I witnessed the Northern Lights for the fourth time in my life on 19th January 2026. On that occasion, broad shimmering bands crossed the sky overhead. Luckily the night was quite clear and having some cloud around added to the atmosphere. I painted the green of the lights using Oxide of Chromium Green. I needed a dullish green that wouldn’t clash with the bright points of stars behind it.
This took two months to complete. This year marks 20 years since I first tackled this view and 15 since I last painted it. It’s a view from one of the family farm fields, the ‘High Field’. I painted it on a big board over a metre wide, the biggest piece ever. Though it follows a reference photo closely, there is artistic licence in the colouring especially of the shadows. Reference photo was taken in late August 2008, so this has been a long time on the backburner. A housing estate near the edge of the land below the caravan site has been omitted, as have two electricity poles in the two closest fields.
Commission
