An art lover’s house in Oakwood, Leeds – early one morning, the end of August. The trampoline is going soon, but the owners and I were glad it features in the drawing. Can you see the Witch on her broomstick weathervane?
House Portrait #18
1
Sunday afternoon, Roundhay Park
The last day of the summer holidays…
warm, sunny and showery.
Walking and scooting round the lake,
having a good time and
eating ice cream,
feeding the ducks and
holding hands,
looking at the clouds and
drawing pictures.
House Portrait #199
Our house, is a very, very, very fine house
With two cats in the yard, life used to be so hard
Now everything is easy, ’cause of you…
Black Woods
Late August, the leaves seem more black than green.
I don’t want to go in the woods when they are like this.
Flies buzzing.
Heavy and sweet smells of rotting.
House Portrait #40
“I believe that much unseen is also here.”
Galloway, part 3
Galloway – a good place to rest, no need to count sheep…
Galloway, part 2
The Rhins of Galloway, trying to think about nothing.
Galloway, part 1
The Rhins of Galloway, a good place to get away when the world’s gone mad. It’s very green and peaceful, and the sheep don’t bother you.
Horse Chestnut Tree, Potternewton Park
This tree in my local park is wider than it’s tall. Two weeks ago, the candles were at their best. I’ve painted horse chestnuts in blossom for a few years – it’s not easy and this is my favourite attempt so far. I’ll have another go next year…
And Did Those Feet
This is the View From Birkrigg Common. It’s hanging in a group show in Leeds called And Did Those Feet, an exhibition exploring William Blake’s poem, Jerusalem.
The inspiration for the picture came in March this year when I visited Birkrigg Common, Ulverston, Cumbria, and was struck by the panorama visible from the triangulation point.
Since then I have painted it several times, usually as a series of 4 interlocking images, that to me represent many of the elements of Blake’s Jerusalem:
1. England’s mountains green are there – the fells of the Lake District.
2. Ancient times have left traces such as the Bronze Age stone circle.
3. The pleasant pastures of Bardsea, with their sheep and lambs, look down on the purple sands of Morecambe Bay at low tide, and the island where monks built a holy chapel in the 14th Century.
4. Here can be seen more clouded hills, and at the far right of the painting, Heysham nuclear power station – our latest version of a satanic mill.
The exhibition runs until 24th May 2016 at St Edmund’s Church, Lidgett Park Road, Leeds LS8 1JN. I’ll be there on Sunday 22nd May, 11:30am – 1pm, if you’d like to say hello and see my longest painting yet – it’s 10 feet wide.
