Weds 4 May. Right in the throbbing heart of the City financial centre is St Michael. Parked the hire bike behind the Bank of England and walked past Mansion House, the Royal Exchange and down Cornhill. All that can be seen from the road is the north door which looks like a Victorian addition. But the tower soaring above the shops and offices gives the church's heritage away. I walked through the maze of alleys around the church, past city boys getting their lunchtime pints and found the garden round the back. The Jamaica Wine House has a plaque saying it is the site of the oldest coffee house in London, date around 1670. So maybe Wren popped into this brand new retail concept as he was surveying the building works. London was rebuilt very quickly after the fire and I imagine the burst of energy and optimism made it a very exciting place to be.
I could just get far enough away from the church to make it worthwhile drawing, though much of Wren's design was obscured by fence, trees and shrubbery. However, Thomas Hosmer Shepherd, who drew the picture below, must have sat in almost exactly the same spot in 1830.
Brief history: "The Church, with the exception of the tower, was completely destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. The present Church was rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren between 1669 and 1672. The tower was rebuilt in the ‘Gothick’ style between 1718 and 1722, the work being commenced by Wren and completed by Nicholas Hawksmoor." The Victorians then did a lot of work inside, so Wren's hand is harder to detect here than some other churches.
Lovely warm day, didn't feel under pressure, so I tried to be less obsessive about plotting out the perspective. Looking back on it now, I like the looser relaxed feel, but the tower has ended up looking much taller than it really is. wanted to draw the fence in with a heavy line but Beckie rang up to say I was needed back at the office. Quite like the way it's ended up though.
Two hours, liked the thinner steel nib, sat on pavement in a quiet corner with all sorts of financial conversations going on around. Great to be back on the project.
Bit more history here
Map
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