The Hollow Mountain (Mynydd Braich-goch) Painting

I painted this work during an artist residency in the remote Dyfi valley of mid-Wales in 2017. A mouth of the former Corris slate mine is a central part of the composition, and became the only feature of the painting to use black - devouring the surprising colours of the geology and plantlife in what had initially appeared from field sketches to be a somewhat barren winter landscape. The title of the work alludes to the idea that progressed throughout its execution that the mountain was in fact hollow: a remarkable feat of human achievement, and one hidden in plain sight. This work was selected in 2018 for the Lynn Painter-Stainers Prize exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London.