The landscape of the Weir at Spetisbury on the river Stour was painted while the family were there on a summer holiday. We were staying in a small caravan (trailer) that was parked in a farmer’s field with a view of the river.  Christine had made the arrangements with one of the other parents, the Jackson-Pownalls, at the boarding school where my brother Christopher and I went.  A holiday in a borrowed caravan was the solution for us to “get away” somewhere, when we couldn’t really afford to go anywhere.  It didn’t matter that we were only a half hour’s drive from our house in Bournemouth, this was an adventure and a real change of scenery. 
As we explored our surroundings, Christine thought this weir on the river was a view worth painting, while we thought it a great place to play. We all came back the next day, Christine equipped with her easel and painting gear, and us with our wellies. The actual painting was completed over the course of two days.  Besides being a reminder of an idyllic summer holiday, I think it’s an excellent composition and a real representation of a riverside view of the English countryside.  It was always displayed prominently in our house and when my father wanted to buy the painting a few years later, Christine wouldn’t part with it but instead painted him a copy.  My brother inherited the copy from our father and I inherited the original.

The Copy