As I’ve mentioned in my previous post, while in France we visited three caves of palaeolithic art, Pech Merle, Cougnac and the Sorcerer’s Cave. Pech merle made the biggest impression on me and the frieze of the spotted horses especially. (I have written about the visit in detail for TOAST Magazine.)
We found some Pech Merle inspired graffiti while driving in the valley of the River Lot:
We were allowed to take photos in the mineral cave at Cougnac. It felt like entering a womb in the earth,
Many of the stalagmites looked like gatherings of people,
As part of the tour of the Sorcerer’s Cave we were allowed into some medieval cave homes in the rockface,
I’m always intrigued when I find a nest;
I didn’t make many sketches while away, just a few line drawings in my sketchbook;
But I found the caves very inspiring and I’ve started doodling images. Here’s the cover of my diary:
I made a small sketch painting on cardboard layered with brown paper pieces to give it a surface texture. I like the magic of spotted horses, they bring to mind circuses and merry-go-rounds and the art of Chagall.
I’ve experimented with overlaying tree photos in Photoshop to give a mystical, dreamlike quality to the image;
I’ve also experimented with creating textured surfaces. Here is a spread in a sketchbook:
I’ve added some animal outlines;
It hasn’t worked yet, but I’ll persist with the experiments :)
I’m not typically drawn to horses, but seeing horses canter aound a field one day while I was at someone’s house made quite an impression on me. It inspired me to draw the picture, In the Rock Cleft, in this post. (And all along I find that there’s a song in the back of my mind, Wild Horses by The Rolling Stones :) Listen here.)
