Of particular interest to me is a small exhibition of the things that influenced him throughout his life. Mainly these are photos that inspired him (a good proportion from Time magazine and the like) and sketches for paintings that he was planning – but also objects that fascinated him such as stones and fossils. In fact, one might go as far as to say that searching for fossils on beaches as a child in Somerset was the root cause of his fascination with the ‘fragile planet’.

The theme that fossils represent is like a leit motif in his subsequent work. A constant but near silent and certainly invisible process of change incorporating destruction but then rebirth – continuing in endless cycles.

It is possible to see this in many of his paintings – a clash between the elements found in the natural world as well as the man made. We see the friction between earth and water, especially when it has been touched by human hands, but always the artist makes clear that we do not have full access – or indeed understanding – of what is in front of us. That is why so often a vista or landscape is seen through a porthole or window.

This is particularly apparent during the phase when he was fascinated by the moon landings. We could marvel, we could investigate and collect. But we would always be once removed from the landscape itself.

I feel a new-found enthusiasm and understanding of my father’s work and of course would recomend that people visit the exhibition and spend some time sitting in the central atrium of the gallery considering the world we live in and what Adrian Morris can tell us about it.