looking out to bruton
Looking out to Bruton, Somerset, acrylic on board, 2018. 42 x 56cm, £395.
There was a sudden, wet and very late snowfall between Bruton and Wyke Champflower (what a name!) in March, looking out towards Stourhead. This is one of four paintings I did that day. It was absolutely freezing and heavily still.
This view ended up being almost abstract in style; the snow had the effect of carving up the landscape that way. Buds were just starting up in the hedges, which is why that reddish colour is there. I’ve always liked painting snow because it captures so many different types of light. We tend to think that snow’s white all the time; it isn’t. It’s a spectrum and it absorbs all sorts of colours.
That area of the South West has lots of big, undulating landscapes and the weather can completely change how they look. You can sit in the same spot and paint it a dozen times, and each one will look different.
DETAIL: Looking out to Bruton, Somerset, acrylic on board, 2018.