44, The Shambles

A surreal, stylised illustration of York's most famous and oldest street, The Shambles. A variety of techniques including HDR and digital manipulation are used to create a fairytale, medieval feel with impossible colour.

A hooded, besandled figure carrying a lantern could be expected to appear from around any corner at any time. The history of The Shambles is as rich as the history of the City of York, one of my favourite places.

The venue '44 The Shambles' itself no longer exists but The Shambles will remain for as long as York stands. The city's famous Ghost Walks make appropriate use of the intense atmosphere found here.

Many people think The Shambles was used for the location filming of 'Diagon Alley' in the Harry Potter films. It was not - but it most certainly influenced the design. Many also associate the town of 'Ank Morpork' from Terry Pratchett's Discwold novels with this curious relic of a street.

I find the daytime tourists overwhelming and that The Shambles is best experienced after hours, when the history and atmosphere become thick and tangible.

Lady Of The Lake

Classical 'masters' oil portrait style of classical pose with rich dark detail of dense autumn (fall) woodland background and a rusty crimson autumn leaf covering on the ground. A modern artwork in a classical style with deep crimsons, blues, greens and painstaking detail.

It may appear at first that there is no Lake for this Lady. However, the image was inspired by the wooded eastern shores of Coniston Water in the Lake District, England, one of my favourite "secret" places. The model used to create the pose, now an internationally known model of some fame, grew up in the area. The obfuscation of the Title is deliberate. There is no visible lake and she is clearly stood in woodland, but a Lake (to my mind at least) is implied a short distance to the left as the trees thin out.

I wanted to create an image which could easily be mistaken for one hundreds of years old, in style and content.

Dragon Lady Faded Glory

A richly detailed portrait with strong Gothic and Georgian overtones. Intense detail of fabric, lace and age-darkened woodwork contrast with the simplicity of the forlorn expression. The questions raised by the opulent but tattered dress, heartbrake and crumbling splendour which surrounds her outnumber the answers given.

This portrait, like my other 'Dragon Lady' images are inspired by a Jacobean Manor House at a location very special to me - but one which must be kept secret to protect it and the incredible heritage it contains. The location is the birthplace of the 'St. George & The Dragon', and all other similar English 'dragon slaying' legends.

The hero / slayer of the original tale, which inspired amongst many other things, Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky, is a direct ancestor of mine.

For this beauty as with her name-sake beast, the glory of fiery passion is long gone, but the legend lives on.

John's Door

Unusually detailed watercolour style image of an arched chapel entrance with the door ajar, allowing sunlight beams to enter. A restricted and muted green brown pallette adds a natural warmth. The feet of a stone figure lie on the ground just out of reach. The open door exits from earthly stone religion to a brighter world outside.

Watercolour never seems to carry enough detail for my taste, so I created as much texture and detail as possible. I also wanted to create a distraction - just when you think the door is open and route is obvious, something catches your eye; the stone to the right.

The image is based upon a real chapel in the North of England, which is no longer consecrated and has fallen into ruin in the grounds of a privately owned Manor House. However, the ancient relics remain.

Who is John? One answer would be the stone figure, once adorning his own tomb, now scattered casually on the floor. Another answer would be John Dashwood. Both ancestors, both relics. Both just out of reach.