This month we introduce our readers to Andrew Sage, from Aberdeen, who's story is full of interest and an inspiration to us all.

The Artistic Side and How it Started - "I first took up oil painting in early 2001 just for something “low tech” to do in order to relax after working with computers all day long. It was only ever meant as a hobby and nothing to take too seriously. However, this all began to change when at Christmas 2003 someone liked one of my paintings so much they actually bought it. More than that, she suggested that I should try to find outlets for selling my work and even offered to help!

Digital Photography - "In 2003 I took up digital photography as finding room for all my paintings to dry was limiting that hobby. From the comments by people who saw my work, it became clear that I had an eye for photographs that are more quirky and different than many other people’s. My favourite subjects for photographing are sunsets, sunrises, reflections and interesting clouds. It is these elements that I try to capture in more traditional landscape photographs of locations popular with the public; a successful range of photographs of Bennachie, in Aberdeenshire, demonstrate this. I have taken various specific photographs for people, for instance, of their pets. These have been well received and I will happily take commissions for pet portraits. The old saying might be “Don’t work with animals” but it’s far easier to get natural behaviour in front of the lens from an animal than from a human being! "

Taking it Seriously - "Since July 2004 I’ve been selling my work at various venues throughout Aberdeenshire at the FOCUS craft fairs. In light of the positive feedback about my work at the craft fairs and through other sales of my work, I took the decision in early 2005 to take my painting and photography beyond just a hobby and formed my own company, Andrew Sage Art & Entertainment, as a vehicle for this and some of my other interests."

Exhibitions - "In July 2005 I had my first solo exhibition of art work at the Aberdeen Arts Centre. Going from nothing to an exhibition in just over four years was slightly daunting, but to get this far takes more than just one’s own self belief. September 2005 sees my second solo exhibition, this time at The Belmont in Aberdeen."

The Entertainment Side - "Board Games - Having always had an interest in playing board games since I was a child, I decided to develop a range of simple, yet fun, games of my own. So far, two of the games have actually been taken to completion and have been well received and are selling well considering the small market they have so far been exposed to.

The first of these, Dragon’s Trail, is a simple “there and back again race” – but it has a twist in the tail which means that anyone can win right up to the end. Originally targeted at 5-8 year-olds, it has proved to be a hit with kids of all ages!

The other fully-developed game, Chromacell, is based on a game that I originally developed for the handheld computer market. This required quite a lot of re-working of the gameplay and some creative problem-solving.

The third game, Industrial Revolution, is in the development stage. There is potential to use the game to teach children about history, economics, marketing, commercialism, environmentalism – the list goes on!

The main problem I have encountered with producing these games is cost-effectiveness in terms of packaging. Being a very small company with little capital to spare means you have to watch every penny. I’ve come up with, I think, an innovative solution to this problem. Want to know what it is? You’ll have to buy one of the games to find out!!"

For further information on Andrew's work please visit his website www.asae.co.uk