them.” 

Mark who runs a social enterprise company helping budding artists in the east End has always enjoyed art, but it was only three years ago when he joined Dens# Art Classes in Denniston to hone his oil painting skills. Since then, Mark’s gone from strength to strength and now creates Van Gogh-inspired pieces with a difference – famous Glasgow scenes, through his brand GlasGogh. 

‘Journey’ traces sixty years of faith, action, and compassion through the story of SCIAF. 

At its beginning stands St Columbkille’s Church, a reminder of the charity’s birthplace in Rutherglen. From its doorway, a river of life flows — winding through valleys and fields, carrying with it seeds of change, symbols of growth, and the enduring mission of justice. 

In the foreground, the founding figures, Monsignor Rooney and teacher John McKee, stand together, visionaries who first sowed this work of faith in action. Their gaze is joined by countless others across the decades, embodied here in the bright patchwork of fields, homes, and communities that unfold across the canvas. To the right, we see a statue that stands in St Columbkille’s church itself, his eyes scan the flowing river and its wonderful work. 

Along the river we see children surfing — recalling SCIAF’s work with young people in Colombia, where sport offers hope and new beginnings. We see farmers’ crops flourish, animals nurtured, and trees rooted in renewal, each a testament to the lives changed through sustainable farming and care for creation. At the right-hand side of the canvas, we see a stack of Wee Boxes, a well-known fundraising tool for SCIAF. In the painting they have become a place of learning, representing generations of solidarity built from simple acts of giving. We see goats and sheep, pupils learning, trees spouting and the SCIAF river running right though, pouring out in three waterfalls, continuing its work. 

The journey through the valley to the thriving present, symbolised by the colours and fields, sixty years of growth, resilience, and shared humanity. Through every turn of the river, the call remains the same: to walk together in hope, faith, and love.