“Hawnby Hill”

I've always worked outside. I used just about every media except oil paint. I'd always wanted to paint outside with oils, so eventually I did, and I've not looked back since.

Hawnby Hill is a distinctive hill between Hawnby and Osmotherly in the North York Moors. It sits at the head of the lush Bilsdale right on the edge of the heather upland, by a beautiful if narrow road.

It's a quiet, stunningly beautiful place that is perfect for outdoor painting. It's a landscape artist's nirvana, in fact.

There are very few distinctive hills in the North York Moors, mostly consisting of high expansive heathland. Hawnby Hill and its neighbour, Easterside Hill, are both steep sided and picturesque.

The two hills can be seen for many miles as the road through Bilsdale continues toward the pretty village of Osmotherly.

Seen from the North, as here, many individual trees sit in the heather in the foreground, looking like they have a tough time of it.

The trees have much character, and would make paintings themselves. They're often twisted and leaning away from some unseen force which is difficult to imagine on a summers day.

I'm not intrepid enough to try the steep climbs and decents in a car not built for really challenging weather, though it would be wonderful to paint on location when snow is lying here.

I've painted in the area since building a Bilsdale collection, and am always planning more visits.