Ashley Jackson's Watercolour Sketches is, as its title suggests, a casual collection of the artist's work. As he explains in the book, he tends to spend sunny days in the studio and cloudy or rainy days trudging the hills and moors of Yorkshire, England, where he captures the moody landscape as inspiration strikes... I'm glad he shared it with us.

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Rambles

This is the most beautiful book of watercolour sketches and it called to me in particular as some of the areas of the country featured are ones that are very dear to me. I love the landscapes from the North Yorkshire coastlines of Staithes and Runswick Bay to Wensleydale and Heptonstall. All places I have visited and loved. Other locations are not ones I have visited yet now I need to add to the list. Each sketch has a short description with it that places it in time and location and I found myself wistfully turning the pages. I loved this book, it is the perfect gift for people who know the areas and for those who do not but should.

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The Blackberry Garden

By his own admission, Jackson prefers being out on the moors, observing and painting when the weather is at its most challenging. These moody watercolours reflect a love and understanding of these beautiful and wild spaces. A delightful book

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Cayocosta 72, Rose Smith

As featured by

Living North (newsletter and website)

I loved looking at the artist's snapshot images of the places covered and even more so the insights into the locations in the narrative. It was like a trip down memory lane revisiting some of the places I've personally visited. Wistfully wish that I could paint and sketch like this.

Surprisingly, the book fulfilled another purpose! Rather than reading it in one go, I started to dip into it whenever my day got a bit too hectic. It had a calming peaceful way with it that really helped my mood. It will stay on my desk for a long time to come for this very reason.

Amazon Customer, Jayne

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This is a nice selection of annotated sketches. The artist has a warm and personal style of writing in the annotations which feel more like a conversation over a pint than anything else. He often describes the weather at the time of the painting, or about features of the countryside or about the composition itself.

This would make a lovely gift for an artist or for studying in one's own painting and sketching.

Five stars. A valuable and illuminating glimpse inside the artistic composition and process.

NetGalley, Annie Buchanan

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This beautiful book becomes a beautiful meditation when you are sitting alone with it! A beautiful, lovely gem! I highly recommend! Get this for yourself and give as a gift!

NetGalley, January Gray

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

An interesting insight into the stages of producing a painting and finding places of interest to produce a full painting from. I am familiar with the artists paintings and often pass by his gallery so I know how beautiful, atmospheric and detailed his completed Yorkshire landscape paintings are. This book gave me an insight into how they begin and the places in the county that have stolen his heart. After reading this book and looking at the sketches I would recommend looking up some of the artists completed, and famous paintings to get a real understanding of what he is all about. Better still visit the gallery in Holmfirth. A lovely book and one to treasure.

NetGalley, jc Cross

This is a beautiful book. The watercolour sketches are so simple yet so intricate. I love the style of sketching with the soft watercolours set to them.

Each brief description gives a little extra insight into the sketches. It was like a small tour through the eyes of the artist.

NetGalley, Leah Horton