Thursday 5 February 2015

Famous Pair.

A couple of weeks ago I posted that I'd been working on something special as a gift and that I wouldn't post it online until it had been finished and delivered. Well I'm just back home from doing just that so now I can safely display the piece.


My brother-in-law is a keen model railway enthusiast and I decided I'd like to draw a train engine for him. I searched the net for railway engines that I know he's fond of and found two of his favourites. I happened to have a wide, narrow frame that I thought lent itself perfectly to a train, however, when I came to compare various pictures with the frame I couldn't find anything that I felt happy with. After a lot of hunting around and head scratching I had the idea of using BOTH trains in the same picture.

Since the picture is about the engines I chose not to include any background or foreground and, in my opinion, the wide, narrow format makes the images look more dramatic than they would have done individually and the backward sweeping smoke provides a sense of movement.

For any rail enthusiasts, the engine on the left is "6100 Royal Scot", the first of the 4-6-0 Royal Scot Class express passenger locomotives. Introduced in 1927, like many engines it has experienced many upgrades and rebuilds, and this is how it looked in the mid-1950's. The class was withdrawn from service in the early 1960's. The engine on the right is "4468 Mallard", a Class A4 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive. Built in 1938, Mallard holds the world speed record for steam locomotives of 125.88 mph. It was withdrawn in 1963 after almost 1.5 million miles of service. Mallard went through several redesigns and liveries which saw it with streamlined 'skirts' over it's wheels, twin tenders and double funnels. It is currently on display at the National Railway Museum in York.

18 comments:

  1. Not only is this the perfect gift for a railway buff, it's a masterpiece. This is a family heirloom that will in time become a valuable collectors item. Congratulations on a superb achievement, John

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    1. Thank you very much for such a generous comment John. Coming from a skilled draughtsman like you it means a great deal.

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  2. This is flawless, John. What an AMAZING painting you did for your brother in law! I love it and I wish I could have seen his face when you gave it to him... congratulations again for this fantastic drawing!!!

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  3. Hi John.
    You are a master Draughtsman. What a fantastic Drawing. Well done John. All the best.
    Vic.

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  4. Well I´m not in to trains, but I still think that this is a wonderful drawing!! And your idea with putting two trains on the same like this is great. How did you do the smoke? Is it charcoal or just a very soft pen becaus it looks really smooth?

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    1. Thanks Catharina, The smoke was done using pencil. I scribbled a few darkish area's and then smudged them quite strongly using a piece of kitchen roll, working in circular movements. Then I 'lifted out' some area's using Blu-Tac. I repeated the process a few times until it was looking right. I'm glad you like it.

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  5. What a great gift Jon, this is really amazing, and the idea of putting the two trains together is great . What an incredibly accurate work, wow !

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  6. This is absolutely wonderful, John. The composition is perfect, and it emphasises the power of the locomotives: they look as though they are racing each other.

    I'm sure your brother-in-law must have been delighted.

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    1. He was indeed delighted Keith and thank you for your observation about the composition. Your visits here are always greatly appreciated.

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  7. Oh wow John... This is fantastic. You have surpassed yourself with this one.

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  8. This is a spectacular piece John! Really it is... And I LOVE the perspective and the way you have used both trains... You should get prints made of this! :0)

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    1. Thank you very much Sandra. I had wondered about prints but doubt I'd be able to sell them. Might do one for myself though.

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  9. Very nice! Your b-i-l should be very pleased. Also liking your snowdrop photos. They're one of my favorite flowers, especially in a year when I've gotten a ton of snow. Can't wait till I see them again.

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    1. Thank you very much Linda and I greatly appreciate your visit. ;-)

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