I have been painting landscapes for over fifty years, working primarily in oil and cold wax. My practice is rooted in the Cambridgeshire landscape — its flatness, its particular quality of light, the way the horizon holds everything in a kind of suspension. This is a brief introduction to the work and the thinking behind it.

I always return to the forest as a subject for painting. It is a source of limitless fascination and inspiration. I create these forest paintings primarily from memory. I do have photographs taken at various locations, but I rarely use them to complete a painting. They may offer a starting point, a way of seeing, or a particular quality of light — but ultimately a painting has to work on its own terms. Effective paintings have a convincing internal character and consistency.

This work represents something of a departure. It is a graphic rendering of a winter tree, with a pronounced emphasis on drawing and linear qualities — a shift from the more atmospheric landscape work that typically occupies my practice. The painting uses oil, cold wax, bitumen, pumice stone powder, and enamel on an 80 × 80 cm canvas. 'The Dream of a Golden Tree' Oil, Cold Wax, bitumen, pumice stone, enamel on 80 x 80 cm Canvas Materials and Process The general process is re