Claire Spencer - The Charcoal Forest

Recently, I re-discovered an article in an old copy of  The Artist magazine.
I recall saving the article because I found these charcoal drawings, by the artist Claire Spencer, so compelling -  I could literally gaze at them for hours on end. The drawings
were inspired by the Wyre Forest and two books written by 19^th century naturalist/philosopher Henry David Thoreau - The Maine Woods and Walden. They are based on his diary of thoughts and observations of the wilderness and nature, when he lived for a year by Walden Pool in the Maine Woods.

The first thing to strike me about these drawings is their dark brooding, yet alluring presence and strong sense of mystery, intensified by the strongly contrasting values. An amazing variety of mark making brings out wonderfully well the form and textures of foliage and tree bark, revealing the character and atmosphere of the natural woodland - graceful sinewy branches of trees appear to be alive and moving. Some ancient parts of this forest were managed over many centuries for charcoal burning, so charcoal is, I think, a perfectly fitting medium to use for this series. Apart from the way it lends itself so well to the subject, I think the artist has paid a great complement to Thoreau’s writings and to these woods by interpreting them in such a sensitive way.