Oast House near Lamberhurst 1941

Curator: This is Martin Hardie’s "Oast House near Lamberhurst," an etching from 1941. It captures a scene from rural Kent, a region southeast of London. Editor: You know, looking at it, I feel this real sense of quietude, of a time standing still. The light is soft, almost like it's filtered through mist. And those trees...they look like they're breathing around the building. Curator: Oast houses themselves are such interesting architectural specimens. These structures with their conical roofs are where hops were dried as part of the beer-making process. They're essentially regional landmarks and, at that time, deeply tied to local economies and identities. Editor: Beer architecture! I love it! Seriously, though, Hardie's done something magical here. It's not just a building; it’s almost a character in a play. You can imagine the stories, the lives intertwined with this place, especially rendered in soft, warm etching. And it must be said, at that time this rural setting was an ever increasingly romantic sight. Curator: The choice of etching as a medium also seems apt, given what the landscape actually felt like at the time: etching involves acid, acid is, er... somewhat abrasive... and it does capture an ideal vision without overlooking the details. It provides this almost ethereal yet highly specific description. This balance really makes the image come alive! Editor: Precisely. This isn’t just a picture of an Oast House. It's a tiny world, self-contained, whispering secrets to anyone who's willing to listen. The building at that time might've felt extremely threatened - both on its literal future, but its social import too. I wonder did the artist perhaps sense this? Curator: I imagine a lot of people looking at it also saw that too, some perhaps consciously. As an image it holds all these ideas and feelings together in that space. Editor: So, it's this deceptively simple print that's just buzzing with context. That makes it something pretty remarkable.