Peter Prendergast (1946-2007), Deiniolen, acrylic on paper, 54.5 x 75 cm, 1998, illustrated in the book The Art of Peter Prendergast, RCA.

Peter Prendergast is known for his throbbing landscapes that often seem to writhe and surge under the eye. The hills and mountain villages of Wales are shown torn and ragged, worrying the carcass of a romantic landscape. Here he depicts the town of Deiniolen with almost a rough tenderness; jaunts of colour spring out of the buildings, like flames licking up into the heavy sky – which even catches some of these signs of life in its roiling murk. Or perhaps the scene is breaking down and degrading under our gaze, the houses collapsing in to each other as they make one last febrile attempt at colour and vivacity? DH