This commission will end up in the USA. It's a detailed pen drawing of a medieval hall called 'Hacton Cruck' which is in Herefordshire - you can stay there, it looks fabulous: http://hactoncruck.co.uk/. Following on the back of the Pen & Ink Drawing Day at the Weald & Downland Museum this summer I was commissioned to draw this building as a teaching piece and I've really enjoyed doing it. My family re-discovered my great-grandfather's sketchbooks a few years back and he loved drawing in pen and ink so maybe it's in the genes!
This is a portrait of Shona who sadly died this year. She was the well loved pet of some of our friends in Nottingham so I asked if they'd like a memory of her. I started the portrait at a Pastels Demonstration Day for the South Downs Art Group and finished the portrait in my studio early this summer. I painted the background first on Fisher 400 Pastel Paper, let it dry in the class and then blocked in the shadows and highlights before building up more detail. This paper can take loads of layers, it's not easy to move around unless you want to remove your fingerprints and it eats pastel but I love the effect and depth it can give.