i've joined pinterest and its linked to twitter which means everything i do comes up on twitter. i think that is annoying and now i can't work out how to unlink it. 

got something new on the front page, more of an older style building with pencil over watercolour and fineliner. I shall finish off the belisha beacon drawing tomorrow. I think that will be in the same style as the Primrose Road drawing. Or I could be brave and do it like the westbound on the central line style ...

Yesterday at the AOI seminar was amazing. All the speakers had really useful stuff to pass on and really helped in consolidating my thoughts on the future direction of my work. Made loads of notes which I am now picking through :)

my german friend on flickr (Ira Prussat, lovely illustrations) liked my new shift in style as did my fb friends, so i shall pursue this and hopefully raise my game. I read that once you can draw a convincing head or whatever, you then have to take it somewhere, do something different with it. That is maybe what illustration is, not just stating the obvious. Apart from that, I need to create a looser, cleaner style. And that is where a pen comes in (with a bit of pencil of course ;)

from may 26 last year. "Art has to be fearless" thats what he said. You have to be secure in the knowledge that what you are doing, is the right thing. I need to remember that. And that a development of a different style is always a good idea too :) 

I spoke to David Gentleman! really useful time at foyles today. I will have to get the book but not yet. London urban sketches accepted me so now i have to ask about correspondent status

found the urban sketchers london flickr group today and asked to join so i hope they have me! i'd like to be a correspondent for them too. which reminds me, i'm off to see the wonderful david gentleman's work at the weekend.  With pencil line, even though i like a 0.5 because i can be very precise with it, i also like the slight fuzziness, as if it's  trying to say something but can't always pinpoint exactly what. I think small, intimate pencil work is far more emotional than admirers of the 'grand painted gesture' give it credit for.

tweaked the quantum house a bit, i removed the arch coping things a, because i'd drawn them too small and b, because i think they are a distraction and make the whole thing look a bit cluttered. This  afternoon I found a dry spot outside thompsons in george lane and started on a view from the other side of the road over the central line. Other good news is that i got 102 page views yesterday :)

good day today, finished another bit of south woodford, its on the urban pencil page. I thought I'd leave Alan on the front page for a while longer. Quantum House is a bit more 'filled in' than I normally like to do but because of the dark shadows and the lack of angles in the background I didn't think I had much choice. Anyway the chef from the woodford cafe came and had a chat which was great and really helpful! I now have some follow up to do :)

The piano is back in and tuned and now my space needs a tad more reorganising. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice so I shall get some more of south woodford drawn. Next week i shall pop up to foyles to see the david gentleman show. Oh there is a new portrait on the people watching