Ely cathedral.

This took a couple of months for a perfect replica. Done by the excellent Rupert Cordeux (aka Rupert Chicken).

The magnificent setting for the pictures.

In a polytunnel! Warm, often full of people drinking gin or at the Christmas Market.

A perfect art gallery.

The Secret Garden by Christmas 2018.

One hundred days to Brexit!

The Mile Tree Brewery is in the Secret Garden. This is a silly advert which I could not resist doing!

Thomas Clarkson was replaced as the man who abolished slavery by William Wilberforce, a witty, friendly orator whom everyone liked. He was, apparently, a brilliant mimic too. The reason everyone knows about him today is that his two sons wrote his biography and, since they had high positions in the Church, they took the credit and wrote Thomas Clarkson out of history!
But the facts is the facts - as some American President never said.
It is not generally known that the British Empire in Africa and the Middle East was built as Victorian Christians followed Clarkson in their passion to abolish slavery. Cecil Rhodes was driven to suggest the Cape to Cairo railway for this reason - he had already made his name and his millions by then.

 Dammit! I like villains better than nice people! This is a serious villain. I looked on the internet at the faces of the SS torturers who exterminated the Jews and this man's face is a lot worse! Honestly it is. This is Thomas Thistlewood who used his slaves for personal pleasures of the most disgusting kind. No. No details will be forthcoming.
I put him up with Phibbah, his common law "wife", to show what slavery does to nice, decent Lincolnshire boys when they are exposed to it. What poor Phibbah - and even the overseers (all black by the way) - went through on his plantation is unimaginable. But at least the gas chambers weren't invented in those far off days.

Study in negative shapes.

Study in dramatic lighting

Warm up.

Dexter wearing scarf.

You should always do this: turn a lying pose sideways to see if you have got the proportions right,

Exercise in drawing with only straight lines - very helpful.

More life Drawing: Sharon and Dexter.

Very grateful to Becka for running the class during November. She taught me a lot - as did the two professional models.

The top one is Octavia Hill who founded the National Trust but perhaps more important she did a lot of hard work in London working with the poor. The next one down is Thomas Clarkson who led the fight against slavery which dominated the 19th century. A very great - and forgotten - man. The Third one is Rev Awdrey who lived in Emneth and who wrote the original Thomas the Tank Engine series for his son.

So what did all have in common? Well, they lived and came from Wisbech so I painted them in the Secret Garden for Neil who is the owner and who is (at the moment) encouraging me - a rare thing indeed!

https://www.thesecretgardentouringpark.co.uk

Did some more life drawing.
Sharon was the model.