Glorious Gower
My present series of paintings which included the recently sold paintings below are all of and inspired by Ilston Cwm a rural woodland in Gower Pensinsula. Gower was the first designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the UK in the 1950s and is a major influence on my artwork.
I love visiting this area, every weekend to walk my dogs and take photographs of the area.
I like doing this especially in Winter when the rich Winter light catches the mossy barks of tress and illuminates the background behind the leafless trees with pinky purples and silvery greys.
I find winter with it’s seeming desolation much more colourful than other times of the year. The light is more brilliant, thicker and more concentrated than the light of summer. Less diffused. More clear.
The fact the trees have no leaves allows one to look through and beyond and gives greater depth of perception and a richer array of overlapping colors .
This seems to suit my refractionist style of breaking light down into colour components as these blocks of colour have a greater overlaying depth in winter.
Winter light is also lower in the sky and this helps with a sharper more intense light falling on mossy tree barks.
It is so great to get out of the city to soak up some countryside. It has become a vital part of life, escaping the every day concerns of life and work in Swansea to commune with nature, to get away from it all and to return with a bucket load of inspiration for paintings to be contemplated or painted in the following week or weeks.
It is like getting filled up with inspiration, in fact. Replenished, reinvigorated.
I find Gower a very moving place, inspiring. There is something tangibly uplifting about this peninsula. A special energy, or spirit to the place, a Nature Cathedral. There is a presence that inspires one and lifts the soul towards creativity, towards play. I am blessed to have such an inspiring place only ten-fifteen minutes away.
These painting have been sold but you can buy large limited edition mounted prints here
