We went to Amsterdam last week as my retirement from Art Teaching treat. I was blown away by the Van Gogh museum and to see so much of the master’s work in one place. I made a sketch of one that really spoke to me and here it is. Do click on image to see marks more clearly. It was difficult to work as there were so many people, but that gave an urgency to the response I feel.

When I got home I returned to my own work inspired by Van Gogh’s use of impasto and vibrancy of colour. I wanted to add it to certain ‘zones’ and leave others very ‘thin’ as Munch often did. His work was also on show at the Van Gogh museum which was a real treat. I am familiar with so much of it as I travelled to Oslo for my dissertation as a student at Leeds which was based on Munch’s painting. Any way here is a section of my painting with the impasto marks. Got to be careful and know when to stop!