I went to Bolton at the weekend to see the Wanderers play host to Shrewsbury Town. As I approached the stadium I saw a man sat on the floor with a sketch pad, he was drawing the magnificent Stadium, formerly known as the Reebok stadium, but after several changes of sponsor is now the Toughsheet Community Stadium.
Meet Steve, who described himself as an urban sketcher. He showed me some of his work in his book. Several drawings of the stadium and places in and around Bolton. In fact Steve had done a sketch during a match earlier in the season, a 4-0 home defeat to Huddersfield ..”There was nothing positive on the pitch for the Wanderers”, so he decided to sketch the scene from his seat. Steve has a relative on the groundstaff at Bolton, so sometimes gets a free ticket. If he gets a freebie he tends to sketch before the match, but if he goes with mates he tends to go for a drink rather than sketch.
We discussed the materials he uses and the techniques for those materials. I told Steve I was an amateur photographer and painted with light rather than pen, ink, pencil and water.
I asked Steve for a photo and he agreed. It was a bright and sunny day and their was no shade anywhere close to us. It was not ideal conditions for a portrait and the background was very busy, but I did my best job.
Thanks for letting me photograph you Steve, good luck with your sketches.
As for the match, a 2-2 draw, the Wanderers were far too slow to start the game and only started playing with intensity when we were 2 nil down.
We passed the Reebok…..always that to me, I can’t get used to these name changes! Anyway I thought if you as we drive to the airport! Great portrait of painter Steve, both illustrators in your own way.
Fav. Steve looks live and not on the screen. I feel lie trying to touch him, he looks so much alive. Brilliant portrait shot of him, Phil. At least Bolton got a draw being 2 goals behind.
@happypat thanks Pat, the stadium does look good from the motorway
@beverley365 thanks beverley , it was very bright conditions