Behind the scenes art blog- drawing tips and techniques

Two lots of very exciting news here this week (in case you couldn't hear us yelling it from our rooftops). First up, we are proud to announce that the Tales in Sombre Tones book tour is now fully funded. Most of that came courtesy of Arts Council England who, after I filled in a terrifying number of paperwork, awarded us a grant covering most of what we needed for the tour. We had to show our commitment by raising some from other sources which is only fair so Sean and I decid

The latest illustration for Tales in Sombre Tones with author Sean Walter has an interesting origin story. I used to live in London and on the other side of my garden wall lay St Patrick's cemetery, the oldest working catholic cemetery in the city. I used to visit occasionally and each time, felt a distinct presence that would intensify the longer I stayed. The Borrower, charcoal pencil and carbon on watercolour paper. Graveyard guardians are well known in British folklore -

On Thursday 4th of May I'm hosting a one night only exhibition at Dillon's of Whitby. Funded initially by a successful mini Kickstarter, it's all about the nature of original art and what makes each piece unique. So far, 20 crows have sold and the names of their sponsors will be displayed alongside each artwork. Three of the crows drawn so far have been selected to feature on limited edition sketchbooks and signed prints. A small number of original drawings and prints are sti

Like most artists, I am fascinated by light. This is one of the reasons the beautiful Saltwick Bay is one of my favourite landscapes. Just around the corner from my Whitby studio, it changes according to the weather and so is different every time I visit. As you cross the sands from the bay towards Black Nab, it turns to shale underfoot - which contains fossils and, rather surprisingly, the wreck of the Admiral Van Tromp. Her remains add a starkly beautiful element to the lan

One of my favourite places is Saltwick Bay - black rocks, golden fossils and the remains of the Admiral Von Tromp which ran aground in 1976. Every time I go, it looks completely different and so this is my second drawing of the landscape. I'm working on Fabriano Artistico extra white paper. It has a lovely smooth surface that takes great detail and being the whitest art paper available, contrasts the charcoal perfectly. I'm using a mixture of charcoal pencils for the detail a