It can take a little while to get a blog organised in the way you might want. In the past it’s always been a game of catch up. So perhaps it was inevitable that quite a few projects didn’t get a mention in the hurry to meet a deadline. Writing posts has always secondary to getting on with the work (as it should be really). But I don’t want those missed moments to go to waste. So this may be some sort of New Years resolution, to try and be a bit more organised and proactive with the site (as with all resolutions lets see how long it lasts?!). One of the things it would be nice to show more of are those forgotten projects or commissions that haven’t yet featured. Perhaps a regular showcase of examples from the portfolio. Let’s start with this sketch commission for the Chelsea Barracks development in London.
London’s Transformation
Qatari Diar commissioned this small series of building illustrations. They wanted hand drawn facades based on the photoshopped artists impressions they already had in place. The artwork need to retain the pencil marks and draftsman’s hand. They wanted to evoke the blueprints from an architects drawings. The Chelsea Barracks is one of the many developments all over London, transforming the City.
Modern Residential Style
It’s always a joy working from architectural details, so these sketches were right up my street. It was particularly fun to work on buildings that had more contemporary lines and a modern squared look. Adding the texture detail to some of the surfaces was an interesting challenge too. Like these balcony ‘railings’ with their decorative rings. The different parts of the drawing were eventually scanned into photoshop, with some digital text labels added.
More Pencil?
It would be absolutely wonderful to do more sketch work for commercial projects, like these Chelsea Barracks brochure pieces. Most of these compositions already start off with detailed layers of line work, but i’ve never really showcased how that pencil work can be very effective as an illustration in itself.
