A Postcard from my Walk - around the Mall Galleries

Outside the Mall Galleries in Spring
pen and sepia ink and coloured pencils on Mountboard, 9.25" x 4.75"
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

This was my Postcard from my Walk for April which was sent to Vivien Blackburn and got posted to the Postcard blog last week - see A postcard from London - the meeting place.

I've observed that when tackling these monthly postcards, an idea for where I should do a sketch comes into my head straight away.  With Vivien it had to be the Mall Galleries because that's where we always meet up when she's in London.  Also since I always walk to the Galleries from down by the river and then walk around exhibitions three times, that's got to count as a walk!

I've always loved the view down The Mall with the huge plane trees with the really interesting bark and the colours of the dappled sunshine.

Then, of course, it's also a good way of remembering that there was a rather big event which involved The Mall last month - on the way from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace!

Sketching the First Landscape

I went back to Tate Britain to get my small sketchbook and ended up doing more three more sketches as I walked around the galleries!

The first - the last page of my small sketchbook - was of Turner's self-portrait - see  Turner finished my sketchbook

The one below in my big sketchbook was generated by watching the BBC programme This Green and Pleasant Land  and generated this post yesterday A view of Box Hill, Surrey and English landscape painting  on The Art of the Landscape - about the landscape below. 

After George Lambert - A View of Box Hill, Surrey (1733) by George Lambert (1700 – 30 Nov. 1765)
pencil and coloured pencils in large Folio Sketchbook

It's thought to be one of the first if not the first paintings by an English painter of a pure landscape - just for the sake of the landscape.

After walking round the galleries (fascinating to find Damien Hirst has been consigned to the most inaccessible one!) I went for a cup of tea in the Friends Room.  I've never been very fond of the Friends Room at Tate Britain and I worked out why as I sat doing my last sketch of the day.

There are absolutely no pictures on the wall.  It's a total blank canvas of white washed walls and window.

There's no pictures on the walls of the Friends Room, Tate Britain
pen and sepia ink in Large Folio Moleskine Sketchbook, 11" x 16"
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

As always, there were people doing business and keeping up with their online world.  One of the things I've learned about sketching on my own is people seem to forget I can hear their conversations.  You learn all about all sorts of things as consultants educate their clients - fascinating stuff! :). 

The Private View

Private View at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition 2011
pencil in Moleskine Sketchbook (8" x 10")
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

If you've missed all the excitement - see Lost and found - one sketchbook and Turner finished my sketchbook - these are some of the sketches which I very nearly lost as they'd not been scanned.

I attended the Private View of the Annual Exhibition of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters at the beginning of this month - see

• Review: Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition 2011 (Part 1)
• Review: Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition 2011 (Part 2)

Talking to June Mendoza
pen and sepia ink in Moleskine Sketchbook, (7" x 7")
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

These were the sketches I was doing over my cup of tea which got referenced in the second post

After touring the exhibition about three times, I was sat doing my usual sketches of people visiting the exhibition while having my cup of tea - only to find that I was being entertained by the mellifluous and unmistakable tones of Sir Donald Sinden sat immediately behind me - while I watched Rolf Harris and his wife work their way up the portraits on the wall in front of me!  Such is the nature of the Private View for this art society!

What was very nice was the bit I'd forgotten until I came to write this post.  One of the members of the Society was talking to Sir Donald and a member of their party asked to look at my larger sketchbook - and declared that he'd been a professional art dealer and he'd never seen such a nice sketchbook before!  I was very chuffed (as we say 'up north').

How to see the exhibition

The exhibition can be seen at the Mall Galleries every day until Friday 20th May between the hours of 10 and 5. Admission £2.50, £1.50 concessions, (Free to FBA Friends, Art Fund members, Westminster Res-card holders and under 16s).

Note:  June Mendoza is one of the illustrious members of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters.  There was article by Valerie Grove - Put Me in the Picture in the Sunday Times Magazine on 1st May - about what it was like to sit for a portrait by June Mendoza AO OBE RP ROI HonSWA.