Peterborough - a priceless cathedral

Peterborough

Here my narrative does not open with another Romanesque acclamation. The west front of the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew has a triple Gothic entrance that is unique. The portico was built around 1380.  There is additional lovely Perpendicular inside, especially at the very eastern end of the church.

Romanesque is here because the Normans got to work in 1118 and by 1140 had most of it sorted. Much is still here for us to enjoy except the tower, replaced by a Decorated confection when its Norman forerunner became unsteady.

Extract from my new book, English Cathedrals. Capturing the wonder of these very special places in 60 exciting drawings. Order via

http://bit.ly/2tbCoE

The Portable Board

Inspired by the DIY Drawing Board devised by Daniel Nles, an effervescent german artist I have had a go at creating the board and field testing it with Rosie the puppy along side me.  Early result not bad.

The board 

The result of a four minute sketch

The field test with Rosie

  

Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford - just down the road

An extract from English Cathedrals: A journey in drawings 

This book is an affectionate voyage around the country capturing on paper the wonder of these very special places. 

Now out!  - Order here  http://bit.ly/2tbCoE or  http://bit.ly/timhome2go

AND JUST AS LOVELY!

This is a cathedral for your pocket. Oxford, the spiritual home of Le Carré and Charles Ryder, boasts one of the smallest Anglican cathedrals.

Romanesque thanks to the Augustinian monks who started work in 1150, to build a monastery church. Henry VIII founded Christ Church college and the church became a cathedral.

The Becket Window, c.1332, is the oldest in the cathedral with a rare panel showing the martyrdom of Thomas Becket. Much later Edward Burne-Jones contributed the St Frideswide colourful glass window telling the story of this local saint. Bringing us bang up to date is the Bell Altar by Jim Partridge (2000) dedicated to Bishop George Bell, Bishop of Chichester, who opposed the bombing of German cities in WWII. Christ Church is unique as it serves as a cathedral and a college chapel.

More Cathedrals - now over to Norwich

An extract from English Cathedrals: A journey in drawings 

This book is an affectionate voyage around the country capturing on paper the wonder of these very special places. 

Now out!  - Order here  http://bit.ly/2tbCoE or  http://bit.ly/timhome2go

Norwich

Norwich has the second highest spire in England. Dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity, it rests on monastic foundations. Thirty years after the Norman Conquest, work began to create the best preserved Romanesque cathedral in England. As we entered through Cathedral Close, by the monk’s door, a single bell was calling the faithful to prayer. 

The Romanesque style is beefy and strapping. Nowhere is this style more evident than in the broad shouldered shafts of the crossing, which carry the weight of that high spire! The detail on the nave’s columns is a sort of candy-twist spiral. Above us are one thousand one hundred roof bosses and some magnificent vaulting.

London's Landscape with Ilga, drawing

Drawing London  - Tuesday 27 September, 10-11.30am - The Roof Terrace, One New Change

We took in the spectacular views of St Paul’s Cathedral and the London skyline from the breathtaking public roof terrace, the city of London's 'must see' attraction.  

You can go there too: for more information: http://www.onenewchange.com/roof-terrace

Better still look at Ilga Leimanis's work and activities 

www.ilgaleimanis.com
www.orteliusdrew.com

www.twitter.com/ilgaleimanis

Ilga is a great tutor, teacher, mentor and 'drawing gathering' organiser!

Here are my bits below 

London from Shard through to Take Modern (almost)

A little bit of Chris Wren's church far right

More Cathedrals: Manchester

Manchester

This church was built in the 1400s and with Chetham’s Hospital School is all part of the same Gothic Perpendicular scheme. There is some exciting medieval woodwork, especially in the choir stalls, the deep brown colour creates a nice gloomy feeling.

The floor plan is wide. The chantry chapels with their screens were removed to create double aisles in the nave. This was done in the 1800s to accommodate more people. In 1847 the church became a cathedral. All the windows were blown out during the Blitz in 1940, and until the late 1960s, only two had been replaced, notably the Fire Window.

An extract from English Cathedrals: A journey in drawings 

This book is an affectionate voyage around the country capturing on paper the wonder of these very special places. 

Now out!  - Order here  http://bit.ly/2tbCoE

http://bit.ly/timhome2go

Extract from my new book, English Cathedrals. Capturing the wonder of these very special places in 60 exciting drawings. Order via http://bit.ly/2tbCoE

Drawing at the V&A

Great fun the other day on at the The Fundamentals of Drawing atThe V&A 

A chance to improve my seeing and drawing skills. Great tuition broken down into two areas – line and tone and explain simple ways for us to understand what is in front of us (!) and break it down into forms that we can understand and then recreate (hopefully).

More on the programs by Sketchout

Drawing with the left hand

As much as you can in 10 minutes

Middle Whites, lovely to look at.

Billed as the ultimate harvest festival on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 September, at the Three Counties Showground Malvern, the Autumn Show was the place to go.

The high spot for me was the livestock on proud display including the Middle White Pigs,  

In 1852 at the Keighley Agricultural Show in West Yorkshire where Joseph Tuley exhibited several of his famous Large White sows. 

However when it came to the judging some of the animals were considered too small for the class but “as the merits of these pigs were so extraordinary", a committee was summoned who decided the pigs were also not eligible for the Small White class. 

So, as a result, a third class was created called the “Middle Breed” and so the Middle White was born.

http://www.middlewhite.co.uk/about-the-breed