by gary cook RI
Pencil, charcoal and watercolour on paper
h: 93 w: 69 d: 1 (cms).
I am very lucky. My lovely wife is a travel writer and I often drive her to places she's reviewing. It's a tough job, but I don't mind helping. Consequently my sketch diaries feature lots of hotels and cities with beautiful architecture. On these travels, while she's working, I started re-reading The Woodlanders by Thomas Hardy and was struck by how most of his beautiful, casual references to nature would now count as a chance observation of something rare. Hardy wrote the novel in 1887 and over those 130 years, or more specifically the last 30 years, the wildlife he thought of as commonplace is now dying or near to extinction. For instance, nightingales, which he mentions frequently, have declined by 92% since 1970, due to our drenching the countryside with chemicals, cutting down trees and climate change. This artwork features pages from my sketchbooks, pinpoints where I was reading the book's chapters and marks where Hardy gave us a glimpse of a more nature-friendly world.
£2750
Please Note: If you are overseas and interested in a purchase, please note that there will be additional costs for postage and packaging added to this price. Feel free to enquire about this using the button below.
by gary cook RI
Pencil, charcoal and watercolour on paper
h: 61 w: 76 d: 1 (cms).
I am very lucky. My lovely wife is a travel writer and I often drive her to places she's reviewing. It's a tough job, but I don't mind helping. Consequently my sketch diaries feature lots of hotels and cities with beautiful architecture. On these travels, while she's working, I started re-reading Under The Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy and was struck by how most of his beautiful, casual references to nature would now count as a chance observation of something rare. Hardy wrote the novel in 1872 and over those 140 years, or more specifically the last 30 years, the wildlife he thought of as commonplace is now dying or near to extinction. For instance, nightingales, which he mentions frequently, have declined by 92% since 1970, due to our drenching the countryside with chemicals, cutting down trees and climate change. This artwork features pages from my sketchbooks, pinpoints where I was reading the book's chapters and marks where Hardy gave us a glimpse of a more nature-friendly world.
£1950
Please Note: If you are overseas and interested in a purchase, please note that there will be additional costs for postage and packaging added to this price. Feel free to enquire about this using the button below.