Deviate collaborate with artist Douglas Roulston on hand painted bike frame

Mountain bike manufacturer Deviate has collaborated with Scottish artist Douglas Roulston to create a hand painted frame showcasing the beauty of the Cairngorms.

The Cairngorms and its mountain bike trails inspired Ben Jones and Chris Deverson to start Deviate Cycles and is the inspiration behind the stunning artwork on the frame of the Claymore bike.

The colourful Claymore frame consists of several 2D sketches depicting various landscapes situated in the Cairngorms.

The pine and birch trees were inspired by the Caledonian forests, the water, inspired by the Green Loch of Aviemore and the stream running down from Ben Macdui, and the long flowing heathers, a nod to the heathers seen all over the Cairngorms.

As well as being a completely bespoke hand-painted frame, it also boasts gold leaf decals on the frame, fork and spring.

Artist Dougie used non-conventional methods to paint the frame such as utilising paint brushes rather than airbrushes, as he felt this represented his established style more closely.

Some spray paint was used initially to create layers onto the piece, which was then topped by paint brushes and rigger brushes to achieve the intricate detail seen on the final piece.

The bike was then sent to JMJ Designs to apply gold leaf to the coil and the decals.

In total, from conception to completion this project took around one year to complete.

Ben said: ‘Chris and I were running a guided trip from Aviemore to Braemar back in 2016 with a group we knew well.

‘Chris was chatting about the frame prototypes he’d been working on when they suggested he needed someone to help drive the business side forward – that’s when he asked me.

‘It was a pretty seminal moment as I’d probably done this trip 100s of times before but this was the first time Chris had joined me for it.

‘We pretty much hashed out the first draft of the business plan right there on that trip.

‘Fast forward six years to 2022 and we had something of a landmark year.

‘The Claymore received fantastic reviews, including being selected as Pinkbike’s ‘Enduro Race Bike Of Choice’.

‘We wanted to create something that celebrated this milestone by combining it with a place of particular significance for the brand.’

Dougie has been producing and selling his artwork since he was 14 years-old but didn’t fall in love with mountain biking until he was 27.

Venturing by bike to vastly remote locations within the Scottish highlands, Dougie takes inspiration from nature’s beauty.

After finding a passion for biking, Dougie began using his bike to get to remote places to do sketches.

This artist edition of the Claymore is on display at the Fotheringham Gallery in the Bridge of Allan, with hopes it will also be displayed at Cairngorm Mountain centre.

‘I started using my bike to get to remote places to do sketches – planned bike rides with a purpose,’ said Dougie.

‘Venturing by bike to vastly remote locations within the Scottish highlands, allows me to take inspiration from nature’s beauty.’

For most visit deviatecycles.com

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