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Thursday 28 January 2016

Beverley Art Gallery and Library.

Pen and ink sketch 38 x 28cm on 300g/m2 Bockingford  ( rough )
Beverley Art Gallery.
One of the things I like about the Victorians was that their buildings enjoyed embelishments and fancy brickwork. Though strictly speaking Edwardian, being built just after Queen Victoria, the influence of previous building styles is obvious. The Dutch style gables are an attractive feature and the stone stretchers blocks provide a contrast and at the same time a continuity tying in the many elements of the facade. Arches over windows are the same colour as the stone strecher courses thus providing a material link. Both roofs, one over the pillared entrance above the projecting rectangular stone bay and at the higher level have been re-roofed using copper sheets. More copper has been used on the right hand side roof. Eventually, these will corrode to verdigris and provide more drama to the building. Some may find this too much. I for one, cannot understand our modern day lack of imagination regarding brickwork. Cavity wall construction should not be an excuse to simply lay all bricks as stretchers, could we replicate a tradional bond? Maybe it is just cost which drives us to produce plain walls. The simple device of providing vertical projections to create a curtain wall effect should be possible. Okay that is my little rant over.
I love this building, especially this view. Later I will add a wash. This view shows the building framed by trees. The magnificent paper bark silver birch on the left provides stark contrst to the dark orange / red of the building, and will look good when washed, though I may need to resort to gouache to get the effect I am after. The large tree on the right is across the road near the council offices. I need to go back and add some hanging branches which will frame the picture even more. This has been a good test of my new varifocal spectacles.

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