Houses through trees.

Houses through trees. 7"x5" Oil on board.

Affordable art at nigelmasonart@yahoo.co.uk 

It was a lovely day yesterday - sunny but a bit cold. Time to get out after a long winter and have a look round.
Our coastal town nestles in a wooded valley. you can't get in or out of the town without encountering hills. The Victorians built amongst the hills, seemingly at random and the trees grew up around the houses. Houses nestling amongst trees is a common sight and one which I never tire of.
The Victorian builders used two main type of brick to build with, They were manufactured locally - 12 miles away. One type was a blond, buff colour that reflects sunlight and looks almost white. The other brick is this kind of ochre, mustard colour that has a real glow to it when lit by the sun.
The houses themselves are incredibly ornate with stripes of orange brick and tiles running around the walls, fancy woodwork along the gables and around the bays, ornate chimneys and coping tiles, patterned brickwork around the Gothic arched windows. Many of the houses have verandas, especially if they have a sea view, accessible through french windows, that are girt with wrought iron balustrades. The railings are hung with baskets of flowers in the summer augmenting the decorative effect.
A hundred years of salty breezes, cold winters and hot summers takes it's toll on the buildings and some are showing their age. Some say its run down and bad for the holiday trade, I personally like these patiners and flakey paint - its a very stylish shabby chic.