After a long day of traveling, I had a wonderful first day in country. I enjoyed wandering, getting lost, and experiencing the culture that London offers. I also enjoyed seeing Barbican. It was really unique to see this space that so greatly contrast the area around it. I was very surprised to see how the designers approached Brutalism. I like their ability to soften the architectural presence through vegetation and water. I had a great experience there, but my favorite part of the day was traveling to St. Paul’s Cathedral. It was a painful and tiring experience to climb to the top of the dome, but it was worth every second. I loved that view of London. I also greatly enjoyed just sitting down and sketching in the space. Dan and I accidentally spent an hour on just one sketch, but it turned out fantastic. I used pens to draw an angled view of the church’s nave. I tried to not put too much ink on the page, but I could not stop my obsession with details to show through. After spending way too much time on this sketch, I made second pencil sketch of a window and wall with angels guarding a door. I really like this sketch, and how I used lighter strokes to expose the forms of the angels and the architecture around them.
Pen sketch in St. Paul’s Cathedral
Pencil sketch in St. Paul’s Cathedral