The Scenic Route

It's been a long time since I blogged - too long! I thought I'd share a couple of things that I've been working on:

I had this terribly ambitious idea that it would be really cool to create an entire city out of little cut-outs made from my own illustrations. However I don't work that fast. This would probably take me a lifetime, so I decided to start off with this which is a San Franciscan scene assembled from some of my illustrations. The basic idea comes from the pop-up theatre.

I first saw these in a London toy shop that I visit from time to time. They're sort of old-fashioned but always had so much depth. It took quite a bit of 'paper engineering' to work out the best design. It's a bit of fun and I wanted to create something that was a ready made and inexpensive 'art' that you can just hang on a wall to brighten things up a bit. I'll be looking at adding in a cable car between the houses at some stage.

This is my latest illustration which is a house on 18th Street, San Francisco. Yup, still got a lot of inspiration for this body of work, it has shielded me from any kind of creative block that's for sure. Some of the most interesting houses are off the beaten path in this city, away from the Alamo Square's and Pacific Heights. Don't get me wrong though the houses in these areas are also very beautiful. I was recently visiting the city and returned to look at some of the houses that I had previously illustrated and was curious to see that one of the earliest houses that I drew has since been re-painted! It sounds silly but I wasn't sure how I'd feel about this, and yes, I have thought about it! As it goes I was happy to see the change and decided that I would have to re-visit this subject again and paint it afresh.    

San Francisco

I have spent the last week in San Francisco. It's like all the best places you have ever visited all rolled into one. We used the City Pass which can be bought for around $60 and gets you free entry to numerous attractions as well as free transport on the Muni transport system which includes buses, streetcars (trams) and the cable car. We saw Alcatraz, Aquarium of the Bay, the De Young museum and San Francisco MOMA all on the pass. Other highlights include Coit Tower, the Streetcar Museum, the California Historical Society and the Exploratorium. The Oakland Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate are spectacular, as is the cityscape. There are many beautiful Victorian houses and the choice of food here is exceptional. It's a very inspirational city.

Historic Illustrations

Since I arrived in the States, I have been making these illustrations of the historic 'old town' district of Orange, Ca. where I live. There are around 16 images so far and still a great many buildings to draw. Orange is full of history with its old houses and commercial buildings. My drawing technique has certainly improved no end in making these. When I started this project I began drawing the images straight onto the page using acrylic ink and a fine brush but have since refined the technique quite a bit - beginning by marking out in feint pencil lines to pin down the drawing and then going over with my brush once I am happy with the proportions. A fine-point graphic pen also gives great results when highlighting window frames and doors or filling them in. Not too sure where they are headed but I have a couple of ideas in mind...

Image pictured: 'Yellow House On Washington Ave.', acrylic ink on paper.

More? Visit http://www.jameskeniston.com/page27.htm or drop me a line.