Author: Jane
The Cottage, 3 Hayne Street EC1
Hayne Street is a North-South lane just to the East of the new Crossrail station at Smithfield. It has been closed for some time, while the station was built and the office block on top of the station was constructed.
On the west side of Hayne street is this house:
The Cottage, Hayne Street EC1, 17th January 2022, 5pm. 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
As I sketched, around 4:30 to 5pm, construction workers were coming off shift from the CrossRail site. They walked past me, lighting cigarettes, jostling, and talking in various languages. One person stopped to talk to me: "It's a funny old building!" he observed. I agreed that it was, and wondered if anyone lived there. "I've not seen anyone go in or out," he told me, "And I've been here four weeks." Another person joined the conversation.
"I've seen a car," said the newcomer. He indicated the black roller door, and made a sweeping gesture, showing how the car went in and out.
We all looked to see if there were lights in the windows at the side of the house. There were none. "It's railway property," declared the first person.
"It's big, isn't it?" said the second person, "It goes way back!".
It does go way back. I've tried to show this in my drawing.
It's a bit of a miracle that it has survived. This house is about 150 years old. There are jagged modern offices all around it. The Pevsner guide has a small paragraph on Hayne Street, in the section labelled "Long Lane and Hayne Street". He says this:
"Long Lane and Hayne Street
Long Lane first recorded in 1440[……]
The N side, shorter because of the market buildings at the W, is mostly undistinguished medium-sized post-war offices. Not 18-19 are by Morrison, Rose & Partners, 1972-4, brick with smoked gland window bands. The upper storeys step back down Hayne Street, named after its developer in the early 1870s. Of this date the unpretentious brick warehouse at Nos. 8-10 W side and No. 3 opposite, a little house perched on the brink of the railway cutting."
The Buildings of England London 1: The City of London by Simon Bradley and Nicolaus Pevsner (first published 1997, republished with corrections 1999) page 546
The "unpretentious brick warehouse" which was on the west side of Hayne Street in 1999 has now been replaced by the building above CrossRail. The "little house" remains.
It was there in 1873. At that time it had neighbours! See this map, from the marvellous British History online resource.
'Charterhouse Square area: Introduction; Charterhouse Square', in Survey of London: Volume 46, South and East Clerkenwell, ed. Philip Temple (London, 2008), pp. 242-265. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol46/pp242-265 [accessed 17 January 2022].
Aldersgate Street Station is now Barbican Station. See the huge number of railway lines in 1873. Today there is just one line on the surface. The new CrossRail line is 40metres below.
Here is a modern map of the area:
Hayne Street Area 2022, from Open Street Map, (c)OpenStreetMap contributors
Here are some views looking up and down Hayne Street, and my sketch map and sketching location. Click to enlarge.
Sketch map. The small red rectangle shows the location of "The Cottage"
Sketching location
Sketching in the dark
Looking South down Hayne Street towards "The Red Cow". The new Crossrail building is on the right.
Looking North along Hayne Street towards Charterhouse Square, glimpsed on the left. The long wall on the right is above the railway line.
3 Hayne Street has intrigued people. Mr Tim Dunn on Twitter found an "environmental statement" from Crossrail saying they were going to demolish the building. But it doesn't seem to have happened, so far…..Mr Dunn's research also contradicts the construction worker's assertion that the building is "railway property". From what he's found, it's privately owned. Here is his Tweet thread:
Many years ago, I found an odd little house on a @cityoflondon backstreet; The French House, we called it. It's been hidden by Crossrail works for YEARS but recently 3, Hayne Street has been revealed… and uh-oh! A @Crossrail document says it's scheduled for demolition… (1/6) pic.twitter.com/Rt2g6KCfES
— Tim Dunn (@MrTimDunn) August 8, 2021
@MrTimDunn on Twitter, August 8th 2021
"LookUpLondon", aka Katie Wignall, a tour guide, published an article about it on November 22nd 2021, here: https://lookup.london/cottage-3-hayne-street/
"The City Gent" published photos of The Cottage in his "Symbols and Secrets" blog on the 6th of January.
I'm glad so many people appreciate this strange building in a back street.
I have sketched in this area before. The building in the back left of my picture is on the other side of the railway line. It is now swathed in plastic and being restored or redeveloped. I sketched the West edge of this buildings in April last year.
No. 33 Charterhouse Square EC1
This is a little white building I always enjoy walking past. It is the westernmost end of a thin terrace of warehouses and showrooms, lodged in…
Author JanePosted on January 18, 2022 Categories 19th Century architecture, Housing, residential, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags City of London, LondonLeave a comment on The Cottage, 3 Hayne Street EC1
Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge SE1
On the South side of Blackfriars Bridge there is a church amongst trees. This is Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge.
Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge, 14th January 2022, 2pm 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
A window showing construction workers
This is the south side of the church, showing its open door. I went in. This is a very welcoming church. I passed three separate notices telling me I was welcome. Inside it is calm, warm and light. There are benches to sit on. There are marvellous stained glass windows. They show not saints and Bible stories, but Londoners. They show builders and printers, river workers, and engineers. There is a power station worker looking at a bank of rotary dial telephones, and a queue of people waiting for a red London bus. All these are beautifully done in stained glass.
This church accepts the idea that people might be "spiritual not religious". Between 12noon and 2pm: they offer a "lunch time silent space", and there are other events that include meditation and silence.
A detailed history of the church is in British History Survey of London: 'Christ Church', in Survey of London: Volume 22, Bankside (The Parishes of St. Saviour and Christchurch Southwark), ed. Howard Roberts and Walter H Godfrey (London, 1950), pp. 101-107. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol22/pp101-107 [accessed 16 January 2022].
Here is how it looked before 1941.
'Plate 67: Christ Church. Exterior and watchhouse', in Survey of London: Volume 22, Bankside (The Parishes of St. Saviour and Christchurch Southwark), ed. Howard Roberts and Walter H Godfrey (London, 1950), p. 67. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol22/plate-67 [accessed 16 January 2022].
It was completely gutted by incendiary bombing in April 1941. The 1950 "Survey of London" cited above describes it as a "shell". The present church was completed in 1960, according to Pevsner (The Buildings of England, London 2: South, by Nicolaus Pevsner and Bridget Cherry, page 275). The architects were R Paxton Watson & B Costin.
The church is now surrounded by buildings and trees and is very much alive. Here is the view from the North:
Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge, 13th January 2022, 12:30pm 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
The outside air temperature was 3 degrees C and the paint wasn't drying. Also I was very cold. I went for lunch in "Greensmiths"in Lower Marsh, and finished the painting there.
"Greensmiths" in Lower Marsh Waterloo.
Here is work in progress on the sketches, and some maps to show where this church is.
There were some spectacular shadows that day:
Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge, from the South, 14th January 2022 about 2pm.
The church community hold some of their events in the adjacent pub, the Rose and Crown:
Rose and Crown, SE1
Here is the Rose and Crown, just south of Blackfriars Bridge. This pub stands amongst modern blocks: linking past, present and future…
Author JanePosted on January 16, 2022 January 17, 2022 Categories 20th Century Architecture, Church, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags Blackfriars, London, Southwark2 Comments on Christchurch Blackfriars Bridge SE1
A house in South-West London
I was commissioned to paint a picture of this lovely house.
House in South West London , 12″ x 9″ on Arches 300gsm paper, [commission]
This interesting commission took me to a part of London I had not previously explored. Many thanks to the new owner of this painting for allowing me to post it online.
One of the delights of these houses is the chimneys. They sit up there like chess pieces, or individual characters in a play. I tried to show their personalities.
I painted this in November. It was cold, but there were still leaves on the trees. They blew around in the wind and scattered on the road. A road sweeper, a café proprietor, and a woman with a pram all came over at different times to look at my work. I made a preliminary sketch on brown paper to understand how to compose the picture, how the perspective worked and where the light and dark should be. The next stage is the pencil underdrawing, then the pen, then watercolour.
Pen drawing. The yellow tape is to frame the picture, and for me to hold on to while I sketch.
Pen drawing. I also make annotations on the yellow tape. Here it says"eye line"
Using the bike as a table. The pen is a Lamy Safari fountain pen.
Trusty bike
Pencil under-drawing
Preliminary sketch on brown paper to work out the perspective lines, which are shown here in yellow and red.
Here you see the difference the colour makes:
"before" and "after" the colour went on: move the slider.
The colours are: Buff Titanium, Perylene Maroon, Prussian Blue, Hansa Yellow Mid, Burnt Umber, Fired Gold Ochre. Fired Gold Ochre is "granulating" – it dries unevenly into a pattern of dots. You can see the effect in the brick texture of the house nearest us. The chimneys are Fired Gold Ochre with some Transparent Pyrrol Orange. The greys and black are mixed from Prussian Blue and Perylene Maroon. All the watercolours are Daniel Smith.
The ink I use is De Atramentis Document Ink, Black, which is waterproof, supplied by The Writing Desk. The paper is Arches Aquarelle 300gsm cold-pressed, in a block 12″ x 9″. All paints and paper are from Jacksons Art.
Here is the picture being wrapped ready to go to its new home.
Author JanePosted on January 2, 2022 January 2, 2022 Categories Housing, residential, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags commission, London1 Comment on A house in South-West London
New Year 2022 – Bridges
Happy New Year! Here is my New Year Card for 2022.
"Bridges" – woodcut + watercolour, collage and printing
May 2022 be kind to us all.
In London there are many beautiful bridges.
Regents Canal
Westminster Bridge
One early morning I saw them all ranged out.
London Bridges at dawn, from the South Bank, looking West
I thought of them as images of hope: so many connections, so many different ways to get across, and that glow of the sunrise on the buildings beyond!.
Westminster Bridge was my model. It took many efforts to get the design to work as a woodcut.
It needed a bit of glow, to echo what I had seen in the sunrise. So I used iridescent watercolour, put on before the paper was printed.
Daniel Smith iridescent watercolour
Watercolour on paper
Paper is "Hatakami" from Nepal via the Vintage Paper Company
Iridescent watercolour on Nepali paper
Here is the wood block:
"Bridge" woodblock 10cm x 15cm
I did the printing at East London Printmakers, on a cast-iron press.
The press at East London Printmakers
Then back at my desk I assembled the cards and sent them off.
"Composed on Westminster Bridge September 3, 1802 "
by William Wordsworth
Earth has not anything to show more fair:
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theatres and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill;
Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! The very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!
Previous New Year cards are here:
New Year Card 2020
Author JanePosted on December 31, 2021 December 28, 2021 Categories Cityscape, WoodcutTags London3 Comments on New Year 2022 – Bridges
St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe EC4
This lovely church is on Queen Victoria Street, a busy thoroughfare in the City of London.
St Andrew by the Wardrobe EC4, 29th December 2021 2pm. 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
This church was first recorded in 1244, destroyed in the fire of London 1666, rebuilt by Christopher Wren in 1685-93, then destroyed again in the 1939-45 conflict, rebuilt again, and re-hallowed in 1961. It is now closed for refurbishment, and due to reopen in May 2022. When it re-opens it will become the London Headquarters of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church, this use being shared with the Anglican parish activities. I read this news on the church website.
Note the magnificent trees! These trees should feature on any London Tree Tour. I think they are larches but I am not an expert.
Yesterday, London was quiet. I sketched the church from podium level on Baynard House on the other side of the road. Baynard House is a 1970s office block currently occupied by BT (British Telecommunications, as was). Next to St Andrews on the East is the Church of Scientology. On the West side of St Andrews is a cocktail bar, Rudds.
map from the website of Slovenia in London
Baynard House, where I was sketching, is a strange and mysterious place. There is a podium-level walkway through the block. There are odd structures, like remnants of a lost civilisation.
The church has a steeply sloping garden, with a wooden crucifix, just visible in the drawing. This looks across to the "seven ages of man" sculpture on Baynard House.
Looking South from St Andrews towards Baynard House, "Seven Ages of Man" sculpture by David Kindersley is visible in the centre of the picture.
Walking up St Andrew's Hill, I passed the "Cockpit" pub, on the site of Shakespeare's house. It had a notice outside: "Staff and Customers Wanted".
Author JanePosted on December 30, 2021 December 30, 2021 Categories Church, City Church, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags City of London, London2 Comments on St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe EC4
London Television Centre SE1
Here is a view of the London Television Centre, 60-72 Upper Ground, SE1. It is on the South Bank of the river Thames, a little to the East of the National Theatre and the Royal Festival Hall. It was completed in 1972 to the design of Elsom Pack & Roberts.1
London Television Centre, 30 November 2021, 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
Appreciate this building while you can – it is bring demolished. Admire the variety of the sloping roofs, the unexpected angles, the terraces overlooking the river. Appreciate the unexpected finish: it is covered in tiny, white, glistening tiles.
The history of this and two other buildings due for demolition is documented in the excellent "London Inheritance" post: Three Future Demolitions. (May 16th 2021).
The planning application reference is "21/02668/EIAFUL" submitted to Lambeth Council on 5th July 2021. It says:
Demolition of all existing buildings and structures for a mixed-use redevelopment comprising offices, cultural spaces and retail uses with associated public realm and landscaping, servicing areas, parking and mechanical plant.
Interestingly the status, as of today, is "awaiting decision", which is strange because when I was sketching the site earlier this week, demolition was definitely in progress: both visible and audible.
For the record, here are some pictures of the current building (click to enlarge):
View from "the Queens Walk" riverside
From the riverside
The low level balconies along the river
View from Blackfriars Bridge
Looking West along Upper Ground
Nov 30th 2021, demolition in progress
Looking South from the river
May 2021 – from Upper Ground
May 2021, Upper Ground
View from the river, IBM building on the right
Existing building (2021, May and November)
The proposed new building will be taller than the current tower, and the current low-level buildings are to be replaced by a wide block.
The proposed new building will be wider and taller than the existing buildings.
It seems as though we will be able to walk through the new development. And there will be cafés and restaurants on the river side. (Picture ref: see Note 2)
Here are some maps to show where this is:
Sketch map showing viewpoint of the drawing. NT= National Theatre, IBM = the IBM building, LWT = London Television building, OXO = the OXO Tower
Photo of a public map in the City of London. [Oddly, they have got the building reversed. The tower is not by the river, as shown on the City of London Map, but on the inland side.]
I drew the picture from the inclined plane leading up to Queens Walk by the river. There must be a splendid view from the adjacent IBM building. If you work there and you'd be prepared to host me so I could draw from the balcony, then do please get in touch.
Here are some photos of my work in progress on the picture. It was cold, wet and windy, and there were a lot of seagulls. I put the seagulls in the picture, to the right of the tower. I finished the colour at my desk.
I have also drawn Colechurch House, another 20th Century building in the area due for demolition:
Colechurch House, London Bridge SE1
Aficionados of 20th Century brutalist architecture need to hasten to appreciate Colechurch House. It is due for demolition and redevelopment. This month's post in the marvellous "London Inheritance" site informed me about the planning application, so I rushed over there to draw a picture before the building became swathed … Continue reading "Colechurch House, London Bridge SE1"
Note 1: Date of construction and architects are cited in: https://manchesterhistory.net/architecture/1970/itvHQ.html
"When London Weekend Television decided to build its own modern studios, it chose a site on the South Bank close to the National Theatre. The architectural practice of Elsom Pack and Roberts were commissioned to design the building. Originally known as Kent House, their building involved a 21 storey tower rising above a podium that houses the television studios. Construction started in 1970 and the first transmission was in 1972. It became known as The South Bank Television Centre and it was considered to be the most advanced television centre in Europe at that time."
Note 2: Picture of the new building and plan from the Statement of Community Involvement, downloaded 2 Dec 2021.
https://planning.lambeth.gov.uk/online-applications/files/DD59C145D57526C2CF9B434416D1C04A/pdf/21_02668_EIAFUL-STATEMENT_OF_COMMUNITY_INVOLVEMENT-2709954.pdf
For comparison, here are the two views – the proposed development and the current view from Victoria Embankment. The visual of the proposed development shows various tall buildings which do not yet exist. The "Doon St Tower" is a proposed 43 storey tower on the inland side of Upper Ground from the National Theatre. It has planning permission (2010) but has not been built. Another tall building shown on the view of the proposed development is "Elizabeth House" a.k.a "One Waterloo". This is set of buildings, 15 to 31 floors, next to Waterloo Station. It also has planning permission (19/01477/EIAFUL Feb 2021) but has not been built.
Author JanePosted on December 2, 2021 December 5, 2021 Categories 20th Century Architecture, industrial/Commercial, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags Lambeth, London4 Comments on London Television Centre SE1
Guinness Court, Lever Street, EC1
Guinness Court is a group of low-rise blocks between Gambier House and Galway House, in Finsbury. A resident writes that it is a lovely place to live, with an "inner communal garden with trees and squirrels".
Here is Guinness Court from Lever Street:
Guinness Court, Lever Street, EC1 24th November 2021, 10:45am.
You see Grayson House just peeping over the roof.
Guinness Court is owned and managed by Guinness Partnership Limited1.
"Guinness was founded in 1890 to improve people's lives. And that's still what we're about today.
In 1890, philanthropist Sir Edward Cecil Guinness donated £200,000 to set up the Guinness Trust in London, with an additional £50,000 for the Dublin Fund, which later became the Iveagh Trust.
He wanted to help improve the lives of ordinary people, many of whom couldn't afford decent homes. He wanted to improve people's lives and create possibilities for them. We're proud that thousands of families have benefited from this vision." [https://www.guinnesspartnership.com/about-us/what-we-do/our-history/]
Sir Edward Cecil Guinness was the grandson of the founder of the Guinness brewery.
The original Guinness Court on Lever Street was built in 1890. Here is what it looked like in 1950:
"Lever Street, Finsbury, 1950" from: https://history.guinnesspartnership.com/the-origins/
The current building was constructed in 1976, according to "Streets with a Story – The Book of Islington" by Eric A Willats FLA. I cannot discover anything about the architect or the plans – or why the Victorian building was demolished. If anyone has access to the current building and can spot a foundation stone or information plaque, please let me know?
I made the sketch from a bench dedicated to the memory of Betty Brunker, "a good friend and neighbour", 1930-2005.
Note 1: The Guinness Partnership Limited is a charitable Community Benefit Society No. 31693R registered in England and is a Registered Provider of Social Housing No. 4729. [https://www.guinnesspartnership.com]
Note 2: There are a number of buildings called "Guinness Court" in London. For example there is Guinness Court in Mansell Street E1, not far away, and Guinness Court, Snowsfields, Southwark SE1, on the other side of the river.
I have done a number of sketches in the Finsbury area:
Sketches in Finsbury:
31 Central Street, EC1
June 3, 2021 November 19, 2021
Microsketching and memory
The Horseshoe, Clerkenwell
Shepherdess Walk at City Road
Jerusalem Tavern, Britton St
Horizon panorama
March 28, 2020 November 19, 2021
On the way to Coal Drops Yard
Galway House
Michael Cliffe House
Godfrey House and the Atlas Building
Grayson House
Peregrine House from the King's Square Estate
St Mary's Tower
From Godfrey House
M by Montcalm from Godfrey House EC1
Gambier House from St Luke's
Author JanePosted on November 26, 2021 November 26, 2021 Categories 20th Century Architecture, Housing, residential, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags Finsbury, IslingtonLeave a comment on Guinness Court, Lever Street, EC1
Here is the Rose and Crown, just south of Blackfriars Bridge.
Rose and Crown, Blackfriars SE1, 20 November 2021, 10″ x 7″ in Sketchbook 11
This pub stands amongst modern blocks: linking past, present and future in a swirling area of change. Behind the pub, unexpectedly, is a beer garden, giving onto a wooded area around the nearby church, Christ Church.
Above the arched window of the pub, two dates are carved in the stone work: 1787 and 1887
Above the arched window: 1787 and 1887 (or 1881?)
The pub's website says the building "is thought to date back to the late 1800s". The marvellous "pubwiki" entry tells me that the pub "was established in 1787, re-built in its present form in 1887″. They trace the landlords' names and dates through census and insurance records, and note a John" Clark, victualler at this location, in 1789.
"1789/John Clark/victualler/../../Sun Fire Office records held at the London Metropolitan Archives" (data from Ewan of "pubwiki")
Sketch map showing the Rose and Crown, SE1, and the viewpoint of my drawing, 20th November 2021
The roads round here have changed names. Colombo Street was "Collingwood Street" until 1937 (London Metropolitan Archives, notes on photos). Before that it was "Green Walk" in the 1789 insurance records quoted above. Paris Garden was previously "Brunswick Street". The area in front of the pub, now the Colombo Centre and a Novotel, is a bombsite in a 1951 photo in the London Picture Archive.
The area continues to undergo change. North of the pub is a huge empty lot. Buildings were demolished in or around 2019, and construction has not yet started.
This sign should say "Rennie Street". Now this part of Rennie Street is inside the empty building lot, and inaccessible.
Looking South along "Rennie Street" from Stamford Street across the empty building lot. The Rose and Crown is just visible in the back. I took this photo through the wire fencing which blocks Rennie Street.
The planning application (2019) is for 4 levels of basement and 6 buildings from 5 to 53 floors.
Planning application 19/AP/0414 from "planning.southwark.gov.uk"
If you walk into my drawing and turn into the dark passage to the right of the pub, you find this notice, written in stone. Recently another notice has been added, asking patrons to leave quietly.
Walk into the passage to the right of the pub…
..and find this notice (May 2021 photo)
November 2021 photo.
By my calculation MDCCCXIX is 1000(M) + 500(D) + 300(CCC) + 10(X) + 9 (IX) = 1819
The purpose of the watch house was to guard the adjacent burial ground from body snatchers, according to the note on the London Metropolitan Archive Picture Gallery. Here is the watchhouse in 1932. The pub would be immediatly to the left of this photo:
View of Christ Church Watchhouse, record number: 113829, Catalogue number: SC_PHL_01_366_A8882 Photo date: 1932 © London Metropolitan Archives (City of London) Used under licence.
London Picture Archive notes:
"The Parish Watchhouse was built in 1809 and stood in the Church Yard until demolished in 1932. The Watchhouse was used to guard new burials against body snatchers. The Rectory, a new building similar in style, stands on the same site. Colombo Street was previously known as Collingwood Street."
Here is work in progress on the drawing. You see the current rectory, which replaced the watch-house, on the right.
The pub cat, sleeping.
Author JanePosted on November 23, 2021 Categories 19th Century architecture, Pub / restaurant, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags Blackfriars, London, South Bank, SouthwarkLeave a comment on Rose and Crown, SE1
Royal Courts of Justice from Bell Yard
It was morning. As I walked down Bell Yard the sun streamed into the alley.
Royal Courts of Justice from Bell Yard, 16th November 2021, 10:45
Later, I visited the Royal Courts of Justice. During the week, the Courts are open, and you can go in. I put my backpack on the conveyor belt. The friendly security guard asked me to drink from my water bottle: "The Sip Test" he called it, to check that my bottle did not contain a noxious substance. It didn't. The equally friendly and welcoming person at the enquiry desk issued a photocopied information sheet setting out a self-guided walk around the building, which I followed.
It's well worth a visit. It is an extraordinary example of Victorian architecture. And, of course, it contains working law courts. Photography is not allowed, and they were not enthusiastic when I suggested I might do a drawing inside, so I didn't. People are at work, and court sessions are in progress, so respect is in order. The Café was not open, which was a pity.
My drawing shows the Eastern part of the building. I sketched it on location in about 40 minutes and did the colour later at my desk.
I sketched the Royal Courts of Justice from Carey Street earlier in the week, under an overcast sky:
Royal Courts of Justice from Carey Street
The Royal Courts of Justice are a huge campus of buildings of Victorian gothic style, between The Strand to the south to Carey Street to the north. Here is a view from Carey Street. The Royal Courts of Justice are the High Courts for England and Wales, and the Court of Appeal. The High Courts … Continue reading "Royal Courts of Justice from Carey Street"
Author JanePosted on November 19, 2021 November 19, 2021 Categories 19th Century architecture, Urban sketch, WatercolourTags Bell Yard, City of London, Law courts, London2 Comments on Royal Courts of Justice from Bell Yard
The Royal Courts of Justice are a huge campus of buildings of Victorian gothic style, between The Strand to the south to Carey Street to the north.
Here is a view from Carey Street.
Royal Courts of Justice from Carey Street, 12 November 2021, 1:45pm 10″ x 7″
The Royal Courts of Justice are the High Courts for England and Wales, and the Court of Appeal. The High Courts are for civil cases, such as breaches of contract, personal injury claims, libel and slander. There is also a family division for cases of matters such as marriage annulments and care of children. Criminal cases, such as murder, are tried in the Old Bailey, down the road. Criminal cases are appealed in the Royal Courts of Justice Appeal Court. I learned this from an entry in Chambers Student website.
The construction of this building started in 1873. It was opened by Queen Victoria on December 4th 1882. The architect was George Edmund Street. The main contractor was Messrs Bull and Sons of Southampton.
Drawn and coloured on location. I used Buff Titanium for the Portland stone, and the grey is a mix of Perylene Maroon and Prussian Blue. This drawing took about 1 hour 15 mins. I also did a preliminary sketch to explore the perspective.
Preliminary sketch with yellow and red perspective lines
Finishing the colour on a bench in Grange Court
Map (c) Open Street Map contributors.
Sketchbook made by Wyvern Bindery, Hoxton.
Author JanePosted on November 13, 2021 November 19, 2021 Categories Urban sketch, WatercolourTags City of London, LondonLeave a comment on Royal Courts of Justice from Carey Street