It has been completed on stretched canvas and is unframed, size 51 x 41 cm.
copyright Francis Barker 2019.
I recently completed two quite similar paintings based on views around Wells-Next-The-Sea, which pretty much describes its position.
Both of these paintings have been produced in oil on stretched canvas, 31 x 23 cm, unframed.
copyright Francis Barker 2019
There is something about the quality of the light, perhaps because it is north facing. There is a strong ‘elemental’ feeling to the whole area which is difficult to put into words.
I am not alone in this of course. It is a popular tourist destination, is home to much wildlife and many want to relocate there. The house prices in certain parts have skyrocketed in recent years.
But that can’t stop us visiting. I think I shall have to return soon and who knows – maybe I will be inspired.
The Painter
Climbing the dune,
wind heavy in our faces.
We squint (or do we smile?),
our laughs and quips
diffuse in the air.
Young legs carry you
ahead to the summit,
where tufts of green cling
to an existence. Then you’re
a sudden lithe silhouette
against a racing sky.
I revel in your victory;
your gentle hand hauls me
up close to ocean eyes,
an elfin smile, teeth
pristine like breakers
on the distant, crashing
shore, that white noise
filling our ears.
To look into you
is to look as men
have done for centuries.
Unchanging heart,
you’re the pearl left
nestling in filth.
So take a look –
can anyone steal time?
An hour here or there,
we leave our footprints,
no foothold anywhere.
I am the painter of this shore –
you are the model.
Again and again,
we return to wrestle
in familiar hues;
deep alizarin crimson,
yellow ochre, phthalo blue,
making it real. Stay in this
moment, we bless and bless.
It has to be you.
© copyright Francis
* Taken from the collection ‘Anonymous Lines’
The illustration is from a larger painting of a scene overlooking the North Sea, from sand dunes at Wells Next The Sea, Norfolk, England.
The North Norfolk coast is wonderful. I never tire of painting it, which is just as well. Like most parts of England, it is underrated, yet this place at any rate, is extremely popular.
Ciscography 