| Peter Barnfield set up his own graphic design studio in 1986. Finding a ready market for a growing range of his own illustrations, pictorial maps and humorous pictures, design and advertising were soon abandoned as he concentrated on producing original artwork. In 1996 his wife Ginny joined him to create, produce and market an expanding range that had by then become known as the Steam Pencil range of cards and prints. | Greetings
Cards
The cards use real photographs taken directly from the original artwork and are mounted on 7" x 5" white cards folding open to a blank inside. They come with good quality envelopes and are individually wrapped in clear wallets. They are handmade in small quantities with usually only a few hundred of each image being produced. Cards cost £1.75 each plus postage & packing. About Whimshire |
 Whimshire
has always been an important part of Peter's work, a mythical
county the depiction of whose railways and people have long been a
source of inspiration for him. In fact the Steam Pencil range is
now largely devoted to illustrating with gentle humour the historic
heyday of its bucolic transport system, industries and of course the
people who once worked and travelled there, scenes which are far removed
from the hustle and hubris of modern life. |
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| Peter freely admits to being an admirer of the work of W Heath Robinson and Roland Emett and it is quite possible that without their pioneering work we might never have been privileged to have seen Whimshire. Whilst you can see their influence in Peter's work he has clearly established his own unique style and taken his audience into territories previously uncharted by these illustrious artistic forebears. | |
 The
Art Series of cards has more recently joined those depicting
"Whimshire", allowing Peter to further expand his creative
output to include a wider range of subjects. Giving a free rein to his
fertile imagination he has created, amongst many subjects, the
horrendous city of Barlam Gowling - complete with commuter madness,
gridlock and a busy airport. This is in many ways provides a
counterpoint to Whimshire and although the settings may look dated many
of the themes will be all too familiar.... |
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| A highly accomplished photographer, Peter thankfully took the trouble to travel widely back in the 1960s to experience and record the changing railway scene. This has resulted in his work, both written and photographic, appearing in a number of published works and articles over the years. An example of one of Peter's more artistic photographs can be seen HERE, a highly individualistic and striking image of the steam railway in the depths of winter. | |
| The subjects that Peter chooses to depict, whilst being whimsical and even at times fantastic, all seem to me to possess an underlying truth born from acute observation. You may find this revealed in the Portersfoote Bunting's intricacies of timetabling, its characteristic architectural detailing, its infuriating operating practices or perhaps the irascible characters who populate its platforms. The chances are that all of these things and characters have either happened or existed sometime or somewhere on the old steam railways of Britain. | |
| This truth,
born out of a deep and profound understanding and feeling for the steam
railway and the people and places that it served, coupled with his
superb artistry and technical skill, to my mind make Peter Barnfield one
of the most pre-eminent recorders of the railway age alive today. Simon Castens |
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