Swampings

‘Swampings’

I’ve spent most of the past few years within a two-mile radius of my home studio in the South Lincolnshire Fens. Unable to travel far, I explored on foot whenever possible observing my surroundings. Some days brought foggy, misty weather. It softened the distractions of detail, allowing a focus of thoughts.

I wondered about the history of the ground. What has it been used for, by whom and why? What was it like before it was drained? Who had lived and walked here before? What was underneath? I referenced aerial photographs and maps looking at the landscape from a different perspective, a top-down view. I noticed that place names changed over time. “Swan Pens”, a nearby farm, used to be called “Swampings”, this seemed to be a good name for an old Fenland place. I also researched and collected old Lincolnshire dialect, building a sort of land-language. “Hum-closen”, “hither-fields” and “forestead” - words used to describe the area nearest to the home. My sketchbook was a place to record the colours and textures of the landscape, my phone used for taking photographs.

Returning to my studio, I started to work on the paintings. Gradually layers of paint were built up and then removed to reveal marks, patterns and shapes. I wanted to acknowledge the interventions, disturbances and changes in the land by successive occupants, both human and natural. Over time, ‘Swampings’ took shape.