We decided we needed a good dose of fresh air on Sunday and so drove down to Wimpole Hall, a lovely stately home in the the south of Cambridgeshire. The last owner of the hall was the daughter of Rudyard Kipling, but when she passed away the home was given over to the National Trust. The grounds surrounding the hall are quite expansive and contain a working farm and a beautiful large walled kitchen garden. The estate is quite close to the county border and so, as is often the case in England, the landscape starts to change as the characteristic flatness of Cambridgeshire finally gives way to the bumps and hills of lovely Hertfordshire.
This watercolour is based on a photo I took as we sat at the top of a hill under the canopy of a beautiful old oak tree and gazed back across the estate towards the hall, which was hidden behind the distant tree line. In the far distance, the chalk ridge of the Chilterns provided a hazy blue backdrop to the vista. The wind coming from the south was blustery but quite warm too. We both laughed as Louie sat there in the wind, his big ears flapping as though he was about to take off!
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| Wimpole, watercolour in Fabriano Venezia sketchbook, 25cm x 18cm/10" x 7" |
And of course this post wouldn't be complete without a photo of Louie enjoying the view ... and the wind!
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| What a handsome Beagle I am :) |
Have a really lovely week and happy painting to you all :)
