A Giant Step – Oil on Linen Painting by Janice Lightowler

I purchased unusual size canvases simply because I love a challenge. I had absolutely no pre conceived ideas what I was going to paint and that’s always exciting!

When I lifted the long, boxed canvas onto the easel I immediately thought it was the shape and size of a causeway stone.

The Giant’s Causeway is so often painted but seeing what I saw with this long canvas allowed me to view it from an unusual angle and the ‘step’ started to appear.

Even on cloudy days I always found the colour of the stones fascinating. Ideas formed for the composition and the interesting palette started to develop.

I love painting in public, being an artist is a very lonely profession and I often find myself talking to my little brush. Having the opportunity to engage with people while I work is fabulous! The public’s reaction was incredible, thankfully the stones were still instantly recognisable.

We walk through life, one step at a time but every now and again it challenges us to take a giant step, often into the unknown. It can feel more than we can manage, like the confidence I found for this unique painting. It’s incredible when a “Giant Step” pays off, like at the Causeway, you can’t wait to take another one!