Philip Hawkins: Memories of the Steam Age!

Philip Hawkins: Memories of the Steam Age!

The 2020 Railway Supply magazine covers featured paintings of British artist Philip Hawkins. He is one of the leading modern artists with a focus on rail transport. For almost 40 years the artist has been depicting historical rolling stock: famous steam locomotives and the first diesel locomotives.

Philip Hawkins reproduces pictures from his childhood – the 50s of the last century – when he lived near the large railway junction of the industrial center of Great Britain, Birmingham. The railroad passed near his house and the trains could be observed from the window.

The artist’s great-grandfather was an engine driver with fifty years of experience on the railway between 1880 and 1930. Philip’s father took young boy to show him the depot where he had worked. To see if they could visit other depots, Philip and his friends were catching a trains from a local station, keeping it in a secret from their parents. Later this interest developed into train-spotting and travel to all parts of the country visiting engine sheds and stations with camera.

After graduating from the Birmingham College of Art and Design, he worked as an illustrator at a rolling stock factory. Subsequently he tried himself as a newspaper photographer. But the passion for the railway did never leave him, and in 1978 he decided to devote himself entirely to art.

On the artist’s realistically depicted paintings we can see shrouded in smoke and steam locomotives, station buildings, signaling devices, bridges and viaducts. In Great Britain, the birthplace of rail transport, preserving this historical heritage is very popular. There is a Railway Artists Guild and Philip Hawkins is one of its founders and leaders. The purpose of the guild is to introduce certain quality standards for the railway artists.

These days the works of Philip Hawkins are being sold for thousands of pounds. It takes an average of 6 to 12 weeks to create each painting. The work consists of several stages: visiting the area, creating essays and descriptions. Author uses reference books because the pictures reproduce very accurate details including the train number, the features of the route and the type of cargo. Philip also has his personal photo archive.

There are enough orders. The artist has about 200 works. They are published in books, magazines, calendars, greeting cards. The artist works with such well-known companies as the operator of high-speed passenger trains Eurostar and the freight operator Freightliner.

The artist admits that he does not like to paint impeccably clean and shining locomotives. He depicts rail vehicles with scuffs, rust and oil stains. “I grew up in an era when steam locomotives were dirty and stained in operation, and this is what I prefer to reproduce,” told Philip Hawkins to Railway Supply magazine.

There were six magazine covers illustrated with the following Philip Hawkins’ paintings:

• St Pancras Departure
• The White Rose
• Storm Over Dainton
• Making Up Time
• Euston Next Stop
• Gateshead Winter

The other Philip Hawkins paintings can be found on his personal website http://www.philipdhawkins.co.uk

Railway magazine “Railway Supply”

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