Emma Jayne Holmes : Joined up thinking / Joining up the thinking?
Lockdown had a profound impact on most of us and for me, like many others, the world shrunk. The boundaries of our travels got much closer and local routes were more frequently trod. Rather than feel hemmed in, the experience encouraged me to change my perspective, to look more closely at what was in my neighbourhood and local environment. I had carried out a few local community art projects so I was aware of the industrial heritage that contributed to my doorstep being on the World Heritage Site. In summer the canal boats appear to float across the tree tops as they cross the Froncysyllte Aqueduct, a somewhat bizarre view for newcomers to our garden. It is about a 15 minute walk, circumnavigating the old chemical works site which is slowly being greened by Buddleja and other pioneering local species. Over the years my work has returned to landscape, documentary sketches of travels, studies of areas for exhibitions and most recently the study of the Dyfi Estuary for my M.A. exhibition as a result of travelling to Aberystwyth by train. The route provides a unique view of the estuary as it opens out to the sea, following a route from the flat lands of Shropshire, through the rolling hills and steep narrow valleys of mid Wales to Machynlleth, where the landscape changes again for the estuary. A journey I sorely miss and hope to travel again.
The view from my current studio window is etched into my brain and its forms and folds are something I default to when doing warm up exercises with paints. It is a surprisingly similar landscape to one that I grew up with, our home nestled halfway up the hill, looking out along a valley, with intersecting hillsides lining up to the valley floor, a road and river snaking along its floor. The background a range stretching across from one side the valley to the other, beautifully framed and balanced. Our valley a side shoot to another further down. Your eyes wander along the horizon, what is around the corner. The hills on either side differ in form depending on the light, the sun opening up areas or highlighting particular fields. It is a constant source of wonder and material for me and over lockdown has drawn me out to explore in closer detail fields and hedgerows that I have viewed from afar. We have discovered new routes, walks, valleys and woods constantly surprised by the change of perspective. A slog up a hill, eyes focussed on the next hedge for a style to clamber over. In doing so you stop, to breathe and then your eyes take in and register the changes, your mind remapping where you are. A steep hill falls flat and I’m surprised by the change, over a seemingly short distance. Distances walked don’t always collate with effort put in? Walking has become an important part of my practice, time to view, experience and discuss (huge thanks to a neighbour who is always up for a morning walk or little local adventure). The ritual of going out for a walk, installed from the days of being a dog owner, continue and have been fundamental to this current body of work and interest. Walks at a slower pace, contact with the elements and also the non confrontational position of walking with another person encourages thoughts to flow and conversations to wander.
Apart from studying my local area more closely I have also been considering the notion of picturesque. What makes a view picturesque? On from that I’m also considering nature and natural landscapes. Ecology, permaculture, rewilding and conservation are areas I have a growing interest in as I try to understand the countryside I see before me. For a city person to come to my home, they can feel it to be very rural, but I know of more rural, less populated spaces. Likewise I am experiencing a change of perspective with my understanding of land use and countryside. A lot of what I lookout over and paint as seemingly rural/natural landscape is man made, adjusted physically or more subtly with land use. Woodlands are not all historical, many are rural industry, as are the crop fields and animal fields. The whole colour and texture of a hillside can be changed by man controlling what goes onto that area. It seems that many of us have lost the ability to read the landscape, to understand its scars, folds and crevices, let alone the top covering. The vegetation growing often gives an indication of the soil quality and mineral make up, it can tell a history of its uses.
Our local Countryside services Clwydian Range and Dee Valley are part of a joint team project entitled “Our Picturesque Landscape”. Nearly 3 years in and 2 more to go, it is looking at opening up areas to support more public use, walks and parks, whilst working to educate locals and visitors on not only the history but the current land uses, conservation and maintenance. I have started to visit their volunteer days to learn more and record, in sketches, the works.
Veronica’s proposal, put far more succinctly, the concerns that are current in my work. How do I as a landscape artist, painting pictures of my locality, use that to voice my concerns about the changes we are making to the planet? My life as an artist and my life as a human on this planet, are equally important. Participating in “We live with the land/The land as Other”, is helping me address this and hopefully my artwork can contribute to the challenge of informing and motivating the wider public to change.
To learn more about Emma’s work visit her Artist Profile