4 PM

A delightful pen and ink study created in 1929 and used as a full page feature in Cycling magazine. It depicts a situation familiar to all cyclists of that era, a ‘brew-up’ in the beautiful English countryside; no bottles of fizzy drink, or lukewarm water from drinking bottles for this couple, but proper tea, made from boiling water in a teapot, served in china cups and accompanied by homemade cake. Tandems were a popular form of transport at that time, but note that the woman is wearing a wedding ring – none of this partner business in Patterson’s day!

TEAS

A pen and ink drawing of a tandem couple and although undated, by the style it must have been drawn in the 1930’s when men often shared the joy of riding ‘two-up’. Patterson’s like of the outdoors and dislike of prissy cafes was well known. All the fun and discomfort of cooking a meal by an open fire is illustrated in this drawing and is a lesson of how to depict a smoking, hard to light fire, in pen and ink.

RECORD BREAKER AT LEVEL CROSSING

Created by Patterson in the 1930’s this undated study is in pen and wash. It depicts a scene well known to long distance record breakers when a ride through the night was called for; the main gate is closed to motor traffic but the rider is able to use the pedestrian gate at the side and keep the delay to a minimum. It is a closely observed piece of work, anyone who has ridden a bicycle with a fixed wheel gear will recognise the speedy method of dismounting a machine that is still moving forward under its own momentum. One can almost hear the helper shouting ‘you go through the gate and I’ll take the bike!’ The handling of pen and wash is masterly and confident, little wonder that Frank Patterson was known as the doyen of cycling artists.

IGHTHAM MOTE

Ightham Mote is a Grade 1 listed manor house built in the 14th century; Pevsner described it as ‘the most complete small medieval manor house in the country’. It is owned by the National Trust who carried out a complete restoration of the building between 1988 and 2004. This drawing is considered by many to be a masterpiece of pen and ink work; Patterson’s handling of the trees and foliage is almost Japanese in feeling and his attention to the architectural detail is without equal. It was used to illustrate a travel article in the October 1931 issue of the The Motor magazine, a sister publication to Cycling in the Temple Press Group.

GOOD COMPANY

Patterson excelled in portraying night scenes. This example dated 1931 is in black wash, applied with brush and fingers; his control of the wash is superb and masterly; his finger marks can still be seen on the right-hand side of the work. In those days cyclists were “Kings of the Road”, the absence of motor traffic meant they could ride nine abreast at night to maximise the illumination of their lamps.