The garden drawing from which this was begun had a triangle at the top, drawn from the shape of a neighbouring roof. Suggesting a pyramid, the narrative of this painting gradually evolved. As with all of Head’s landscapes in this series, they are imagined, mental terrains, but they also recall memories of places visited. Head toured Greece and the Greek Islands as a teenager, and its mountainous landscapes steeped in ancient mythology and history left a vivid impression.
In this setting, Head paints an exodus, retreating to the safety of higher ground. But the "Headland" is also a terrain of people, and fantastic creatures. Is that green outcrop at the top of the painting the head of giant winged beast? On the right edge of the painting, a dark shadow cast by the cliff edge undoubtedly doubles as bird in flight.
The colouring in this painting is indebted to John Everett Millais’ "The Blind Girl". It may be an unlikely connection, but Head finds the same visionary spirit that he identifies in Kokoschka in the intense and poetic paintings of the Pre- Raphaelites. Colour has become increasingly important in Head’s work as the series has developed, and he often adds pigments to what started out as a very limited palette. Some of the colours, like sap green, he has not used since his childhood days. Rather like a taste that evokes a distant memory, Head finds that certain colours have the same significance for him.
Head’s last drawing of 2020 "Heir to The Germ" is reminiscent of Millais encased portrayal of "Mariana". The title acknowledges a thread that links Head to the Pre-Raphaelite’s journal of the 1850s.