Loch on the Duke of Sutherland's Estate 

Curator: Right now, we're standing in front of "Loch on the Duke of Sutherland's Estate" by Winston Churchill. It's an oil painting, capturing a scene en plein air. What strikes you first? Editor: Definitely the mood. There’s a stillness, a kind of weighty calm. It’s muted, a very quiet painting. Almost brooding, don't you think? Curator: Absolutely. There's something almost monochromatic in the artist's color selection which could communicate subdued contemplation. Notice how the brushstrokes are quite visible, building texture. What do you think about the clouds, dominating almost two-thirds of the artwork, reflecting onto the surface of the loch. How is that significant here? Editor: The clouds feel heavy with…expectation, maybe? As if anything could happen. Visually, they serve to compress the rest of the scene. I also like the way Churchill contrasted that subdued atmosphere with those gold dabs on the islands in the foreground which feels totally impressionistic. A little burst of life in an otherwise quite stoic composition. Curator: Churchill certainly wasn't afraid to dive into the deep end, was he? Painting provided such necessary respite from his political life, a safe and calm harbor where he could practice light brushstrokes and an Impressionist, romantic vision of nature, quite distinct from his writing which reveals an active, realist outlook. Editor: That's what makes this painting so interesting. It really lets you peak into the artist's head. It makes me think about him seeking refuge in art from the intensity of politics, seeking some form of resolution through canvas and brush. Curator: And perhaps finding it, at least for a little while, in the act of capturing this evocative landscape. There are moments of sheer emotion bursting through; it’s incredibly compelling and intimate. I wonder what the Duke of Sutherland thought! Editor: Me too! It makes you wonder what else is under the surface of what seems, at first glance, to be just a simple, beautiful, landscape.