Detailing the Energy of the World’s Greatest Cities: Paintings by Clare Caulfield

I’m very excited to introduce Clare Caulfield’s work to you today, as I’m a big, big fan. I particularly love the scratchy marks of her pen and watercolour sketches from around the world. She manages to capture the lively busyness of some of the world’s greatest cities, including Paris, Rome, and New York – no mean feat by any standards! So, I’ll let you have a browse and find out more about the inspirations and motivations behind Clare’s work. Enjoy! 

You’re pieces have a very distinct style. How did this develop?

I graduated with a degree in Surface Pattern design in 2000 and it was whilst in my final year that I visited Venice for the first time. This trip marks the start of my love for documenting my travels through my painting and drawing buildings which has enabled me to develop my own style of working.

Let’s talk about process. What steps do you take when creating a piece?

I only paint the places I have visited, producing sketchbooks filled with drawings and ideas on location. I love working in a variety of media – watercolour, acrylic and collage. Drawing and linework feature heavily in my work, I use graphite pencils, dip pen & ink, coloured pencils, pastel and I wouldn’t be without my brown sketching pens which enable me to make quick reference sketches that I’ll work up in my studio when I get home. I also take lots of photographs and pick up all sorts of odds and ends from menu’s to postcards and local newspapers, anything that will help to conjure a memory or spark my imagination. Using my preparatory sketches and drawings I try to work as spontaneously as possible in order to maintain lively and energetic line work.

When starting a new painting I don’t sketch it out on the paper first, instead I begin by putting down watercolour shapes to suggest the forms of my subject. Then I work into these with line and build it up from there.

It’s obvious from your pieces that you travel quite a lot. What has been the most creatively inspiring place you have been to?

Venice is a very special place for me as it’s where my passion for drawing architecture began. It’s such a beautiful city, there is nowhere else quite like it. Both New York and Paris follow very closely though. I love looking out across Parisian rooftops, beautiful charming shop fronts, bustling café scenes and Manhattan streets lined with yellow NYC taxis. I love the buzz of the city and visiting new places, there’s always so much happening and so much to inspire me. My paintings allow me to document and record my experiences of the places I’ve travelled to. It’s also great to see people’s reactions as they view my paintings, my interpretations of the cities I draw seem to capture a moment which they themselves can relate to.

Aside from travel, what inspires your work?

The very early work of Stephen Wiltshire is a big inspiration. His architectural drawings produced as a child from memory are so beautiful and expressive. I also love Lucinda Roger’s drawings from her travel journals of New York and London and the book illustrations by Portland based Carson Ellis.

If you could make art anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

I work from my studio in the lovely world heritage site of Saltaire, Yorkshire. It’s full of inspiring architecture so I feel very at home here creating my paintings. It would however be lovely to be able to set up my little studio in other locations that I have visited too such as Prague, Reykjavik, Istanbul… One day I’d love to go to Tokyo to see what direction that would take my work in.

Finally, do you have any tips for readers who might want to sketch or make art when they travel?

I think a combination of lively sketchbook work and lots and lots of photos are essential. Sketchbooks allow you to free up and experiment with different media. For me beautiful early morning sunlight is the perfect time to capture architecture and the city at its best, creating inspiring photos to work from back in my studio.

For more of Clare’s work, check out her recently opened up Etsy shop that sells a range of limited edition prints and handmade cards here and her website here. You can also follow Clare on Twitter: @caulfieldartist

So, what do you like about Clare’s work? Where’s your favourite place that she has painted?