The Awakening is a large oil-on-canvas painting, 48 x 48 x 2 inches, of a vibrant woodland path in autumn. It is semi-abstract and expressionist in style and is another in a series of paintings featuring Sussex-inspired woodland landscapes. I often walk in rural England, and I particularly like forests and paths in ancient woodland as they have their own atmospheres and a hint of magic attached, which is unique to them.
Some are beautiful and uplifting, while others are vaguely sinister. I love to walk along such paths, glimpsing fields and hills and lakes through the gaps in the trees where I often spot deer or foxes or birds. The best bit on a sunny day is coming to the end of a path and wondering what I will see next. It is sometimes a stunning landscape and sometimes just a muddy ditch. But whatever it is, it is magical and that is what I am trying to articulate in the painting.
It is large, in order to better deliver the impact I wanted, and I used a technique of laying oil paint over many different layers called glazing. It gives the painting different aspects and the colours tend to change throughout the day as the sun moves around it. It is called The Awakening as country walks often inspire ideas and hope and alterations in perspective and I hope it will inspire more people to simply go out and walk! It has deep white edges and is ready to hang; a frame is not necessary.
https://youtu.be/YsKoxri0PrQ
