Friday 18 May 2012

Liquid gold

I can remember the first time I saw rapeseed growing in the UK. I was travelling by train, through my home county of Cheshire, heading northwards to the Lancashire seaside coast. I gazed out of the window in amazement at the fields of shocking yellow that lay either side of the track, so different to the countryside around my hometown with its gentle buff and ochre fields of grain and lush green pastures populated by herds of mainly Friesan cattle.

Rapeseed is BIG money now in the UK and Ireland and many of the local farmers seem to be growing it in preference to all other crops. Leaving aside its visual beauty, the crop has other far less attractive impacts, as those amongst us that suffer with hayfever will tell you only too well! Additionally, after the crop is harvested. our homes and gardens are usually infested with swarms of tiny homeless insects (we call them thunderfly) that often decide to take up residence in the oddest of places; it is not unusual to see them under the cover glass of paintings and photographs and even under the seams of wallpaper!

This 10-15 minute watercolour was developed from a sketch I did in pastel pencil recently whilst on a local bus route that passes alongside fields of rapeseed. The stark yellow of the field is punctuated by the swathes of green from the growth below and heightened by the dulled ultramarine blue of a blustery Cambridgeshire sky above. The small roundish trees and hedgerow of the field boundary are dwarfed by the distant line of giant poplar trees of a neighbouring field, planted by farmers as a frail windbreak against the cold, brisk winds that blow almost totally unhindered across this flattest of lands from the North Sea.

Happy painting!

Liquid Gold, watercolour and watercolour pencil on Langton 140lb Rough, A4



28 comments:

  1. Michael, a lovely painting as usual .. Your description is especially interesting, I'd never heard of rapeseed, pretty enough but the pitfalls are not worth it..
    BJ

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    1. Hi BJ and thank you so much! It's a big earner for the farmers but quite controversial too - but it sure looks pretty! I was sorry to read your posts these last months. I hope you are keeping well, despite your sad losses.

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  2. This is gorgeous. Love the simplicity you have achieved.
    Best wishes,

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    1. Thank you Vinayak! It was a quick and simple painting so I'm very pleased that you like it :)

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  3. It's beautiful, Michael, exactly as I picture a rapeseed field in my mind, and I love the simplicity as well! Those rows of poplars are typical of Dutch landscapes also (the same North Sea winds).

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    1. Thank you Judy! There are lots of reference paintings out there if you fancy having a go - it would be interesting to see one done in your style :) I only found out recently about the rows of poplars They look so out of place don't they?

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  4. Brilliant! Wonderful distance and the yellow of the rape understated and the cloudy sky is so, well, cloudy! Love it.

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    1. Thank you Sharon. Yes, it is a little more vibrant yellow in reality and I tried to get that colour, albeit hastily. Understating it is probably better as it would look unnatural otherwise:)

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  5. Lovely picture, Michael. And you are so right about the eye-popping colour. I recently spent 5 weeks away from the UK working in South Africa, a it was suite stunning to see the rape in full flower when I came back.
    I was at lunch with a farming specialist today and he was saying exactly the same about the controversy of rape. The sad thing is that it's being chosen as a crop because farmers get good returns at the current price, but it also means we're not planting food crops and the rape seed oil is being transported for hundreds of miles to make bio fuel. Hmm doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

    But... it is beautiful, as you say.

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    1. Hi Vandy, thank you for dropping in and your comments, It does seem that it's a case of 'needs must' with the rapeseed crop and farmers. It does seem ridiculous too that a bio fuel has a carbon footprint that probably outweighs the ones it is trying to reduce!

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  6. A rapeseed field in full sun set against a sky dark with rain..... and the sparkles after a shower... delish! It always makes me wonder what Van Gogh would have made of it.

    Lovely painting Michael, You've caught a great sense of distance.

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    1. Thank you, Lisa! I'd have to add bluebell woods and dappled light on a shaded path to your delish list! Yes, Van Gogh would have been out there, hayfever willing, sitting in the rapeseed fields and painting them!

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  7. rape seed is so striking in the landscape ..you've captured it very well michael

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    1. Thank you, Jane! It certainly is striking - I'm pleased that you think I captured it:)

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  8. I love the simplicity of this Michael. There is no doubt that there are more fields of Rapeseed every year and I agree with all your observations. Nice post. ;-)

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    1. Thank you, John! They do seem to be on the increase don't they? I'm glad you feel the same about it :)

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  9. Lovely picture, Michael you capture everything except the smell of rapeseed. My #2 son is a cyclist and does a lot of road racing and we follow as his back up team. 50 miles through the sweet smell of rapeseed is not for the feint-hearted.

    A really good job!

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    1. Thank you, John! Fifty miles is a long way on a bike, but with the smell of the crop for that distance, I think I'd be in tears, quite literally:)

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  10. Many yellow fields across the Channel too. I love the visual impact of this color in contrast to the spring sky, it is in my opinion the only benefit of this industrial agriculture which leads to many absurdities.
    Have a nice day !

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    1. Hi Lydie and thank you! You have them in France too? They must look awesome in such an already beautiful landscape! I think the visual impact is the only benefit too - I don't drive ... and I cook with other oils :)

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  11. Nicely painted Michael. A lovely serene subject. Is it about to Rain mate?
    All the best Michael
    Vic.

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    1. Hi Vic, and thank you my friend. I think it had rained earlier that day - I was on my way back from Cambridge and it always seems to rain on that journey! All the best to you too, Michael.

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  12. Great painting Mike.

    Good descriptions to make me feel homesick - from the fields of liquid gold to even the thunder flies.

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    1. Hi Sue and thank you! Wow, you must be homesick if you're missing the thunderflies !

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  13. Its a sight we see a lot of, being surrounded by farm. You have captured it beautifully, Michael.

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    1. Thank you Pat. I'm sure you must get loads of it where you are. We were out in the countryside yesterday and in one particularly place it was yellow as far as the eye could see, and in all directions. Aaaaatchooo!

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  14. The rapeseed fields are always a stunning sight, you did a wonderful interpretation !

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    1. Hi Jane and thank you. They are a stunning sight and I did think the yellow I used was not quite powerful enough but I'm pleased that you liked it.

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No silly verification words here - all comments are appreciated! Thank you :)