Good to see the Helly Hansen National Mountaineering Exhibition at
Rheged in the northern Lakes isn't just sitting on its laurels, but
is instead making the effort to spice things up with one-off
exhibitions and lectures.
The latest of these - on now - is a show featuring the titanic
mountain art of lakeland painter Julian Cooper. Cooper, is in the
words of the NME's press release: 'Painting to a grand scale, and on
a massive canvas, his work reflects the essential vibrancy of high
wild places - showing the richness of light at high altitude and
capturing the fascinating maze of texture that is rock, snow and
ice.'
Headwall by Julian Cooper
His latest paintings are based on his trip to the Kanchenjunga
region of the Himalayas and are part of his Mind has Mountains
collection. Interestingly Cooper is the latest chip off the block of
the Lakeland Heaton-Cooper clan who set up the 'world famous gallery
in Grasmere' and have been painting bold mountain canvases for three
generations now.
The National Mountaineering Exhibition's worth a visit on its own
merits - just off the M6 at the A66 junction - but to get more of an
idea of what to expect from Julian Cooper, you can always take a look
at his own web
site which features a comprehensive record of his work ranging
from the Lakes to the Himalayas via Alps and Andes.
For more information on the NME see the exhibition
web site. The Julian Cooper pictures will be on show till at
least the end of March.
