Garrick's Temple & Taggs Island | Tim Baker | Watercolour Paintings, Drawings & Acrylic Artworks

Garrick's Temple (final day two), 15x10inches, Watercolour & Pigma pen

Garrick’s Temple & Taggs Island

When the good weather started I decided to go find some new subjects. After an aborted trip to find some graffiti via a horrible bus ride with rioting kids and wandering through the wastelands of Hanworth, I stumbled on Garrick’s Temple in Hampton. I knew about this place via John, but was surprised at how quiet it was, despite the long queues of traffic nearby. Incidentally it was the first night of the later spring opening times as well – otherwise I’d have been chucked out.

David Garrick was an actor in love with the Bard and famous for his depiction of Richard III (but wasn’t small or brown*). The temple was built in 1756, and I’ve somehow managed to never see the inside which has a replica of the original statue of Shakespeare now in the British Museum, some Zoffany paintings and is a shrine to ol’ Billy Waggledagger

So the day wasn’t totally wasted, I started on the drawing of the temple for a watercolour, and started it until it went dark. This was before the clocks going forward, but recently I seem to have spent far too much time squinting in the near dark to see what the colour was an hour ago! Also although I love the trees (Cypresses?) I actually preferred the line drawing – that sometimes happens, the line drawing is more interesting than the final watercolour…

I then went back the next day to finish it. I wish I hadn’t filled in some of the colour – the washes I’d used in the twilight made it hard to get an accurate brick colour right the next day, turned out a bit muddy. Then again I’ve found my cheap paper from The Works could be the culprit as the colours are bright and vibrant when painted but seem to lighten and fade as it dries. That doesn’t happen on the newer but more expensive Cass Arts paper. Oh well…

Garrick’s Temple (in progress), 15x10inches, Pigma pen
Garrick’s Temple (after day one), 15x10inches, Pigma pen
Garrick’s Temple (final day two), 15x10inches, Watercolour & Pigma pen

I do think my building/architectural drawing has come on strides. I chose to specialise in part because buildings scared me when I first started drawing, any man-made structure in fact. But the perspective angles, foreshortening and parallax is good practice.

And after I’d finished the Garrick watercolour, I went for a walk along the bank across the oddly derelict St Albans Riverside park, finding a literal traffic (cone) island and drawing and taking pictures of the flotsam.

Flotsam and Jetsam, Hampton Riverside, Pigma drawing, A4 Sketchbook

I also found what looked like a wrecked/abandoned motorboat called Swansong II hidden amongst the trees near the bank which amused me. You can see it in the watercolour I did from the Taggs Island bridge below, bottom left – and gave it it’s subtitle.