Oil on Canvas | 36 x 48 inches
‘I was really eager to paint this particularly because of the smile on the older gentleman’s face. This is the largest painting I have undertaken for nearly ten years and the subject was perfect for a big canvas. For almost two months, I worked daily for at least six, but usually eight hours in a sitting. Every thought was devoted to this painting and I loved almost every minute of it. After I had finished, I did not know what to do with myself; it had completely drained me. It was well over a week before I found the inspiration to paint again.’
‘I was that inspired with the subject I wrote the following poem too:
The Darlington Inn, is full to the brim,
With people spilling onto Chapel street.
With drink in their bellies
And wearing their wellies,
They line the paths to see the Boxing day meet,
Riders gather in the square,
Dressed in the finest hunting wear,
They drink and chat
And adjust their cravats
And wait for the bells to strike eleven.
As the last chime brings the hour,
As the last note, ceases, in the bell tower,
The master yells his speech, with his cheeks a-glow,
With anticipating breath
He blows the horn with power
Through the cosy little towns,
Led by the howling pack of hounds,
Onto the moors and into the Fray,
Onto the moors on this fine hunting day,
Onto the moors they are bound.’