Who would compete with Seamus Heaney?

Seamus Heaney on Martin Gale

“There may be clouds in the sky, clods on the ground, but there will usually be light on a far field and a gleam on the puddles. In fact, when Martin Gale looks upon the earth, he – like the One who took the first look – is inclined to find it good….

…..  his paintings are ‘green’ right enough, but in an older, grateful, grass green sort of way. They say- or rather they silence us to the point where we think- ‘Still and all’. They invite us to look twice, then to stand still looking until we begin to wonder if there is such a thing as innocent bystanding. They hold in a single, steady, local focus the reality and anxiety of the times” – Seamus Heaney

You can read the full piece at http://www.martingale.ie/html/texts/SeamusHeaney.html