The magic of London

Samuel Johnson's famous quote often comes to mind when I think of London: 'You find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.'

Well, I did leave London... I have to agree with William Shakespeare on this one, when he apparently said, 'nothing in London is certain but expense.' However, I think there is a difference between leaving a place and being tired of it.

I still love to visit London, and so I was thrilled when I was commissioned to create four drawings of the city, each one featuring a different season.

One very wet day in December, I spent the whole day dashing around the city with my phone, taking pictures (and then wiping it dry again.) Despite the heavy, inky clouds and slippery pavements, it was a joy to spend the whole day just looking at the city and getting to know it again, almost like a tourist. Imposing statues of lions and horses loomed overhead, red busses wheezed past through the puddles and gold-gilt railings gleamed through the gloom.

I delivered the commission this week and am delighted to give you a little peek at the drawings.

Any city, town or village will have its own heartbeat, and we all have a relationship to the places that we frequent. It's lovely to pause now and again to become mindful of this.

Pearl