Clouds, those magical collections of ice crystals that loom above us, bring out the romantic dreamer in everyone. At once universal and breathtakingly unique, clouds are a constant and subtle presence in all of our lives, ever continuing on their mysterious paths, despite the turmoil on the land below.

In 1999, Scottish multimedia artist Alec Finlay invited people to submit photographs of clouds to an archive he was compiling called the Wind Blown Cloud. The results have been astounding: Hundreds of people from all over the world―young and old, amateurs and professionals―contributed images of their personal skyscapes.

Wind Blown Clouds is a simple and stunning collection of the wind blown cloud, featuring 170 of these works, complemented by a thoughtful selection of haiku and poetry. From small, fluffy, white clouds to roiling masses of cumuli, and from skyscapes and sunsets in silver and gold to more imaginative photos of clouds reflected in puddles, glass, and airplanes, Wind Blown Clouds captures the indefinable brilliance of this inspiring natural phenomenon.

With the brightening of skies after the dark winter months, Wind Blown Clouds is springtime’s reclamation of the outdoors, and a beautiful reminder that we are all living under the same sky.

Alec Finlay is an artist and boutique publisher, and the director and curator of the Archive of the Wind Blown Cloud in Edinburgh. He is also the founder of Morning Star Press, which specializes in artist’s books, and the coordinator of the Centre for Artists’ Books, in Dundee.