Pennine

Darwen Tower 1, originally uploaded by David Pott.

Here’s one for all the people from Darwen, Lancashire (Darreners I think is the correct term). Its Darwen Tower from the flanks of Higher Hill with Tockholes in between.

Winter Hill Clouds

I’ve been told many times that, on a clear day, you can see the Isle of Man from the top of Winter Hill. I had begun to wonder if that wasn’t just an urban myth, passed from generation to generation of ramblers.

Now along comes www.viewfinderpanoramas.org - a useful site that contains computer generated panoramas  of views from many mountains around the world, with a special bias towards UK panoramas

Here’s the panorama it generated of the view from Winter Hill. And yes, you can theoretically see the Isle of Man in perfect conditions.

If you’ve ever seen the Isle of Man from Winter Hill, will you let me know? Better still if you can send me a photo!

This painting has existed in several versions and has developed over a very long period of time - approximately 2 years. Sometimes it takes several attempts to get a painting just right and this was one such painting.

The original view (i.e. the real life view) doesn’t have the tree in the left middleground area. It took a long time for me to realise that real life was artistically ‘wrong’ and that I need to make some improvements! With the addition of the trees, the viewers eye now has a lead-in to the painting which makes the composition much more satisfying.