Early Morning in Bath, England

A Series of 4 sketches made a couple of weekends ago of in central Bath.

 

South Wing of Bath Abbey, Evening

 

This drawing was made to try and capture the light inside the building reflecting around the nave internally, and compare it to the cold November evening outside. Drawn with a carpenter's pencil, on mounting board, and completed with a few washes back home.

 

Watercolour on Board

 

 

 

 

East Front, Bath Abbey

 

Having trained at Bath, I have drawn this elevation many times. I much prefer trying to get the facade of the abbey off-centre these drawings - perfectly symmetrical is quite tricky to get to work nicely I've found.

 

Watercolour on Board.

 

 

Trim Bridge, Bath

 

I particularly like the lines of the pavements in this view, and the the way in which they step upwards through the arch.

 

York Terrace, Looking down to the Abbey

 

This sketch took longer to draw than the others, and required more concentration. The changes in level and ledges in the street are difficult to join up convincingly, although a little exaggeration helps the picturesqueness of the view. 

 

Carpenter's Pencil on Board

 

8/11/2013

Kon Ombo, Nile Valley, Egypt

 

 

The temple at Kom-Ombo, Egypt. The boat arrived early in the morning and we were on the site for sunrise. The maze of columns and beams when viewed from below were memorable - the reason for selecting this unorthodox view.

 

Watercolour on Mounting Board



 NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

Abu Simbel, Egypt

 

A short flight from Aswan in Egypt, South over the desert following the tourist trail, takes one to Abu Simbel, where some enormous stone sculpture, threatened with destruction during the creation of the Aswan Dam, were moved to safety on higher ground.

 

This sketch was made very quickly in one of the few patches of shade, close to the main entrance to the complex. As usual I was out numbered by hundreds of photographers!

 

Watercolour and Pencil on Mounting Board.

 

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

 



Main Amphitheatre, Leptis Magna, Libya

Whilst working in Libya in 2009, I was able to spend a few hours at Leptis Magna, on the coast of Libya, about 2 hours from Tripoli. The project on which we had been appointed , was the development of a first phase of infrstructure to support a growth in tourism in Eastern Libya.

This site, along with two others in Libya, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and would be a principal attraction to most tourists visiting the country. The site is enormous, and some of the extant remains are stunning - its hard to now how, or where to start drawing them from to get a sense of the scale.

This viewpoint appealed because of the backdrop of the Mediterranean, and the fact that whilst drawing, it was possible to sit in the shade from this position.

Watercolour on Mounting Board

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

Building a Watercolour Perspective

Building a Traditional Watercolour - (5 stages)

 

This sequence of five drawings will hopefully show how a traditional watercolour can be built up. Apologies for the colour variation in the sequence as the photographs were taken in a different light.

 

The drawing is an aerial study of a new extension to a Listed Hospice Building in Clapham, which has since been completed. The purpose of the drawing was to set the new proposed extension into the the established landscape and demonstrate the sympathetic relationship between the new building, and the existing structures.

 

This viewpoint was selected because the green roof in the central part of the wing roof planes could be used to reduce the apparent width of the new element from this viewpoint.

 

Painted on 140lb Bockingford.

 

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

 



Stage (1) - Basic Drawing

Stage (2) - First Washes

Stage (3) - Heavier Washes

Stage (4) - Architectural Detail & Colour Balancing

Stage (5) - Final Details, Shadows & Highlights

Midland Hotel, King's Cross, London

A romanticised drawing of the Midland Hotel, King's Cross, London. This building has been recently refurbished, and is now once again functioning as a hotel.

This was originally a pencil sketch, digitally scanned, and coloured very loosely in photoshop. It was one of 25 images assembled into a children's illustrated story.

Photoshop used in combination with a WACOM Cintiq tablet is a great tool for editing and colouring sketches - the resulting images have the energy of a hand drawing, but the vividness of digital colour. Highlights are much easier than painstakingly adding them to traditional watercolours in gouache.

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

Construction Site by Terence Cuneo

Terence Cuneo was a famous illustrator whose work I'm always delighted to come across. Trained at the Slade, he was renowned for his railway subjects, and was appointed official painter to the Queen in 1953.

There are many examples of his work to be found in various compilations of railway posters of the SE of England. This image particularly appeals - the unorthadox angle gives a lot more interest to a complex subject and a great sense of intrusion.

Have a look at www.terencecuneo.co.uk for more examples of his work.

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk

Door Latch at Goddards, Surrey by Lutyens

A study of a very simple door latch by Lutyens at Goddards, his house hidden in the North Downs at Abinger Hammer, Surrey.

Hosted by The Lutyens Trust, I was given the chance to spend a few days studying and drawing the house whilst staying. This door had an elegant simplicity. The challenge was to find a way in one drawing of illustrating a section, and the two opposite door elevations. I find this quite a pleasing composition.

Pencil on cartridge paper, sketchbook.

NH www.nickhirst.co.uk