It's Absolutely Tipping Down...

IT'S always interesting to ponder the inspirational source of pictures.

Why did Vincent van Gogh paint a chair in a humble parlour? Why did David Hockney feel compelled to paint someone sitting by a pool? Why did L.S.Lowry depict dreary (and imaginary) northern back streets?

The questions occurred to me when I painted this picture, which I've called It's Absolutely Tipping Down.

The British are, of course, obsessed by weather, partly because their own climate is so capricious. And my picture is not the first to address heavy rainfall rather than bright, unyielding sunshine. I'm reminded of that excellent painting from the Newlyn School: The Rain, it Raineth Every Day, set on the seafront at Penzance.

Anyway, my effort - rendered in my ludicrous cartoon style - shows a crowd sheltering under umbrellas during a heavy downpour. Don't ask me where it came from because I simply don't know.