Landscape: A Living Process

'The Source of The Spirit'

I approach each of my landscape paintings as a lived experience - attempting to capture the spirit of a place beyond its picturesque surface or objective appearance.

A landscape that recalls history, myth, or legend remains part of a continual lived process in which humanity appears fleeting and contemplative.

My oil painting of the Rhiwargo waterfall at the head of Lake Vyrnwy represents, on the one hand, a breathtaking and dynamic geological feature. Beneath the surface, however, lies a deeper metaphysical narrative.

'The Source of The Spirit'

'The majestic Rhiwargo Falls cascade into Lake Vrynwy, a Victorian reservoir built in the 1880s to supply water to Liverpool, 65 miles away. So pure is its water that it was sourced in the production of Bombay Sapphire Gin by distiller G&J Greenall in Warrington until 2013.

Yet it's not the only spirit to emerge from these waters. Beneath the lake lies the drowned village of Llanwddyn. Folklore describes the spirit of Yspryd Cynon lying beneath a prominent boulder. When labourers blasted the stone, its vengeful spirit was released.

Visiting Rhiwargor Falls will invoke many spirits, whether their elemental force is real or imagined'.

Stephen Hopper

http://www.stephenhopper.net/