Great Yorkshire Show

My show stand at The Great Yorkshire Show 2023

What a great 4 days at the show, my first show stand on Avenue Q. A big mix of weather over the 4 days meant displays had to be jiggled about to avoid the rivers of water that ran through the carpet!

Display of my prints for sale, at The Great Yorkshire Show 2023

Met so many positive people who liked my paintings and talked about places that were represented in them, and their own special memories associated in the landscapes of North Yorkshire.

Big thanks to Karen Van Hoey from VAA who made the 4 hours journey to see me and enthusiastically helped promote my stand.

The Supreme sheep winner was announced, and now I get to meet the owners and who will commission a painting of the Suffolk winning sheep.

The Winner!! I will be painting a commissioned landscape with this beautiful winning sheep.

Meeting the Supreme Sheep Winner at The Great Yorkshire Show 2023.

En plein air at Castle Howard

Feeling grateful for being in such an awe inspiring landscape with just the sounds of nature. Feel so lucky to be able to have the day to myself, doing the thing that I love, painting surrounded by nature.

On a good day, Castle Howard is only a 25 minute drive away, along the A64 with steady traffic. I treated myself last year to a year’s membership and it has been good value, getting myself and any guest unlimited access, early entry before the general public, discounted tickets to special events and you earn points too every time you buy something.

Castle Howard House

The Castle Howard Team okayed my visit in June, to paint en plein air in the grounds,

So much to see and what a choice to make. Everywhere is stunning and such a variety of landscapes.

Day 1 - In Ray Wood - bright sunny day - early start at 9am - so quiet, except for my creaking art box on wheels!

After spending ages wandering around lugging all my painting gear, this way and that, and up the steep grassy bank, I eventually choose a dappled sunlit patch deep in the centre and not on the usual paths for visitors to take.

This woodland glade was covered in wildflowers and bluebells, and an inviting curving path to take your eye into the forest. The shadows were great. The sound of birds was never ending and all around me. leaves rustling and tree branches creaking. In the distance I could hear groups of visitors but not many came my way.

I was determined to paint quickly and not add to much detail, however this didn’t go to plan, as it really was a feast for the eyes, so difficult not to include it all!

Passers by, asked to take a look and some stayed to chat. It was really great to talk about what I am doing and engage with others and hear where they were from and any art experience they had.

I had packed my flask and sandwiches so no need to leave anything, and by 2pm it was time to head home. A large canvas to fill so plenty to finish of later at home.

The sun and shadows of course had moved and colours had changed but that is the beauty of working outside.

What a great day, and when I emerged from the woods, I couldn’t believe how warm it was! I pulled my creaking cart of materials and large canvas in its Amazon box…what a site… a long walk back to the car. I must have looked strange!

Day 2 - Walled Garden

What an amazing walled garden. The largest one I have been in. So many diverse plants and planting designs. June is really the best month to come!

Had a great day chatting with visitors, some had come from as far away as Australia, playing in a brass band competition, battle of the bands on Saddleworth Moor.

So many positive awes and wows about the wisteria, so this was what I decided to paint. The purples and pinks were enhanced by the oranges in the brickwork and the greens fresh and bright. A smaller canvas than usual.

Great day spent with my daughter, the camera and videos taken by her, and she posted my first tiktok!

Day 3 - By Swan Lake

Again an early start. So peaceful down here by the lake. A contrasting landscape to previous days. Amazing clear blue sky reflected on the surface of the lake. Quite a bit of wind forming ripples. Joined bu a few swans majestically and serenely gliding along. Talked to a lovely gentlemen who told us that the bench besides us was his wife’s bench and her favourite view. Her name plate is on the bench. She had sadly passed a way a few years ago, an American lady, and we chatted about how they had met and their story. He walks here every day to pick up any litter around the grounds in exchange for free entry.

I sheltered under my UV umbrella, and even felt a bit chilly from the breeze, my daughter however got sunburnt!

Another great day, the colours were so bright and the landscape breathtakingly beautiful. A larger canvas, to be finished at home.

My aim for the week was to work quicker and my daughter tried to keep me to it. Still adding a lot of detail, so will need some LARGER brushes, ha ha!!

Thank you Castle Howard and especially Abbi, who sorted it all out for me and was so accommodating and generous.

Meerkat ferns!

Spring in all its glory

I love spring! The freshness of new growth. The new bright colours of emerging plants and the notice me greens of new shoots. It is the season of hope for plants and animals. New life. New beginnings. The fields come alive with the joviality of spring lambs. The skies are frantic with birds trying to tempt a mate, calling, dancing and parading, with full beaks of foraged materials for nest building. I love to hear the first buzz of a bumble bee as it takes flight after its long winter sleep. I plant seeds (too many) saved from last years’ flowers, hoping that they will grow…they always do, and then I feel guilty if I can’t grow all of them on, and squeeze them somewhere into a crowded patch of soil.

I have a few ferns that uncurl slowly as the days get warmer, cautious to reveal too much of themselves in case of a night time frost bite.

However, nothing as fabulous as the ferns in Ray Wood. What a feast for the eyes. My immediate thoughts were of meerkats, tentatively watching the forest. But, unlike Meerkats they couldn’t refurl and retreat should the weather turn cold.

I hope you agree that these ferns are majestic and definitely remind you of meerkats, be it amazing zingy green ones!

Now to try and paint them. A challenge indeed.

The Bee Field

How one place on the North York Moors can hold so many special memories.

View over the ‘bee field’ towards Black Hambleton

This field and the surrounding moorland on the North York Moors, on the road out the south end of Osmotherley over to Snilesworth Moor has been a meeting point for my family for over 50 years. 

The North York Moors beckoned my father, Robert since he moved to Kirklevington as a child, and now at 82 years he still finds sanctuary in the open spaces of moorland, the views, the beauty, the history of the land, with wind on his face.

Today he will still drive this familiar path with his wife, my mum Beryl, when they both feel the pull of the moors and the real need to just ‘get out of the house’ and feel that calmness and sense of place. 

To forget health worries and old age, and just soak up the views and sit and watch the moors, hear the bleat of sheep and just breathe.

As children, we would look forward to the call from our father after a busy working week, extra weekend jobs to make ends meet, house and garden maintenance and stresses of family life with four children for him to say often late on a Sunday afternoon, ‘who fancies a ride up the moors?’ We would pile into the car with the dog, excited as us, knowing we would be running free through the bracken playing hide and seek, laying on the springy heather, splashing in streams, exploring ruins, or just playing out, walking enjoying the open moors. Dad would encourage us to empty our lungs completely and take in the fresh air! We would collect sheep wool, sticks, stones, leaves and anything and fill our pockets with nature’s treasures. 

Years later our childhood dog Ben, a sheepdog, was buried in his favourite playground, here beside the stream and we remember him searching for us amongst the bracken and his absolute love and excitedness when he found us.

Dad became a beekeeper and for over 40 years this field ,over the wall, became ‘the bee field’. Every summer we would load up the beehives, safely secured and take them late in the evening to their summer residence, ‘the bee field’, with the promise of sweet heather honey. We would keep our distance, peeking over the stone walls, out of the flight path of the bees. The heather on Black Hambleton moor gave up its nectar and by September the honeycombs and bees would be ready for their journey back home. 

Pastel drawing of Rob (my father) in bee hat

Dad, a former steward at ‘The Great Yorkshire Show’ and member of the Yorkshire beekeepers’ association, still takes his bees here, now with fewer bees, has noticed the decline in bees and heather on the moors.

As adults with families of our own, spread across the county, we would meet up at ‘the bee field’ to picnic and play games on the flat patch just up the slope from here and re enact the simple childhood pleasures we all engaged in.

Today, the call of the North York Moors still entices us to ‘have a ride up the moors’ to this place, to walk, to sit, to pause and breathe deeply. 

With the very sad news of my Mother’s terminal cancer diagnosis, she and us all, will find precious time to just sit, and take in this beautiful landscape, to reflect and find peace.

Visit ‘The Plot’,

I found this book in a charity shop in York. Intrigued by this biography about a 1 acre plot on this western edge of the North York Moors that mentioned so many places I knew.

How come I had never heard of this place?

The history associated with it! And crikey…what a lot had happened here, that shaped the history of Britain. This book tells of a sculptor, John Joseph Bunting who built a small chapel on his 1 acre of land in 1957, his life, written by his daughter. The book tells of the amazing history of this plot of land and the surrounding hillsides.

We parked in Oldstead and headed up a very, very steep bank in the general direction using an OS map. You can also reach ‘The Plot’ from the top of the escarpment starting near to the airfield at Sutton Bank, which is the less strenuous route.

It was lovely to be out on this cold dry day walking through woodland, past moss covered stone walls even if the climb was hard. Recalling the history of this place mentioned in the book, it was hard to imagine having to walk up this steep incline in battle gear and weary from the long walk from Scotland, for soldiers and drovers of old. How did they manage it?

We ventured off the path looking for a short cut and came across an old tree house/ viewing platform. Not a good idea to leave the path because we ended up walking much further because we couldn’t cross the aptly named ‘hell hole’ gulley, a very steep sided valley that the book tells got its name from a massacre that took place here in October 1322 resulting in Scottish victory at the Battle of Byland, a key moment in medieval history and in the development of the two nations, England and Scotland.

The book tells of Edward II’s humiliation in which he lost an army, a huge amount of treasure and the Royal Seal, and abandoned his Queen. He had a perilously narrow escape across the Yorkshire Wolds. We were walking in the steps of armies and across battle fields, probably buried skeletons, all now hidden under bracken, brambles and the roots of trees.

View over and down to ‘Hell Hole’.

Arriving at ‘The Plot’, we were rewarded with a great view of the hillside we had just climbed and far reaching views to the vale of York. The chapel and grounds are well kept just off the track at the corner marked ‘Scotch Corner’, after the drovers who drove their animals from Scotland down the drover’s road to England. A trade route that began in medieval times, and as you sit here in this tranquil spot you can hardly believe that this place was once bustling and noisy.

The Plot, John Buntings chapel and one acre plot on the western edge of the North York Moors. The view over the valley. Drover’s road. Medieval history.

Read more about John Buntings’ chapel - link to Countryfile Article 2021

A rewarding walk to this lovely plot of land. A place for a coffee from the flask and a sandwich before heading back down hill, keeping to the route this time!

Inspiring landscapes full of history buried beneath your feet. No paintings from this week’s blog but will definitely be back in the Spring to capture those amazing views. Next time by the easier route!!

Get outdoors and explore Castle Howard grounds.

A great place to visit all year round, and if you buy a year’s membership you can visit as many times as you like, so its works out as great value. You also get a discount to any events that they hold, fantastic! The grounds are really expansive and varied so you can explore and see something new every time you go. Walled gardens, avenues of trees, water fountains, the lakes and ponds, Ray wood and of course for adults and children the fabulous play area down by the lakeside.

Temple of the Four Winds

We just headed out towards the temple of four winds to get a great view out over fields and to get a good bit of exercise and fresh air.

Summer 2022 by the lily ponds

We then headed down to the lily ponds, a favourite place that I had visited back in the summer 2022 and I had set up my easel on one of the hottest days of the year. A quiet place to enjoy the tranquil water and listen for birds.

View back towards Castle Howard House

A walk over wet grassland towards the lake and we were rewarded with the sight of serene swans gliding slowly across the dark rippling water, submerging their swan necks to forage for food.

The sunlight was streaming through the wintry trees and catching the ripples, creating amazing patterns that contrasted with the darkness of the trees, and the low afternoon sun reflected the colours onto the whiteness of the swan’s feathers. A pleasing photo opportunity was captured after waiting for the right moment as the swans were in line with the folly in the far distance, over the gate and onto the horizon.

Wintry reflections on the rippling waters.

A nice hot coffee back in the courtyard entrance finished of the visit nicely. Back home to start on today’s inspiration!

Finished painting

Welcome to janettehillarty blog

Where am I going to go this year, to find inspiration?

New Year 2023 Go outdoors and explore

Kilburn, Sutton Bank, North York Moors

View from the top, looking towards the Pennines!

Written By Janette Hill

The new year began with a lovely clear day at the top of Kilburn, North Yorkshire. Parked by the airfield for free, bonus. Great place to watch the gliders take off. Headed along the path above the Whitehorse of Kilburn, therefore avoiding climbing the steep steps from the carpark below. Luckily found an empty bench with a fab view and even better remembered to bring my mats for sitting on, thus avoiding getting a wet bum! Icy cold wind so had to be quick with this sketch..but wow could see right over to The Pennines. Quick walk and then back to the car for a coffee from the flask. Great way to blow away the Christmas cobwebs!!