Landscape Print – Apricot

What I like about this scene is its sense of freedom; the fact that its so featureless with no specificity to its location means it could be anywhere and that invites the viewer to surrender their imagination and allow the landscape in. Curiously, even to my eye having visited this location dozens of times, I don't recognise the location. I only know its the South Downs because I remember the evening so well but this could easily be a desert somewhere such are the colours and the knife stroke impressions of the landscape. Only the foreground smudges of grey betray the chalky slopes of the South Downs.
Firle Bostal, which leads up to Firle Beacon, lies between the first two foreground escarpments. The large middle ground escarpment is Littledene beyond which lies the River Ouse which winds its way out to Newhaven Harbour. Beyond that, receding into the distance, lie the hills of Telscombe and Falmer. All in all its only a distance of about 7 miles but in using an 85mm focal length to compress the space, it ironically feels like a much greater distance due to the sea mist rendering the landscape into layers.