A Cheshire House Portrait

In the summer of 2016 Mark & Donna Thatcher commissioned the artist, Pete Chapple to produce a watercolour painting of their home in Tiverton, near Tarporley. It was purchased in a state of some disrepair and extensive plans were drawn up to renovate the property.

To look at it now, the change is remarkable. It has been transformed.

The brief was to capture the property in its finished state, including the garden as well as the house. In addition, Pete wanted to capture it in its original state as well. The two pieces of artwork next to each other really highlight the difference in the ‘before’ and the ‘after’.

The Process

Pete starts by visiting the location to gather photographs and preliminary sketches.

“You can get a much better feel for the place by physically visiting the subject than just by looking at photographs. As with all of my work, I try and convey a sense of the atmosphere and ‘feel’ of the place - I’m trying to tell a story of what it is like to be stood viewing the property through the painting.”

Mark and Donna were asked about the main features that they wanted to incorporate within the painting. This gave Pete a good idea as to what they were looking for and how the finished piece would look. The photo that he used for the final piece was actually one that Mark had taken previously which included more of the garden (pictured above). One distinctive feature is the fox and hare which have been sculpted into the thatch right at the top of the house - this had to be quite visible. The colour in the garden was to be exaggerated slightly from the photograph but not to over-do it. 

The finished piece (pictured right) captures both the house and the garden in the same painting. The property has the appearance of the typical english country cottage with colour and areas of interest in the garden.

Upon receiving the finished painting, Mark and Donna commented. “After a few months, Pete showed us his work and we were delighted with it! He managed to capture a snapshot of our home that we will treasure for years to come. It has added significance due to the amount of work that we have put into it since we bought it.”

The ‘before’ painting (pictured above)  was a piece that Pete wanted to paint for himself. Instead of depicting the whole property, he was given a photograph of just a small section of it looking over the front door up to the roof. Usually, taking photographs directly into the sunlight is to be avoided but in this instance it works well. The bright sunlight creates huge contrast between light and shade making for a striking painting. Pete states that he was able to be a little more relaxed in my approach, less worried about the details and so was able to paint with a lot more freedom which comes across in the finished piece.

Mark & Donna also commissioned a winter scene to be used as a Christmas card. Created from the photo that Pete worked from for the original but with a touch of artistic license. The trees lost their leaves and a thick blanket of snow was applied not forgetting the smoke from the chimney. The lights on in the lounge created the impression of a very cosy looking house amid the cold winter conditions on the outside. The finished result is a much lighter and sparse painting given the season compared to the summer scene.