Cranes and Scaffolding
As a scaffolding and cranes fan I was excited by the new building work in the Temple Quarter of Bristol along the Feeder Road. Since 2024 I’ve enjoyed being out and about as this massive regeneration project progresses. Every new building changes the face of a city, and this initiative has particularly impressed me. I’ve drawn and painted the substructures, scaffolding and cranes as well as building up a library of digital photos of the development.
Grittier Bristol
In 2023 I deliberately sought views that interested me, but weren’t classically picturesque. These places are the everyday reality of people who live near or travel through for work and sitting drawing I have found out things from locals that I would never have know otherwise. I hope my act of appreciating what I’m looking at could help people feel more positive about their territory, particularly children who related strongly to drawing and painting as a way of understanding the world.
Bridges and Views
Bristol has many iconic views, it also has a wide variety of bridge structures traversing the various waterways in the city. In 2020 to 2023 I enjoyed making watercolours of these scenes and plan to return to this way of working to fill in gaps in my library of Bristol views. I have a catalogue of views I have already done and welcome suggestions for new ones. All of these images are available as giclee prints to order.
For the past 5 years I have been drawing and painting en plein aire in Bristol. At first I targeted comfortable places to sit, like cafes, and enjoyed depicting the scenes before me. Over time I have broadened the scope of my subject matter. Bristol is lucky to have a rich maritime history and interesting bridges over her waterways. Inspired by my own observations and the ‘From Brycgstow to Bristol in 45 Bridges’ book published in 2019 I found and drew a wide variety of different structures.
