Pete is engaged in creating a ‘portrait of the city’, and is making two ‘epic charcoal drawings’ which will contain 1,500 people with a connection to the ‘rich and multicultural history’ of Portsmouth spanning 2,000 years of Portsea Island life.
A statement from Pete says: ‘The first is a life-size replica of the HMS Victory Spritsail which is 17m x 10m. The second is a smaller set of Main Sails from Mary Rose which are 12m x 8m and 8x 4m. These have been carefully researched to be as realistic as possible to the 16th and 18th century sails. The drawings are done direct and free hand in charcoal and sealed into the heavy duty canvas.
’They are covered in portraits of people with a connection to the Dockyard, be it naval, military, dockyard worker or community connection to the city and its history. It uses a contemporary demographic to create a 'motley crew' for these ships. It is a massive and ambitious project and there is as much art in getting it funded and made as there is creating the drawings. There have been some delays with lockdown issues, Covid and logistics but this has added to the outreach and community awareness of the artwork and given time for more people to get involved.
‘The project is funded by a mixture of Crowdfunding, local Authority grants, local business sponsorship, donations and philanthropy. Arts Council England have helped me to reach deeper into the community for participation with the first drawing called CROWD. A separate ACE Project Grant application has been made for 'Sailing the Mary Rose' in 2023.
‘The Artist Residency is generously hosted and the studio funded in kind by the Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust.’
3. Pillar to post
Various people of Portsmouth whom Pete has drawn in his studio Photo: Habibur Rahman
