I wanted to keep Robin's face in shadow, to highlight the mystery shrouded in the character. His true identity has never been proven, although he is generally believed to have been one of two men. Either Robin of Locksley or Robert, Earl of Huntingdon.

The legend of Robin Hood is world renowned. Hundreds of years ago, Sherwood Forest covered a vast part of England including the northern town of Nottingham, way down through rural Huntingdonshire (from where I was raised) reaching almost to London.

As a child, I loved the local legend of "The Hooded Man", believed by locals to have been Robert, the Earl of Huntingdon, the Shire in which I was born and raised. He was loved by the poor and oppressed, but feared and loathed by the wealthy, from whom he deprived of their worldly goods, in order to lighten the loads of the over taxed locals. I would often look at the local wooded areas and wonder if Robin had ever once lurked in the shadows of those same woods?

I enjoyed the chance to portray, and share the legend that enthralled me so much growing up.

I paint exclusively in oils on extra heavy-weight Crescent illustration board.