Flo has claimed this painting. He says: “I would love to be the custodian of The Raking, if its still available…. I think they’re all beautiful but I was most drawn to this one for sentimental reasons…when I was younger I used to go on holidays to Vellanoweth in Cornwall with my parents and sisters, and in the evenings we’d walk up the hill to the next village and pass these old dilapidated outbuildings…my mum used to describe how she’d clear out all the rubbish that was left beside the buildings and restore it “to its former glory”…the buildings in Stewart’s painting resonate so strongly to the ones I remember from years ago, I love the saturated palette and crispness of the painting….and imagining what the man is thinking of as he rakes…
I would absolutely love to take care of it, I know we’ve met countless times but because I probably haven’t talked to you much I’ll tell you a little about myself… I’m a painter myself, although I also do other things, I live in Brighton but am in London quite a bit…I grew up in Devon but my mum lives in Oxfordshire (the paintings of the barges and some of the landscapes seem familiar…trying to pinpoint where in Oxford they are!) so for me there are lots of facets of his work I really enjoy…and what an impressive array to his work! I love the different stylistic moves and palettes he worked through.”
