THE LION & THE MOUSE
How was I paying the rent? Here’s a two-page spread from my freelance job illustrating children’s books for a Turkish outfit: The Lion & the Mouse, retold to teach English to children. Author Kieran McGovern & I recently made all these books available, free, at Tall Tales, http://esolebooks.com
PRETTY ECE
Ece Karakuş of Mira Yayıncılar (Publishing) who published my first book, Drawing On Istanbul/Istanbul Izleri. We made 13 or 14 children’s books together.
SPHENDONE HOBBIT DOOR
Cute, eh? It leads into the Hippodrome: a cavernous series of bricked alcoves floored with water, where the History Channel went in by canoe. Sphendone is the proper term for the vast rounded bulkead of the Hippodrome, facing the sea.
MAIR & THE MARMARA
The view from Gurhan’s Terrace – Marmara Sea — Mair from Macedonia – Bus to Bulgaria 10/20/04 — I never met anyone who more wanted his picture drawn —- [His signature] This guy was a great help to me – speaking English – a dreadful trip where they didn’t want to let me OUT of Turkey, let alone back in—— He and his friend were going to Macedonia. He loved this picture, took it with him on his Smartphone.
WINDY NIGHT MOON
The moon was a ghostly galleon – Tossed upon cloudy seas… —–Out on the balcony, and the night evoked the opening lines of Tennyson’s The Highwayman. Oh yes.
OLD STORY TAKE ONE
Take one on “Old Sultanahmet House” scrapped for bad perspective…3 hours in (sigh)—–
OLD STORY
Finally, after false starts and a lot of scratching on paper, I was learning to draw this stuff. I sat on a stoop across the narrow street and got this in about four hours. No white-out. That wire running across the windows is exactly as drawn, plain air, in ink. Ha!
NARGILE & KID
“Wow, what a cool pipe!” “This is MY PIPE.” “It was made in IRAN” – Çorlülü Ali Paşa Medrese – Beyazit – 16 October 2004 – 270 years old – 2nd day of RAMAZAN —-Sercan Demir——Some critic at Kybele said this kid looked kitsch. I guess so. The work In this book is really uneven, but I was getting there.
THE VANISHED LOBBY
The Pera Palas Lobby, 16 September- December 2004. This 11-hour drawing took forever because of all the fascinating distracting people I met——One session there was a wedding, and guests came out to chat, bringing wine which I couldn’t drink but deeply appreciated. The lobby has since been redecorated but is still grand. Our mustachioed friend has retired.
ATATURK SAT HERE
Pera Palas – 7 Oct 04——These chairs have been recovered now in something pale, but Ataturk’s uniform, hat, rug and tapestry are all here in his suite in the Pera Palace.