photography
I went to Santa Cruz the other day, and spent a day happily wandering with my little polaroid camera...
I walked along the pier, and saw sealions, pelicans, and these baby seagulls.
And I loved the old-fashioned boardwalk, with its 50's fairground rides.
It was my birthday this week, and I spent it in San Francisco. I went to the Asian Art Museum to see the Japanese art exhibition, and admired some lovely ceramics (this is a birthday peach from a Chinese plate),
and some Japanese sculptures and painted screens.
I walked through the civic centre and then on to the Hayes Valley to look at some pretty boutiques...
...and then in the evening we went to Sons & Daughters, a lovely little restaurant in Nob Hill. The service was delightful, the food exquisite. I drew each dish in the tasting menu as it came out...
and took some photos of the colours and presentation. Yum in every way.
I'm in San Francisco this week, just strolling in the sunshine...
along the Embarcadero...
to the ballpark, to watch the game. Loving it. Go Giants!
We went to Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck restaurant the other day. It was an experience and a half! My very first 3-starred Michelin restaurant. 
When food looks as exquisite as this, it's impossible to resist...
A canelé is the speciality pastry of Bordeaux, invented in the 18th century. It's flavoured with vanilla and rum, with a dark caramelised crust and soft custardy centre. I tried as many different ones as possible over one weekend in Bordeaux...
I've just developed some photos from my recent trip to the States. They seem extra atmospheric somehow...
This is Bonaventure Cemetery, which featured in 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'. We visited the graves of Conrad Aitken, and especially Johnny Mercer (he wrote the wonderful song 'That Old Black Magic'. I loved the trees with hanging Spanish moss all over Savannah.
This is the swamp garden at Magnolia Plantation, just outside Charleston, SC. We didn't see any crocodiles here, but did see lots of little turtles sunning themselves, and wading birds.
I've just come back from a road trip through the South of America. It was amazing. We started in cultured Savannah, Georgia, where I was super happy to see the Bird Girl sculpture, made famous by the book 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' (one of my favourites).
Then onwards to Charleston, South Carolina, where we toured a few preserved historical residences,
and also the Magnolia Plantation with its gorgeous swamp garden. 
We stayed in some lovely bed and breakfast places.
Then it was on to the Great Smoky Mountains, where we saw a baby bear! In Nashville we went to a Honky Tonk in a Western bar and saw the Don Kelly Band...
and watched a show at the Grand Ole Opry, and also ate the best "meat and 3s" ever at Arnolds. Mostly, this was a music and food trip, to sample all the specialities of the South. Here's an example of local cuisine, although usually there's a few fried somethings thrown in too!
And of course, pies aplenty...
The local "chess pie" was extra sweet, but the winner was the "lemon ice-box pie" from Corky's in Memphis. Their ribs were also the overall winner!
We just spent the day in the Cotswolds, and had the loveliest afternoon tea ever at Juri's Tearoom in the country town of Winchcombe. The crockery was a pretty blue... 
...and the view from the conservatory was delightful. But it's the cakes you need to try; honestly, the cheese cake was the best I've ever had, anywhere. So light and fluffy. The sandwiches were beautiful too. Everything is perfect, as it's traditional English, but with a slight hint of the Japanese, as Juri is from there.
I absolutely recommend this place if you're anywhere near...
I went to see The Importance of Being Earnest, my favourite Oscar Wilde play, at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London last week, and took some photos of the beautiful interiors. 
I love the paintings they do on the safety curtains, especially the calligraphic text...
I spent a few days in Shanghai recently, re-acquainting myself after a ten year break. Thankfully there are still some lovely old parts left...
although the new and shiny is asserting itself strongly...
I took photos with my LCA on black and white film, looking for the beautiful old, messy Shanghai, mysterious through the fog and cold. 
I missed all the old-style bicycles (everyone seems to be on electric moped thingys now), that used to be everywhere. But the food was of course as tasty as ever!
Shanghai dumplings are something special, they really are...
I've just got my negatives back from my latest Asia trip, and here are a few photos to share...
This is Taipa old village, in Macau. There are still a few tiny patches of old charm left there, if you look hard.
Ritsurin Garden in Shikoku, Japan. It's listed as one of the top three, and was calm, orderly and very green, with delightful koi and picturesque red bridges.
Sayabashi bridge in Kotohira. We went to climb the mountain to Kompira san here, a famous pilgrimage temple & shrine.
More photos on the way, but hope you like these in the meantime!
Hello! I've just found out that an illustration I entered into the Cathay Pacific competition 'connecting your world' won a prize! I'm very excited. The competition was for images or text that showed how air transport connected Hong Kong to the world, in a creative and inspiring way, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first powered flight to HK in 1911.
My winning picture...
And the photo I entered, that didn't win, but that I still think is pretty good ...
My favourite view in the world (Hong Kong island) ...
I just got my film negatives back (so old-school I know) and thought I'd share a few more of my photos from my America road trip. I use a holga medium format camera, 400 asa film.
Las Vegas early in the morning.
Grand Canyon from the South Rim.
Volcanic hill at Wupatki National Park.
Hope you like!
M
So, welcome again to my blog. I'll try my darndest to be fairly regular, even if it's just a tiny snippet of news... I've just come back from a road trip in the States, (with a NY trip tagged on to the end) and here are a few sketches and photos:
Starting in Los Angeles,
where we walked along Venice beach from Santa Monica, and drove Mulholland Drive at Sunset, we carried on to Las Vegas, baby!
where we stayed at the Bellagio, watched the fountains, and gambled a grand total of $9, yeah, and spent all our money on buffets instead. From there to the Grand Canyon,
to be truly awestruck, and on to Monument Valley, where we drove as if in a movie:
A day at the Mesa Verde, for a touch of Ancestral Puebloan culture:
and then over the mountains to snowy Denver, the Rockies and the Buckhorn Exchange. It was road-trip-a-rama!
Next installment, NY...
M
Today I'll be talking you through my portfolio: how I've divided and sub-divided the sections and why. The first section is 'editorial'. This features illustrations I've done for magazines and newspapers. I've split this into several themes: 'food', because I like doing work on this subject the most, 'lifestyle', because so much fits under its umbrella, 'people', because they’re always engaging and 'horoscopes', as every illustrator quite simply must have one.
The next section is 'special commissions'. This contains projects that are unique and don't necessarily fit easily into any fixed category. These are the projects I love best. Among them are ceramics for Tiffany & Co., backdrops for a photoshoot for Martha Stewart Weddings, and drawings on napkins for a charity exhibition.
'books' features all the large publishing projects I've worked on, from the detailed illustrations throughout the River Cottage everyday cookbook, to the many children's books I've illustrated, finishing with my book covers for various international novels.
I've been making maps for many years, almost from the beginning of my career, and the 'map' section shows a highlight of the various kinds: 'large scale' shows maps that are close-up and detailed, with road names and exact locations. 'small scale' tends to be maps of large areas, or whole countries, where capturing the atmosphere is most important. 'Penline' shows maps with a looser line, in a more graphic style, while 'concept' features more unusual maps, with a specific angle.
'editions' showcases my art prints: etchings (of ceramics and travel), Japanese woodblock prints, lithographs, and also a small selection of my medium-format photographs.
The section entitled 'personal work' shows the more intimate side of what I do. Sketchbooks are my constant companions, where all that I see and think are noted for future reference. 'things I've made' are objects I create, decorate and make interesting, 'greetings cards' is where I show the special cards I've designed, while 'exhibitions' contains photographs of the shows I've had of my work.
'about' tells you a little about me (you can see what I look like too), 'clients' is a list of some of the people I've worked for, and 'contact' tells you how you can find me to tell me, well, anything you'd like really. Or better still, that you'd like to commission me for something....
Oh, there's also a discreet 'links' button at the bottom of the page to let you know other websites I like.
