A YOUNG artist who claims Sir Patrick Stewart among his fans has been accepted in the prestigious Royal Scottish Academy Open Exhibition.

Frank To creates art with gunpowder and explosive black powder, which is gaining him international recognition as a leading contemporary artists amongst art critics and high profile collectors.

These include actor Sir Patrick - of Star Trek fame - and New York-based Michel Witmer, who hangs Frank's paintings alongside those of Picasso, Dine and Warhol.

Glasgow-based Frank said: “As I’m from Chinese descent, gunpowder and black powder plays a major role in my culture.

"The Chinese did invent it as form of spectacle and weaponry.

"To this day in all cultures, we are still using those compounds for those purposes especially in Scotland with independent landowners.

"They need gunpowder and black powder in the maintenance of their estate."

He added: “The new work is made with gunpowder and black powder. It’s a very unusual technique that I have developed and it’s taken two years to perfect it.

"As far as I know, I’m the only one in Scotland using this medium.”

The Royal Scottish Academy Open Exhibition has a long history of celebrating the best of contemporary art.

After having been part of the Royal Scottish Academy Annual Exhibition for more than 180 years, it now has its own slot in the RSA Calendar.

Drawing from artists across Scotland and beyond, the exhibition showcases around 400 works annually and features a wide range of small and medium sized works through open submission.

Frank’s gunpowder and explosive black powder art work go on show in the Royal Scottish Academy Open Exhibition, at the RSA on The Mound, from July 16 to August 30.