I visited Staithes in North Yorkshire about eight years ago and did some photography and painting, which led to a few further artworks. This is one I digitally reworked last month. Originally I thought of using it for block printing but there is too much fine detail for my manual printing skills.

There is no obvious star in the sky but the pattern could suggest an aurora effect – or the driving rain of a heavy storm. The nativity story has the darkness of Rome’s oppression and the evil machinations of Herod but also hope, because there is a light that has come into the world. Instead of a star in the sky, one of the houses has a roof in “Virgin Mary” blue, a feature (more or less) lifted directly from the scene observed on the Yorkshire coast and elevated beyond pragmatic reality into symbolism.

Happy Christmas for 2025!