Birds of a Feather

Human Nature

Dirty Laundry

August snapshots

People, Places, Things

 

Harry Clarke

The Eve of St. Agnes

       Who can describe the magic that is Harry Clarke's stained glass images? His most famous piece, The Eve of St. Agnes is an illustration of the Keats poem of the same name. It resides in the Hugh Lane in Dublin–the work is admirable in itself but I am drawn in by Clarke's distinctive style. I originally saw the sketches for this work before the finished product and was enamored with the delicate and detailed drawings and slightly odd looking characters...

The Eve of St. Agnes (detail)

The finished product is essentially a comic book in stained glass, a series of panels that show scenes from the poem. It is enchanting, enthralling and and lovely but also holds a sinister bent, not just from the tale itself but in the renderings of each person. The glass panels, though transformed through the brilliant colours and backlight also carry shadows that hint at some of the strangeness and creepiness of the narrative.

The Masque of the Red Death

Harry Clarke, illustration from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

   















 I am very much drawn to the incredible detail of his pen work. The stark black and white images carry the same magic that his stained glass work does, yet the closer you look, the more there is to discover. When seen from a distance they are arresting, the images convey a sense of narrative and an intriguing sense of mystery. Many also have an odd disturbing quality that I find equally intriguing, appropriately he illustrated Edgar Allen Poe's stories as well.

Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Preludes and Nocturnes

The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes
comic review

A book review in comic form...this is one of Neill Gaiman's The Samdman volume 1: Preludes and Nocturnes. The drawing style is very much inspired by Alan E Cober, a fantastic artist/illustrator but also by the feeling evoked in the book.

Inspired by: Alan E. Cober

Illustration from The Dark is Rising

Lately I have been working more in pen & ink, sketching and doodling than in painting and Alan E. Cober is one of those artists who I've been looking to for inspiration in terms of the many possibilities open to the medium. I was introduced to him through his fantastic illustrations for Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising, but his creations extend far beyond his work for books (he also illustrated Beowulf). His unique style bridges the enforced gaps that occurred between fine art and illustration and he was an advocate for the acceptance of these new values in illustration. Much more detail can be read on him at the society of illustrators page.

Story Tree

"The Story Tree" ink & paper, 2013