Going out into the world, seeing things, drawing them… This is journalism, as much as anything I ever did as a writer on newspapers and magazines.
This post is part of a series, introducing my book Psalms for the City.
Back to Main Psalms Page
At best – to which I aspire, even if I’m not there yet – this kind of illustrated reportage can create ripples in the world.
Sketching A Man On Hunger Strike
One day, I went to Westminster to draw the husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, on hunger strike outside the Foreign Office. I had no credentials, represented no publication. I just wanted to bear witness.
So I stood there and watched, drew some pictures – Richard Ratcliffe is the figure in the green hat – and went home to write up what I’d seen.
The drawings I made would later be printed and sent out to dozens of Members of Parliament. I can’t know what impact that had, but I did hear back from several MPs.
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Making My Own Print Edition
Another project was drawn at a children’s hospice. My friend Julia van Beuningen had gone to play cello, and I was there to document the event.
Afterwards, I printed up a limited edition of A6 booklets. You can see what was inside it here, by “turning the pages” of this digital booklet:
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Live-sketching At A Conference
Another time, at a conference where I was myself due to speak, I spent the time beforehand sketching the other speakers:
I was sitting in the back row, and assumed I was not being watched, but after I finished the last drawing, of Max Atkinson, the woman beside me asked how I did them.
I explained that I start with a rapid pen sketch in my notebook, and add colour on my iPhone photos app – marker pens are a bit heavy to carry everywhere, and the coloured pencils I have don’t produce such brilliant saturated colour.
Here is the original sketch of Max, just as it remains in my sketchbook:
