'Witts Cottage' depicts an actual thatched cottage of the same name in Sutton Scotney, a village in Hampshire, Southern England. This detailed linocut print has been a long time coming. I was inspired by the cottage when I attended an event near it, but I only started the linocut project some years later. I love the heavy shape of the thatch roof, and the combination of geometric architectural elements and organic garden plant forms. The cottage in reality has a large area of blank wall on the right, which would have looked a bit odd, so I introduced a fantasy spiralling plant support with more climbing roses, to fill the gap. Also, there always has to be something animating my compositions, so here I have a little cat at the gate, and a song thrush (which I have seen and heard in the area) perched on top of the plant support. This original linocut is hand-printed in artists' quality oil-based ink on quality Ho-Sho acid-free printmaking paper. There is a variation which is hand-finished with a touch of watercolour.
The title of the artwork, the edition number and my signature are discreetly incorporated in pencil on the artwork itself.
