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.    

Kew Palace

This is an illustration I completed recently that had been in production for several months. It is one of the architectural gems in the grounds of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in London. Kew Palace is actually the earliest surviving building in the gardens, built around 1631 by Samuel Fortrey. Fortrey was a wealthy merchant of Dutch heritage, alluded to in the distinguished gabled roofs and carved brickwork.

The palace was a royal residence between 1728 and 1898 and has been open to the public ever since its release from royal duties - acquired by Kew in 1896. Notable residents include King George III, who reigned between 1760 and 1820 and used the palace as a school house for his children and during his convalescence from illness.

Kew palace underwent a 10 year restoration completed in 2006. This same year it hosted its first royal engagement for 200 years when it was the venue for Queen Elizabeth II's 80th birthday party.

I love the palace and have been visiting Kew Gardens since I was a child, seeing and enjoying it in all seasons. The gardens are a haven from the hustle and bustle of central London. At Kew the visitor has the chance to escape to the more exotic climes from which many species of plant life originate. As an artist now living overseas and away from my home city, I realise that increasingly I live through my work. The work itself becoming a connector to the places that I love.

Sources: http://www.hrp.org.uk/KewPalace/stories, http://www.kew.org/visit-kew-gardens/garden-attractions-A-Z/Kew-Palace.htm