CEMENT WORKS No.2 1934

Eric Ravilious made this watercolour, ‘Cement Works No.2’, with delicate washes of colour, capturing an industrial scene with a touch of melancholy. I think about Ravilious, out in the landscape, trying to find some harmony in the way the industrial structures sit within the landscape. The pale yellows and whites of the buildings contrast with the greys and browns of the hills and trees. The smoke from the chimney rises like a ghostly apparition. I bet he noticed that, and thought about it. There is a sense of quiet observation, as if the artist is trying to find beauty in the mundane. See how the bare trees reach up towards the sky, their branches like delicate lines drawn with a fine brush. The workers pushing their carts seem small and insignificant against the backdrop of the cement works, and I imagine Ravilious saw himself as part of the same scene, as a human among many. The precision of the lines is incredible. I look at this and want to get my paints out.