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DLDowardart

Illustrations, paintings, design and photography - looking for the extraordinary in the ordinary.

05/05/2026

A little light bedtime reading for graphic design nerds like me. 100 posters that changed the world by Colin Salter, some absolute bangers in here. Hoping to get inspiration for some new material.

28/03/2026

My latest print, The Old Post Office in Thelwall.

This one has taken a while to complete, mainly due to all the many leaves and little details but I’m happy with how the finished illustration has turned out.

It’s my first Thelwall print and hopefully there will be more to come as there are some great photogenic locations for such a small village.

The picturesque cottage dates from the mid 1800s and served as the village post office and general store until its conversion to a private home in the 1990s. Situated opposite the Pickering Arms pub, the Post Office was the heart of the village for many years and legend has it that one of its most notable residents was a parrot that would shout at customers to shut the door as they entered!

Signed giclée prints are available to order in A4, A3 and A2 size. Order enquiries by DM.

18/03/2026

This latest illustration of the old Post Office in Thelwall is starting to take shape now.

I’m sometimes asked about what’s involved in creating my prints so here’s a little explanation of the process.

The first stage involves drawing what’s known as a Vector illustration. Using a reference photo as guidance each shape is painstakingly drawn individually. In a complex piece, for example one with lots of leaves or bricks, this can mean making thousands of node points to create the shapes. I add colour next and the shapes are built up in layers to give depth and create perspective. My illustrations are never intended to be photo realistic, my interpretations aim to capture the atmosphere of a particular moment in time which hopefully will evoke feelings that resonate with the viewer.

Each piece can take days to complete before going to print. And even then if certain colours don’t print exactly as I intended I’ll tweak and amend and send it off again until I’m happy to put my name to the finished print.

In this age of Ai generated images I’m occasionally asked do I ever use it? - the answer is no, absolutely not! For me the thrill is to hand create my interpretation of a subject always looking for the extraordinary in the ordinary. Once that thrill goes I think it’s time to pack it in.

12/02/2026

On the eve of the new Rugby League Super League season I think it’s a good time to share my ‘Wire’ print featuring the Warrington and Australian legend Brian Bevan.

Bevan score an incredible 796 career tries and he is the only rugby league player to feature in both the English and Australian Halls of Fame.

I was too young to see Brian Bevan play, although my Dad often regaled me with tales of his try scoring exploits in the 50s and 60s.

My childhood hero was his namesake, the Welsh winger John Bevan who terrorised defences in the 70’s and celebrated each try with his arm raised high in the air just before he touched down.

At the start of each season there’s always that eager anticipation that this could be ‘our year’ and this years opening game against neighbours St Helens is already a sell out. It’s been a long wait for Warrington, so long that Brian Bevan was playing in that 1955 Wire team that last won the Rugby League Championship trophy.

Will 2026 finally be our year? Of course it will, it’s always our year. As my dad used to shout from the old Wilderspool terraces, ‘Now the Wire’!

Signed giclée prints of the illustration are available in A4, A3 and A2 sizes.

01/02/2026

The Bolt of Lightning sculpture, Burtonwood.

My latest print features the sculpture, ‘Bolt of Lightning’ that stands on the site of the old RAF Burtonwood airbase.

It’s estimated that around 50,000 US personnel passed through Burtonwood in its lifetime. It became home to thousands of American families who were stationed at the site just to the north of Warrington. I wonder how many hundreds of local women met their future American husbands at one of the local dance halls and became what was known at the time as ‘GI Brides’?

The sculpture stands 22.5m tall and is situated close to the site of the old runway. It features a US Lockheed P-38F fighter plane soaring skyward and honours all the personnel that were based at Burtonwood airbase.

I’ve done a nightime and daytime version of this illustration and signed giclée prints are available in A4, A3 and A2 sizes.

Please drop me a DM to place an order.

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