Inspiration for SEETHING LANE
The inspiration for Seething Lane comes partly from the many great comic strips, graphics novels, films, games and books I have enjoyed over the years but primarily the driving force is the wonderful Diary of 17th century London Bureaucrat Samuel Pepys
SAMUEL PEPYS Samuel Pepys (23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man. Although Pepys had no maritime experience, he rose by patronage, hard work and his talent for administration, to be the Chief Secretary to the Admiralty under both King Charles II and subsequently King James II.
His influence and reforms at the Admiralty were important in the early professional-isation of the Royal Navy. The detailed private diary Pepys kept from 1660 until 1669 was first published in the 19th century, and is one of the most important primary sources for the English Restoration period. It provides a combination of personal revelation and eyewitness accounts of great events, such as the Great Plague of London, the Second Dutch War and the Great Fire of London. Courtesy of Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Pepys |   |
DYSTOPIA & NOIR The dark city, the lonely figure against the mist, the rebel in the shadows, the automoton breaking his programming, the ghost in the machine; all are part of the long tradition of media (anti) heroes.
The 'down-and-dirty' megalopolis, deco grandeur, gothic mystery and utilitarian isolation have featured in many creations. SEETHING LANE follows in an epic tradition that encompasses everything from literature to online gaming. The list is extensive and we can reference such works as Gothic Romance (Shelly, Stoker, Angela Carter, Orwell), Architecture (Gill, Pugin, Speer) and film (Lang, Wiene, Scott). In the contemporary digital world we see video games such as Bioshock, ECO and many others exploring this genre and iconography. Add to that stunning ., As sub-genres we can reference the whole Film-Noir movement, Existentialist literature and TV Dramas such as The Prisoner and the art of Edvard Munch.
Finally and most 'contemporary' we we can can see Samuel in the frame of political bloggers. It is not unreasonable to see Samuel's spititual godfather: Samuel Pepys in a modern setting as the great progenitor of the 'mole' within the political strangle-hold; The 'Whistle-Blower', the one lone voice within 'The System'. |
ILLUSTRATORS A fan of Graphic Novels and 'adult-orientated' comic strip art my whole life there are many and varied influences on my work.
However, a few names that I would single out for praise are Mike Mignola, creator of HellBoy amongst many other things and Gabriel Ba, illustrator of Umbrella Academy and Daytripper. These are two contemporary artists but other influences come from way back; John Tenniel, famously illustrator of Alice in Wonderland and the work of William Heath Robinson. While best known for his drawings of bizarre creations/contraptions, his body of work includes many exquisite and stylish illustrations. |
There are many analogies and parallels to the world of SEETHING LANE; if you have any ideas, thoughts or images you would like to contribute, please contact me and inject more DNA into this strange (and yet familiar) world.
