Original artwork description:

‘ A large oak tree is just a little nut that refused to give up.’ – Author: David McGee

Painted directly from life in one day at a nearby Chateau at Prahecq, there is an interesting provenance attached to this one. I originally painted it to be included in an exhibition I was going to have in the UK at Salisbury. The gallery owner contacted me after seeing my work online, and we got together to discuss things, and he bought a few pieces out of my studio for his personal collection. It was decided that I would paint about 30 new paintings for the exhibition. He would occasionally drop around to the studio to check on my progress, and he particularly like this one along with a couple of others, and again, wanted it for his own collection.

Unfortunately, soon after, he encountered serious health issues, and was unable to continue as the driving force for the exhibition. However, the Gallery and I agreed to proceed with our plans to hold the show.

Then, a few weeks later, the Russian spy poisoning scandal hit Salisbury, and effectively closed the city down with radioactive fallout! At this time, something told me this show was not fated to proceed, and I was right.

A couple of years later, this painting was dispatched via a good artist friend to be exhibited at a number of different venues in Ireland. Then, Covid appeared, and those venues were mostly shut down as well.

So, here it is finally several years later, being exhibited effectively for the first time, which is a relief as I think its a little ripper!

Materials used:

oil paint

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