During my visit to Rome I continued to look out for little bits of nature, I always look out for trees in particular. There are a lot of amazing trees in Rome with long trunks and high canopies, I also noticed quite a few trees with trunks which were almost black. The tall trees looked as if they had been managed somehow, as if the lower boughs had been removed, the dark trunks maybe have been the species, or possibly dirt from pollution, whichever way it was they were new to me.

I'm inspired to try painting over the images of nature I gathered in Rome (mainly trees it has to be said).  The question is, where to start and when to stop.  What is it that gives these natural things their magic, is it them as they are as a natural object?  Or, is the relationship between them and the man made or built environment?  Or, could it be different in each case?

The classical architecture, statues and fountains were awesome, not just in scale but in number, beautiful artworks and buildings are everywhere. Some were so vast they reminded me of the time I went to Egypt and saw the huge temples there, it's difficult to imagine what drove those who built these huge buildings and how they achieved building on such a scale before cranes and lorries existed.

But even with these huge and impressive classical structures there are references to nature, details such as the tops of the pillars of the Pantheon, the statues and decorations around the Vatican, animals featuring in and on fountains. I'm always looking for not only other people's references to nature, but also how nature is interacting with culture, with man and the built environment. For me, these tiny bits of green, or creatures, amongst all that man has created, make it all bearable, are what makes life good.

The vast scale of the Pantheon.

The Pantheon ceiling is a stunning and incomprehensible structure.

A tiny piece of nature, a pigeon, sitting on a fountain statue.

Pillars of the Pantheon.

Much smaller scale but beautiful pillars and windows and a little bit of nature thrown in in a the form of a vine.

A little piece of the Vatican, with a pine cone and peacocks.