WIREDGOV

The 2009 Christmas card from First Minister Alex Salmond will feature an image from celebrated Scottish artist Gerard Burns and will benefit four Scottish charities.

The original canvas A New Journey, which features a girl looking out across a wintry landscape, carrying a Saltire, has been donated by the artist and will be unveiled at a reception at Duff House in Banff this evening.

The First Minister will be joined at the event by Gerard Burns and his niece Hannah McQuillan who features in the painting, as well as representatives from the charities which will benefit - CLIC Sargent, Glasgow the Caring City, J-A-C-K (Joining Against Cancer In Kids) Foundation and Mary's Meals.

Around £34,000 has been raised for good causes from the sale of the original paintings and limited edition prints of the last two First Minister's Christmas cards.

Last year's Christmas card, John Bellany painting Macduff Harbour - The Homecoming raised £10,000 for the nominated charities at auction. With limited edition signed prints also being sold the painting is expected to raise in the region of £20,000 in total. The sale of John Lowrie Morrison's painting, 'Winter Falls On Linlithgow Palace' - donated for the 2007 Christmas Card - along with the sale of a limited number of signed prints, raised around £14,000.

First Minister Alex Salmond said:

"It is no secret that I am a fan of Gerard Burns' work. The Rowan which hangs in my office in the Scottish Parliament is always a talking point and has attracted many admirers.

"The wonderful picture which will feature of my Christmas card this year is an enchanting and evocative image by a talented artist and a magnificent painter.

"The proceeds from the sale of the canvas will be shared equally between four, extremely worthwhile charities, CLIC Sargent, Glasgow the Caring City, J-A-C-K Foundation and Mary's Meals.

"I hope the eventual owner of A New Journey will enjoy viewing this image as much as I have and I would like to wish season's greetings to all Scots and friends of Scotland."

Gerard Burns said:

"When the First Minister asked me to produce a painting for this year's Christmas card, as we were talking, a picture began forming in my mind of exactly what I wanted to do. The girl in the picture is my niece, Hannah McQuillan, and the canvas brings together many of the themes that people often associate with my work.

"The Saltire has become synonymous with my paintings and will be familiar to those who have seen The Rowan which hangs in the First Minster's office in the Scottish Parliament. The child walking with a flag, the wintry landscape and the idea of pilgrimage and journey are themes which resonate very heavily here and across many of my paintings.

"I am delighted that the First Minister has shown an interest in my work and am pleased that this image will feature on his Christmas card this year."

Sarah Farquhar, community fundraising manager for CLIC Sargent in Grampian and Shetland said:

"We are delighted to have been chosen as one of the four charities to benefit from the First Minister's Christmas card this year.

"Every day 10 families are told that their child has cancer. CLIC Sargent, the UK's leading children's cancer charity, is the only charity that offers all round care and support to children and young people who have been diagnosed with cancer, and their families. CLIC Sargent is there caring every step of the way during treatment, in hospital, at home, in the community and after treatment."

Rev Neil Galbraith, chief executive officer of Glasgow the Caring City said:

"As a charity Glasgow the Caring City is delighted to have the support of the First Minister. Our Cross Out Child Poverty project that he has shown so much interest in, could, if the whole nation got behind it, really change the lives of many, many Scottish Children. And leave a lasting legacy of support and positive encouragement for families and young people who find themselves excluded and left behind."

Sylvia Koren from J-A-C-K (Joining Against Cancer In Kids) said:

"J-A-C-K is delighted to have been chosen as one of the charities to benefit from the First Minister's Christmas card appeal this year.

"It certainly provides a major boost to the campaign to beat the devastating childhood cancer, neuroblastoma. J-A-C-K was originally set up to raise money for a potentially lifesaving treatment for a brave young boy called Jack Brown. Sadly, Jack lost his fight against neuroblastoma earlier this year. But, in partnership with the 2Simple Trust, J-A-C-K lives on with the mission of helping other families affected by neuroblastoma .The aim is to develop vital new treatments for a cancer that has a 70 per cent fatality level among children who get it in its aggressive form.

"Around 100 children are diagnosed with neuroblastoma every year in the UK. Yet the disease is still relatively unknown to the general public compared to childhood leukaemia. The First Minister's kind decision to select J-A-C-K will help us raise both awareness and funding-- the twin keys to helping more children beat this cruel childhood cancer."

Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, chief executive of Mary's Meals said:

"We want to thank First Minister for thinking of Mary's Meals and choosing us to benefit from his Christmas card initiative this year. Mary's Meals runs school feeding projects in some of the world's poorest countries, providing children with essential nutrition and an incentive to get an education.

"Working in 15 countries, from Albania to Haiti, India and Malawi, our aim is to address poverty in the short and long term. We can feed a child in school for an average £8.15 a year - thanks to the efforts of volunteers and a policy of sourcing food locally.

"The money raised through the auction of Gerard Burns' painting will be a welcome bonus at a crucial time of year, allowing us to continue supporting hungry children through the festive season and beyond."

2008 Card:

The John Bellany painting which marked Scotland's Year of Homecoming and featured on the 2008 Christmas card sold at auction in August for £10,000. 'Macduff harbour - The Homecoming' was the first lot in the Scottish Contemporary sale at Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh (who handled the sale of the painting for free) and was bought by Aberdeen-based architect John Halliday. Limited edition signed prints are estimated to be worth around £500 each meaning to total raised from the card could be expected to achieve somewhere in the region of £20,000 in total. The charities for last year's card were Islamic Relief, RNLI (Macduff lifeboat station), Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund and Aberdeen Cyrenians.

2007 Card:

The sale of John Lowrie Morrison's painting, 'Winter Falls On Linlithgow Palace' - donated for the 2007 Christmas Card - along with the sale of a limited number of signed prints, raised around £14,000 in total for Who Cares Scotland, a charity which supports children & young people in care.