Runcorn Hill

2014

I often return to the same place repeatedly and draw, Runcorn Hill is a nearby frequently visited spot.

There are areas of Ancient Heath and a topology which invites exploration. A sandstone hill that has been quarried in previous centuries, with the stone being barged to create fine buildings. This has hewn the Hill with many places where one can be enclosed and supported by the woodland; creating areas of topographical indentations, and pockets to inhabit.

When inside I can draw, protected from others and enclosed by vegetation, there is a sense of being supported and nurtured in these spaces. However these are spaces of loss, voids bounded by the earth and the sky. The rock of the Hill now provides containers of emptiness.

In the Summer, the surface of the Hill is often scarred by fire, both accidental and deliberate, leaving swathes of charred bracken and blackened earth. Further loss, this time temporary as new growth sprouts.

I draw with the charcoal lying in the remains of the fire, I draw Runcorn Hill with the remains of Runcorn Hill. I mark the loss.