A REVOLUTIONARY exhibition at Wordsworth Trust’s Dove Cottage brings a new and exciting dimension to the world-famous Grasmere gallery. Pen, Paint and Pixels, Touring the English Lakes across 250 years promises to be one of the liveliest exhibitions ever staged at the venue, thanks to innovations in delivering the visitor experience. The exhibition - based on John Murray’s book A Tour of the English Lakes with Thomas Gray and Joseph Farington - draws its inspiration from the different media used to communicate the beauty of the Lake District landscape over the last 250 years. It takes three moments in time and studies the same places within the Cumbrian landscape over two-and-a-half centuries, to examine social, topographic, geological, environmental and cultural evolution. The first freeze frame is Thomas Gray’s seminal account of a tour in Cumbria, written in 1769. The second is the work of Joseph Farington RA, who followed Gray’s route to produce exquisite watercolours and engravings of the places described by the writer, and the third element to the exhibition is provided by 21st Century digital photography, taken within the last few years by John Murray. Murray was bequeathed Gray’s ‘travel log,’ became fascinated by it and set out to follow in Farington’s footsteps, to capture the same places, but using a modern artistic medium. Visitors to the exhibition can travel in time, by analysing the same locations encapsulated in differing artistic media, while enjoying both literary and visual tours of the Lakes. The extraordinary aspect to this exhibition emerges as the visitor - inspired by the stunning displays - heads off as landscape explorer, requesting the co-ordinates of the Farington locations and buying the exhibition book, which is integral to the experience. Following in the footsteps of artist and photographer, they can take the exhibition outdoors and onto a fourth level, which involves their own photography at identical locations. The first stage of the innovative exhibition runs until July, when stage two of Pen, Paint & Pixels is launched in the form of an exciting App that combines GPS technology with words and pictures from the exhibition. Trust director Michael McGregor said it was fantastic to see the exhibition gallery looking so different and hosting an exhibition that connected the past to the present in a way that will appeal to everyone. He added: “Our world changes around us, yet visitors will be fascinated to see how the Lake District has, in some respects, changed little in 250 years. We hope that our groundbreaking initiative with the smartphone app will persuade walkers and everyone who loves the Lake District landscape to visit the exhibition, and then get outdoors and experience the views for themselves.” The exhibition runs until January 6, 2013.