Here are a freelance illustrator and travel sketcher, who’s got old monuments and other tourist spots literally on his fingertips. No, he doesn’t use a camera for this but relies on his incredible sketching prowess. He sketches them on miniature cards with pen markers with such accuracy that you can actually hold the card against the monument and compare all the details.
This Australian illustrator is Maxwell Tilse from Sydney, who’s on a backpacking adventure through Europe and is currently based in London. His claim to fame is his freehand sketches that are completely hand drawn and not digitally manipulated.
This 23-year-old illustrator is passionate about art and travel. Says he, “Travel and art are my greatest pleasures and over the past year I’ve been able to fund my travel through art.” He creates small 5 by 5-inch drawings of each city he visits. This way, he documents his various journeys and maintains them in his diary of sketches.
Tilse’s miniature cards showcase his detailed works that capture the diverse architecture found in various cities. He not only sketches but also provides historical facts about the subject and his relationship, if any, with that structure. He primarily works with India Ink and nib when in the studio and uses pens when out in the street.
Having spent two years in London, he has released a new series of miniature cut-out illustrations that imitate the city’s famous landmarks and oldest pubs in all their glory. On the verge of leaving London, he has this to say about this city, “London is a city packed to the brim with historical wonders that are so easy to miss or pass by unnoticed.”
He enjoys a fan following of over 65,000 on Instagram alone. His hand drawn postcards can be bought from his website and Etsy shop.
Maxwell Tilse: Website | Instagram