1 paintings by Judith Bromley & Robert Nicholls with informative interpretations of the landscape, and personal insights by the artist The artists’ paintings and written responses to the moorland came together in the form of a book published in October 2011. Their initial aim has grown into a much bigger vision, evolving from their direct experience of the fells: ‘The more time I spent up on the moorland with the calls of curlew and lapwing, the more I rediscovered my true relationship with the changing of the seasons, the turning of the earth, and the more passionate I became about caring for our precious jewel of a planet.’ ' Judith Bromley ' Judith Bromley ' Judith Bromley
Transcript
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paintings by Judith Bromley & Robert Nichollswith informative interpretations of the landscape,
and personal insights by the artist
The artists’ paintings and written responses to the moorland came together in theform of a book published in October 2011. Their initial aim has grown into a
much bigger vision, evolving from their direct experience of the fells:
‘The more time I spent up on the moorland with the calls of curlew and lapwing,the more I rediscovered my true relationship with the changing of the seasons,
the turning of the earth, and the more passionate I became aboutcaring for our precious jewel of a planet.’
The bedrock is the skeleton of thelandscape. Over time the underlying rockhas been eroded, forming thecharacteristic terracing of the fells. Depositsfrom the ancient river delta have beencompressed and solidified by their ownweight and that of the sea above. This hascreated rhythmically alternating layers ofshale, sandstone and limestone. The softshale layers have worn away more quicklythan the harder rocks, creating darkerlimestone scars or outcrops.
One of these scars is very familiar to me,having admired it enough to spend hourspainting it. Once a seabed and now high up thefellside, the rockface looks out over the dale,exposed to the elements. I had to perchprecariously up there to explore the fossilswithin it.
Rainwater collects in the impermeable“iron pans” that have formed in the rockbasins holding the bog. Unable to drainaway, it creates a habitat that hasresulted in thousands of years of growth,mainly of sphagnum moss, which lives onthe minerals it finds in rainwater. As it dies,the sphagnum is unable to decaybecause of a lack of oxygen in the staticwater and so builds up, forming layers ofpeat.
Enjoying the clean basic smell of wet peat,I manoeuvre my way across the bog, findingsphagnum moss, star moss, cotton grass andstripy deer moss. These wetlands bear noresemblance to what we imagine bog shouldbe –smelly and stagnant. Hummocks, formedwhere the peat has become very thick, areraised and drier, on which grow heatherand the evergreen cowberry
These wetlands are havens of wildlife.Having adapted to the special conditions,particular flora and fauna thrive, eachsurviving because of the other. Insects thatbreed in the bog pools are vital food for thechicks of ground nesting birds.
A myriad of tiny insects perform their matingdance just above the pool, and voracious waterboatmen skim across, sensing with their feetthe smallest movement of a midge as it landson the surface. Generations of sphagnum havebuilt up around the overflow to cause the basinto sit higher than its surroundings.
Peat hags are black vertical cliffs of peatand can be up to three metres tall inplaces. They have been created as a resultof the mining or digging out of peat. Thesterile peat preserves whatever gets caughtor laid down in the layers of sphagnum,revealing what life was like as far back asseven thousand years ago. Pollens,charcoal layers and even bodies havebeen found!
I find my blue horizons obstructed by aforeground of tall peat hags, ancient presenceswearing hats of bilberry leaves fringed with anoverhang of crisped crunchy lichens. Standinghere in the shelter of these exposed layers I tryto grasp the time it took for enough soil to buildup to sustain forests, then how long it has takento create this depth of peat, and now how theflow of water has gradually eroded the layers.
46. Pine in peatAmongst this spectacular primordial landscape,I’m excited to stumble across a fall of crumblingpeat that reveals a scattering of broken pinebranches, looking like tattered old dragonsheaving themselves out of the mire. They arelikely to be thousands of years old.
The spongy peat is constantly immersed inrainwater and new growths of sphagnumabsorb yet more moisture. As the moss buildsup the whole area can become raised anddomed. Water overflowing from the blanketbog gradually feeds the streams and rivers.The drainage becks can wear away thepeat causing deep steep sided valleys andgreat collapses.
I climb high to an overflow point where thewater spouts out and works its way throughdeep sphagnum. Water crowfoot, reeds andmosses, sphagnum of a variety of shades andcolours grow in abundance, feeding off,capturing, holding and floating in the flow.
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4b. Sphagnum flush
Although the inspiration for this projectevolved from the experience of YorkshireDales Moorland, most of the paintings andtext are appropriate for all British moorland.The following is the Yorkshire viewpoint:
The Yorkshire Peat Partnership has been formedby the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority,Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Natural England, NorthYork•Moors National Park Authority and theEnvironment Agency. It receives support fromNidderdale AONB, Pennine Prospects,Environment Agency, National Trust, YorkshireWater, Moorland Association, National FarmersUnion and Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust. The aimof the partnership is to restore and conserveupland peat resources in order to ensure the long-term future these unique and valuable habitats
The potential project area is vast, encompassing theuplands of the Yorkshire Dales National Park,Nidderdale AONB, North York Moors NationalPark and areas of the South Pennines, North of theriver Calder. Within the Yorkshire region alonethere is nearly 70,000 ha of upland peat soil, uponwhich a staggering 4,350,000 m of grips (drainagechannels) have been incised! There is a real andpressing need to undertake restoration in theYorkshire region in order to protect these preciouscarbon sinks.
We now know that peat bogs are amongthe most significant carbon stores in theworld. Artificial drainage known as the‘gripping’ of the moors, used to beencouraged and subsidised. However wenow know that by draining the bogs anddrying out the peat, carbon is released intothe atmosphere, contributing to globalwarming. Gripping has also been blamedfor flash flooding in the valleys and plainsbelow. Whilst the peat bogs are damp theyact as a sponge, allowing heavy rain todrain away slowly. Once dried out theyrepel water which then falls in torrents downthe fellside. Projects to fill in the gripps andrevitalise the bogs will enable sphagnum tore-absorb the carbon.
There is evidence of gripping here, butthankfully the ditches have been blocked upagain so insects abound for the growing chicksand the balance of flora and fauna hasreturned. White silk swathes of cotton bobbinggrass are reminiscent of winter snowdrifts.
Water draining off the peat bogs is acidicand the colour of malt whisky. When it runsover limestone it acts as a solvent causingthe water to have a high calcium content.The power and energy of water has beenmanipulated by humans for centuries. Nowwe are looking to find sustainable sources ofenergy again, some of the earliesthydroelectric systems are being reinstated.
The land is a fascinating interweaving of bothacid and calcareous soils, each with their ownflora. Here a dark peaty stream joins clearlimey spring water before bubbling down andmixing together into one.
Limestone is dissolved and shaped by water,which has created a series of undergroundcave systems. A limestone landscape isknown as ‘karst’ and has areas of bare rockworn into clints (blocks of bedrock) andgrykes (deep fissures), known as limestonepavements.
I scramble through fallen boulders to find themouth of a cave I visited years ago. We had tocrawl through the narrow entrance and wadethrough what felt like chest-high water beforebeing able to walk upright on dry land alongsidethe flow that had hollowed out the cavern. I waspleased to have been brave enough to have doneit, but relieved when we emerged back out intofreedom of sunshine, air currents on my face,and the colours and beauty of the dale.
Juniper is one of only three conifer speciesnative to Britain and was amongst the firstcolonisers of the high plateaux scrapedclean by the ice age. It was oncewidespread in the upland fringes ofnorthern England, growing as a shrub inopen woodland of Birch, Rowan, Alder,Hawthorn and Hazel, or as a column-liketree. It is likely that even the youngest treesare 100 to 150 years old. Juniper is now onthe UK list of priority habitats for biodiversityaction and collected seed is being grownby a professional tree nursery so that plantswill be available for suitable new nativewoodland planting in years to come.
There are male and female junipers. I chooseone and sit with her, drawing her, dancingwith her curvaceousness. How many years hasshe stood here? Strong earth and solid stonelie beneath me, into which tough roots delve tofind sustenance and support.
Infinite space moves above us.oil on canvas 60 x 80 x 7.5 cm
Flushes are areas of land into which waterdrains down from the moor. They cansupport quite different flora according tothe content of the water. Water from thepeat bogs is acidic whereas alkaline watersprings from underwater limestone systems.
Having reached the summit and rested on acairn to admire the view, I descend from rockand bog to a ‘flush’ area where the rare yellowmarsh saxifrage is to be found. The tall grassesblow against my legs in the midday breeze thensuddenly I am knee deep in cushions of mossysaxifrage, the grasses now shoulder height
We are experiencing a spell of very hotweather. The thinning of the ozone layermeans that nowadays when the sun doesshine the heat is too powerful for me to beexposed up here for very long. The peace isinterrupted by the sound of a plane overheadcarrying holidaymakers to far distant places.The evening sky is crisscrossed by plane trailspainting a beautiful spectacle out of exhaustpollution.
For over a week we have had snowfalls andsnowmelts down here in the valley, but up on thehigh ground the snow has stayed throughout, layerupon layer of snow; the greater the altitude thedeeper the snow cover. Crossing the cattle gridonto the moor I enter a stunning and dazzlingwhite wasteland, a frozen ocean.
Walking along this track has always felt like turning the earth around with myfeet, watching the shapes of the landscape change: the grandeur of the high fells,the rugged ravines, and the sweeping windswept spaces.
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14. Approaching storm
This terrain was created through global changes over millennia. Will the earth adjust tothe challenges we are thrusting at the fragile interdependency of life, to becomesomething quite different? Will climate change destroy the whole planet, or merelythreaten the human race?
This circle of intense blue is held, suspended on the high plain, reflecting theproximity of the sky, up here in the heavens. There is constant movement in thisstretch of perpetual timelessness. What a privilege to be part of it for a short while.
17A & B Sun & shadowClimbing, I shed all troubles and complications, and am overtaken by a profound senseof timelessness. I become aware of the simplicity and is-ness of the present moment, butalso of the complexity of the interdependence of all things.Surely the wisdom of the earth will ensure that life continues?
18. RagwortI am struck yet again by the contrasts between the infinite and the intimate, millenniaand milliseconds that I find and experience up here: the great expanses of earth and sky,the detail of tiny flowers; the eons of time behind the creation of the landscape,
19. November floodsIn many cultures water is used as a symbol for spirit. With this in mind I contemplate thejourney this water has taken from the watershed, and that it will make from here downto the sea, and remember a quotation from Khalil Gibran: ‘Life and death are one even asthe river and the sea are one’.Looking at my own journey I recall times of feeling ‘enspirited’, and other times ofdrought and doubt. I know that even when feeling disconnected, there remains, deepwithin me, a flow that connects me to ‘all that is’, seen and unseen. I recognise that thepath of my spiritual journey can sometimes merge with that of others; at other times isunique to me, can take me flying into rainbows, or deep into subterraneous passages.
20. Grouse in hawthornThe grouse have come down from the high moor to feast on the berries of an old hawthorn hedge
I am struck by how the whitesurround intensifies thecolours of the tapestry of moss.A luxurious textured carpet ofreds, greens, dark rich siennasand umbers, contrasts withthe old and tainted snow.
25. Bogpool
I revisit the small deep clearpool just below the scar.The weed is bedecked withbubbles, which bounce back upwhen I poke my stick down toassess the depth. It does notreach the bottom.
I hadn’t realised thatsphagnum moss comes in somany forms and colours,like tiny wet forests, someof their stalks well over afoot long emerging fromdeep down in the peat.
27. Rockrose
Lichens creep and clingover the limestone surfaces.As they decay they createenough soil for the roots ofthe rockroses and thymesnuggling in the cracks.
33. Fungi 1 & 34. Fungi 2Each fungus consists of the mycelium: a root-like network of filaments that extends underthe surface of the soil, interlocking with othermycelia to form a web that covers the earthlike a caul, just under the surface. When theconditions are right the toadstool werecognise, the fruiting body, pops up into theair; but most of the year, the fibrous net isbusying away breaking down organic materialinto compost - enriching the soil. When wehumans apply weed-killers or artificiallychange the composition and chemistry of thesoil in other ways, we risk killing thesebeneficial organisms to our own detriment.
39. Moor burnThree quarters of the world's remaining heather is conserved here inBritain, as a possible result of 200 years of moorland management forred grouse. Grouse thrive on new fresh shoots of heather, so onmanaged grouse moors burning is done to maintain a young vigorousgrowth and a patchwork of age diversity. Heather burning is a specialistart, gamekeepers burn small areas to stimulate young vigorous growthand create a patchwork of different heather heights. This patchworkquilt provides a suite of other birds like curlew, lapwing and goldenplover with their perfect niche when they return in the spring to breed.
Thick yellow smoke billows up where the keepers are burning strips of heather. Somesay that as heath fires were once a natural occurrence, this practice is only imitatingnature. A quick ‘cool’ heather burn does not remove the seed bank below, and creates'fire-breaks' should a deep burning wildfire take hold in a dry spell. A deep burn isdeadly for a peat bog and it will never recuperate – certainly not in the lifetime of thenext generation. Such a fire would not only destroy the rich diversity of the ancientbogs but also the heather.
41. SunsetmoonA fall of snow bedecks the scrub. The skyis clear and the sun sinking low. Theglowing moon reveals itself as theheavens darken, and stars begin tosparkle out. Our earth floats amongstthem, a precious living jewel.
42. ExposureHere there are sweeping views ofdark and light snowmeltpatterns. The deeper driftsremain along the wall sides and inthe dips and gullies, but thinnerlayers have melted all away.
Looking back I see the track winding away into the distance as a symbol of my life’sjourney. The stratification of the landscape becomes eroded in time, exposingimportant features, just as parts of my life have faded into insignificance, leavingmilestones of influence more easily distinguished. Each time I climb higher I can seebeyond my previous horizon. Each time I review my life my perception changes.
Remembering how long it has taken to create all these rocks, peat, heather, andgrasslands, my own problems are put into perspective.
All this space… all this time…
I am merely a speck spending but a few seconds up here…
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44. Moor freezeThe weather-beaten grasses are now coveredwith a growth of ice crystals, shaped likesickles and scimitars by the howling freezinggale. Icicles look like ogre’s teeth in the blackmouths of the peat hags.
I’m amazed at how much goes on in this windswept wasteland. The bleak and emptywilderness is actually a seething breeding ground.How do all these creatures manage to exist up here? It is a completely differentworld to our comfortable life in the valley.
What a contrast between the wide space up here and the busy life down in thevalley. I, like many people I suspect, spend my life going from task to task, to en-tertainment and back, from one occupation to another, not allowing for anyspaces in between. Making more spaces in my life, wide open spaces in which Ican just BE - be where and as I am - would enable me to absorb and receive frommy environment, as happens up here on the moor, instead of always doing andgiving out.Perhaps with a better balance between doing and being, giving and receiving,my existence may become more sacred, precious, valuable.
The heather is in flower. As I walk I can smell the heather pollen all ready forcollection into thousands of little leg pouches as the bees sip nectar, flower afterflower, from dawn till dusk. What abundance!
How much the whole complex system of life on earth relies on bees and otherinsects. Without them visiting blossoms the whole year through, and in so doingpollinating the majority of all plant life, our crops would fail. And yet bees’ numbersare declining all over the world, vast numbers of them are sick. Has our use ofpesticides and herbicides caused this? Is it our industries sending poisons into theair that has affected their health? Have we gone just that much too far inupsetting the balance and interdependency of living things on our precious planet?
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50. Curlew
I tell you -I would rather we lost
The entire contentsOf every art gallery
In the whole worldThan lose
ForeverThe cry of the curlew
Alastair McIntosh, from Love and Revolution’, Luath Press.
66. Sheep in HeatherFor several centuries wool played a major role in the English economy. Todayhowever, despite it being the original high performance fibre, competition fromcotton, artificial fibres made from oil and recycled materials means that wool onlyaccounts for 3% of today’s textile market.It can be made into yarn, is resilient, has fabulous insulating properties, can be madeinto virtually waterproof felted fabrics and is fire-retardant. It is important that itsvarious uses are promoted, that demand is generated and that through an increasein the price of wool, shearing will no longer simply be associated with the welfare ofan animal, but will be a source of additional income.
Sustainable use of the moor is all about balance. There is an area that I like to visit which hasnot been grazed for a dozen years, now rich with diverse species. Over the fence sheep haveovergrazed the land into a grassland desert. Flat growing heath rush has no appeal to sheep, soon degraded moors it can predominate even over the plants the sheep do find nourishing.
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76. Heather Mountainmixed media on torn cut and punched paper - approx 70 x 68 cm
