Eric Ravilious painted the Downs he loved in this picture of Firle Beacon in 1927. Born in 1903, he graduated from the Royal College of Art and often visited Sussex.

Between 1934 and his appointment as a war artist in 1939, Ravilious created a remarkable series of paintings of chalk hills between Sussex and Dorset.

Sadly he was killed during the war but his reputation has steadily grown in the years since then.

This view, taken from Ravilious In Pictures: Sussex and the Downs by James Russell (The Mainstone Press, £25).

Ravilious did not know Firle Beacon well in 1927 but on his return to Sussex appreciated its beautiful yet stark setting.