It’s a way of working I suppose, though no-one ever called what I did for a living ‘work’. I can still see the the incredulous look on an accountant’s face as he asked ” You do this for a living?”. At the time I did and a good one it was for a while. I’d be commissioned to do all sorts of drawing. These days I don’t have to make my living from it, it’s become more of a religion, where I worship at the font of drawing as often as I can.

“Where do you get your ideas from?” was another regular question back then when the answer was that I had a font of ideas and would recycle them in some form or another with monotonous regularity.

Method? It’s quite simple these days.In regard to my landscapes I have a period where all I do is think about them.There are photos already in the ‘bank’, in other words on my computer, and I have selected images there that are potential for drawing. I then mine this seam by diving into the drawing. A couple of years ago I just did loads of black and white ink drawings, the bit of the drawing that I am really at home with. No pencil touches the paper, I just dive in with the Indian ink and the dippy pen, using the nib the right way up and at times upside down ( that’s the nib, not me ). I draw with the ink and I use a brush here and there. No sophisticated fancy brushes here, just any old brush will do, even a toothbrush which is great for splatter, but no longer any good for the teeth. The results of this ink adventure generate another starting point, or a stage where I look to see if I can rescue a drawing from going to the recycling. How does it feel drawing like this, well I’d recommend it to anyone, it takes you out of any other thoughts and is entirely therapeutic.

Here’s one I’m working on. One tree on a ridge in Bannau Brycheiniog, which is the new name, or perhaps it should be called the ancient name, for the Brecon Beacons. What to do next? Possibly start again by producing the sky in colour and then finish off with the tree last. We’ll see. For the colour to happen it has to be on a ‘colour day’, when I tackle various drawings Wirth colour. One of my biggest problems is that I never seem to get some of the pieces finished. If the subject becomes a favourite, then there’s a tendency to draw it a few times in an effort to get it right, but we all know there’s no right in this stuff.

If this ever gets nearer the finished line I’ll post it here.