Willows: A Start. The whys and wherefores of a drawing

 

Starting the Residency with Willow

I have decided that for a part of the Grafham Residency I am going to make some work about the Willow tree. It is an iconic tree of this currently sodden, watery area and they line the Reservoir.
There are local names for some varieties, the Bedford Willow, the Huntingdon Willow. They are everywhere and there are many different kinds.  In one book I found 18 UK varieties.

As always with a project I start with drawing and research. The purpose of both are to get to know my subject. I can read and learn but I don’t think I really “see” unless I draw. 

What is the purpose of drawing.. for me

Drawing, for me, is all about learning. Initially it’s about trying to record what I can see.  Accuracy at this stage is important to me because the more accurate I try to be, the more I must study the subject. Through drawing I will learn about structure, line, colour and form, but most importantly I begin to discover what it is I like about something. And that is really important.

My first exploratory drawings of the willows are just a few leaves.  I am still not out and about much but I brought some tatty old leaves back from my shoreline walk about a month ago. Once inside they dry out,  twist and form wonderful curled shapes.

My drawing and models

My way of arranging them for drawing is to throw them onto white paper and see what happens. This works much better for me than carefully and deliberately arranging things. It is also the way my Filipino gardener friend Pedro, back in Leu Gardens,  plants seeds and bulbs. His handling of plants was one of great empathy, respect and understanding. He was well rewarded.

“ Three Willow Leaves”  pencil on hp paper, 10 x14 inches

So here is a drawing of the leaves. I loved the curling shape and the way the cast shadows tell of a shape you cannot see. The desiccated surface of the leaf makes the central vein more prominent and I could see the layers of the surface, some were peeling away.  Tiny bits broke off. These things are very brittle and fragile. 
The hours it takes are all a part of the slow absorption of the information. It’s a very peaceful process and totally absorbing.

I will be doing quite a few more study drawings and some sketches and colour notes.

About the Residency

Anglian Water: Artist In Residence at Grafham Water, April 2013-March 2014

What's it all about? 

The Residency post is a self funding role which I wanted to take partly as an opportunity to produce artwork but also to get people involved locally. I had long thought that there was so much scope here for much more in the way of creative activities and with the support of Anglian Water I really hope we can make them happen.
It is a wonderful opportunity to make a body of work about an area I already know quite well, as for the last two years I have been sketching, walking and cycling the paths around the reservoir and the nearby countryside. Through painting, drawing, printing and writing I will endeavour to reveal some of the fascinating and little known aspects of the reservoir and celebrate some of its activities.  What will I do? It is impossible to say at this stage what the final work will be. That is the intriguing part of a long term residency. Anything can happen in year.

I know the first few months will be spent walking, drawing and researching. From the writing and sketching I have already done, I can see certain ideas and motifs recurring and I am happy to let the work evolve. But I also know that the natural world, history, archaeology, geology and literature will all play a part. Water, earth, sky and their inhabitants will be represented. 
The area surrounding the reservoir is quintessentially English. The flora and fauna of middle England, historical remnants of ancient woodlands, Saxon settlements and Roman roads. It´s a quiet and bypassed place but lies only three miles from the ancient Great North Road. The nearby towns and villages of Huntingdon, Buckden, and Kimbolton have important historical pasts. 
There are old through ways and grassed over drove roads, there are footpaths and the old railway line there are remains of moats and fishponds, old and descriptive field names and of course, under the water, the ghosts of drowned fields and farms.

People come here to walk the dog, fish, cycle, picnic, sail and windsurf but underpinning everything is the working reservoir. A great body of water collected, filtered, pumped and distributed to give us one of the few real essentials of life, clean water. 

This all gives me so much material to work with. I can indulge some long held loves; of the English countryside and its inhabitants, of its narratives, its emblems, folklore, patterns and design; and of stories, books, paper, language, print and paint. I hope you will join me on the blog in this year long exploration. 

During the residency I will be offering workshops and tuition based at either Grafham or Perry. Please email me for details. val.littlewood@gmail.com