Tonbridge artist hopes to draw every Greater London building

Jack Hines, a full-time artist who currently lives in Tonbridge, dedicates almost every day to drawing buildings across the boroughs of London.

The project, known as Drawing All of London, is currently estimated to take more than 2,000 years – Jack claims, but he plans to finish the project during his lifetime.

Jack says that he travels to each destination in London, often taking lodge trips where he takes hundreds, if not thousands, of photos.

He then returns home and draws the buildings using the pictures he taken from walking the streets of London.

So far, Jack has drawn iconic London skyscrapers such as The London Eye, The Gherkin, 100 Bishops Gate and The Walkie Talkie.

Jack told the News Shopper: “I was on the last stage of qualifying to be an architect and I became a little tired of the profession - but art was my hobby and I enjoyed it in the background.

“So, I decided to transition and get away from the stresses of architecture and follow my passion.

“I wanted to create a project that was a little more than just art – I wanted to create a challenge for myself.

“The idea literally sprung to me whilst I was in bed – I produced the idea of drawing the entire city and it’s evolved ever since.

“I want to create an archive of every single building in Greater London that holds snapshots of the city during my lifetime.

“I love the idea that in the future, people can look back through my drawings and see what the city was like at that time.”

Only two months into the project, Jack says he has drawn 0.008912 per cent of London, but this figure is slowly increasing daily.

Jack said: “At the moment I’ve done mostly individual buildings, but as the project develops, I plan to draw panoramas of multiple buildings and maps of residential areas.

London Eye drawing by Jack Hines

“So, the process should speed up quite rapidly, but at the moment, it’s just starting off.”

Jack claims to draw the London buildings almost every day – with the occasional day dedicated to developing his website and social media accounts.

Jack added: “I’m fairly confident that I’ll complete the project – although it will take a long time – potentially, my entire lifetime.

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“I have calculated at my current pace, which is pretty slow at the moment, it will take 2,600 years.

“Of course, I don't want to go at this pace, so I’ll speed up and I’m hoping I’ll complete the entire city.”

Jack says he soon will be “shifting his focus” to drawing London houses – which means all residential properties in London will be featured in his drawings.

Jack added: “To safeguard people’s privacy I will only draw individual houses on request, otherwise I'll draw streets, panoramas, or maps.

“I think the project will help people engage with the city of London, as I can discover buildings that are sometimes overlooked through drawings.”

Jack says he finds the project “incredibly relaxing” - although certain buildings can be challenging.

Jack added: “I've just finished a sketch of Big Ben, but because it's quite zoomed in, the drawing is incredibly detailed and that was quite stressful, to be honest.

“But once it's done, the sense of achievement is amazing, and most of them that are not too difficult - I've got quite a lot of practice these days.”

The talented artist is currently selling the original drawings, as well as prints online, and is taking requests for drawings of favourite buildings in London.

Visit his website here

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