Britain’s rare native horses and the wild places they belong
Handmade photographic prints from moor, fell and island by Esther Towler
“For me, one of the most beautiful sights in the world is horses moving freely across open moor, fell and island. They are one of our last living links to the wild in Britain, and they are quietly disappearing. My work preserves these horses and the wild places they call home, and speaks for the need to protect them.”
Handmade Original Prints
No two prints are ever quite the same
Every piece begins in the field, with a herd on A moor, fell or island
Back in the studio, I bring those photographs to life using historic processes first developed in the nineteenth century, each chosen with care for the feeling it holds.
Cyanotypes are developed by sunlight into deep Prussian blue. Van Dyke Brown prints are brushed by hand onto fine paper in warm, earthy tones. In my encaustic works, layers of beeswax and tree sap are fused over the photograph, giving it depth and a softness you can almost touch.
No two prints are ever quite the same.
Each one carries the marks of its making: the sweep of a brush, the grain of the paper, the small variations left by hand and light. That quiet individuality makes every piece an original, made to be lived with and passed on.
Coming soon: Van Dyke Brown originals
I’m currently working on a special collection of original Van Dyke Brown prints of Britain’s rare native ponies, printed on delicate Japanese kozo paper and toned with palladium for lasting depth. The fine, fragile paper echoes the herds themselves: rare, free-roaming and precious. They will be available for collection in the next few weeks.
Join my collectors’ circle to be the first to find out when they are released.
Meet Esther
Book a Studio & Gallery Visit
My studio is in Newhey, on the edge of Saddleworth Moor. It is where the prints are made, and where you can see them as they are meant to be seen: in person, on paper, up close.
The studio opens one day each week, with dates posted here, or you are welcome to arrange a private visit at a time that suits you.