Highs & Lows

After moving to the country for a while in Marsden from the West Midlands in December 2018, I adopted a similar walk daily. Seeing nature in this place and time really inspired me in different ways. It’s constantly adapting and changing to flourish and to survive. It’s truly impressive! On walks with my dog Lola, I find therapy of sorts. They help me ponder about content that can get stuck in my head, both good & bad, work, life, feelings and all in-between. I got to thinking about the natural landscape around me, the lines, curves, space all took a grip. I got home, scribbled an idea and then left it to brew.

I wanted to create something that reflected the ups and downs of the landscape as well as represent the highs and lows of life. Seems life is a constant adjustment to the changes we face so showing the landscape in varying ways seemed a nice way to do this. The coloured lines in this piece represent the various ways I’ve seen the hills change, and the curves, my own mood and reflections whilst walking them. I’ve seen brown and seemingly lifeless winter ferns to crisp ice and snow covered peaks. In spring and summer where nature injected them with beauty and activity, to (sadly) even raging and destructive fires where the land lay black, baron and scorched looking beyond repair... Finally, to patches of summer where the light just made everything...Better. Nature always finds a way, as do we.

Someone commented this piece reminded them a little of the Joy Division Unknown Pleasures cover, which I was very humbled by. Interestingly, the cap on the left of the top row is in the shape of Pule Hill – a local and much loved landmark for the people of Marsden. A secondary title could be: Known Puleasures, due to the enjoyment my dog Lola and I have had as well as the walkers, cyclists and climbers have interacting with these spaces.

Justin Robert Price
creative / concepts / design / art / thinking.