Earth (Blackstone Edge) on canvas, with sea salt.
102cms x 184cms x 6cms. In three sections.

Along with 'Spring Equinox' this was one of the earliest earthstain pieces I made that incorporated other materials, alongside earth from a specific location; in this instance sea-salt from Maldon, in Essex.

I've always been intrigued by the fact that much of our upland landscape was once submerged by ancient oceans, and that the remains of shells and other small sea creatures, can be found on wild, open moorland, and at the top of some of our highest hills.

Combining sea-salt, with the heavy, dark earth of a Pennine escarpment, seemed to me to be a perfect way to reflect on these 'landscapes'; the salt encrusted ridge, a symbol of the Pennine Winters I remembered as a teenager.