Walking about the lanes locally, I can imagine Harry Becker with his back against a tree sketching all he sees before him – mainly because very little in the landscape has changed since his time. During school holidays I would spend some time on my godmother’s farm and all the scenes captured by Becker remind me of that time – working horses in the field, men ploughing and harvesting, pigs, goats and chickens in abundance. My submissions this year are based on old photographs of that farm with Harry Becker very much in my mind as I worked. I’ve tried to handle the oil paint in his style and to use his colour palette – a refreshing challenge.