Thurrock Thameside Nature Park sketches

I heard the very interesting programme, Shared Planet, on Radio 4 yesterday morning, which included a report from the former landfill site in south Essex on the banks of the Thames that is now Thurrock Thameside Nature Park. This prompted me to look out and post these old drawings that I did there on a gloriously sunny yet very windy day last November.
They're done with a 0.2mm Unipin waterproof ink pen and watercolours in an A6 Pink Pig sketchbook.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lou Reed Window

As a fan of Lou Reed since the late 70s I thought the least I could do to mark his death last Sunday was to paint an instantly recognizable image of him on our studio window: hence this, the cover of his 1972 album Transformer. The picture's had a lot of  recognition and appreciation this week - I didn't know he had so many fans in Tollesbury.
It's painted in the same way as previous windows (Advent Calendar, Caravaggio's Adoration of the Shepherds, Diamond Jubilee, Etta James), on the inside of the glass in acrylics.

Boat Race Sketchbook

Our friend Simon and his son Finley invited Gabriel and I out on their boat to crew in a race out of Brightlingsea a couple of weekends ago. The almost total lack of wind led to a leisurely and sociable afternoon, and between tacks there was plenty of time to get the sketchbook out. These are all pages from my current favourite - a spiral-bound A6 Pink Pig - and are drawn with a 0.2mm Unipin then coloured in with watercolour later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Satta Massa Gana !

We spent a great evening at Colchester Arts Centre watching The Abyssinians a couple of weeks ago, and I managed to get some sketching action too. I showed my drawings to the guys from the backing band packing up after the gig, and got ushered backstage to meet The Abyssinians. They liked their portraits, and were thoroughly charming and hospitable, even though Bernard said I'd made him too fat ! It was a real privilege to see them live, and to get to talk with them afterwards, and to get a three-way crit of my drawings too !  These are all done with a 0.2 mm Unipin in an A6 Pink Pig ring-bound sketchbook, then watercoloured afterwards.

                                                                     

                                                                        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let's Stick Together

I'd thought of adding points of interest, or some sort of narrative element, to a few rather empty landscapes - but something other than a distant sail or seagull shapes. Gabriel had done some lovely pencil drawings of fish and birds of prey at home and made them into posters for fun, or for school projects. I got him to come to the studio and draw me some brents to cut out and stick on the painting of the beach at Walberswick in January, and some birds of his choice - bittern, kestrel and terns -  for the one of the sea wall near Old Hall Farm.  I painted them on in actual size in oils, the idea being that they still look like his pencil paper cut-out originals.

 

Why Won't You Stay ?

Oil on board   16" x 12"

£200

 

 

 

 

Come On, Come On

Oil on canvas  14" x 12"

£200 

 

  

You Are My World

I spent an afternoon at the Essex Wildlife Trust reserve at Thurrock Thameside last November. A desolate yet inspiring location, great views up, down and across the river, and old and new industry that makes the landscape, rather than just being a blot on it..... yes I mean Bradwell ! As well as doing half a dozen pen and watercolour sketches of varying merit I also took a panoramic sequence of photographs from the top of the excellent visitors' centre, then did this painting based on some of those back at the studio. It's the view east taking in - receding from the foreground - Mucking Creek, the sea wall breached to allow mudflat regeneration, the under-construction Thames Gateway deep-water port, the old Coryton refinery, and behind all that the low hills of south Essex and the pier at Southend.

                                                                                 

 You Are My World

 Oil on canvas   39" x 12"

 £750

New Postcards

Julie's had four of her recent fashion designs printed as postcards. They are available from the studio and The Loft, either as single cards or as a gift pack. The originals are a combination of line drawing and cut paper, overlaid on scans of vintage material from Julie's collection.