Marks of Time - A blog of sketches of historic buildings

Battersea Power Station

13/8/2026

Built as a coal fired power station in two phases, Battersea A from 1929 and 1935 and Battersea B from 1937 to 1941. the power station was finally completed in 1955. Designed by Giles Gilbert Scott, It is an iconic building along the Thames with its four chimneys at each corner ribbed like classical columns on top of an Art Deco inspired brick building. the station was decommissioned between 1975 and 1983 and lay empty, with the interior roofless, due to a halted redevelopment scheme for many years. Today it is restored with glass extensions and houses offices, bars restaurants entertainment spaces, shops and residential functions. Great to see after so many years derelict.

Southwark Cathedral, London.

12/8/2026

An Augustinian Priory from 1108 to the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538, and then a parish church until becoming a cathedral in 1905. Southwark is reputedly the earliest gothic church in London with most of its current fabric dating from the period 1220 -1420. Today, it is an oasis of calm amid the encroachment of the modern city- as represented in this drawing by Renzo Piano's 17 floor 'News Building' of 2014 at 3 London Bridge.

The Guildhall, London

11/8/2026

Facing a courtyard, the Guildhall - which became the town hall of the City of London Corporation, was built during the 15th century replacing an earlier hall of the 12th century. Damaged in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and renovated again in the 1870S when the front projection was added, the building was again damaged in the Blitz and restored in the 1950's with modernist additions. Still the ceremonial centre if 'The City' it is a fascinating remnant within the modern metropolis.

Landward defences, Valetta.

9/8/2026

The landward defences of Valletta, with a complex arrangement of bastions and outer bastions or 'counterguards' commenced in 1640 after the original construction of the 1566-70 city walls. The bastion in the foreground with the bartizan sentinel post is called the St James Bastion with the St James Counterguard in front. The building with the flag is the Central Bank of Malta. This dates from 1924 and was originally opened as the Vernon Institute. It became the premises of the bank in 1968.

Lower Barraka Gardens, Valetta.

8/8/2026

An oasis of green away from the busy Valetta streets which overlooks the sea from a high vantage point. In the centre is a neoclassical temple. This was built in 1810 to commemorate Sir Alexander Ball, who Malta's first British civil commissioner.

Merchants Street, Valetta, Malta.

6/8/2026

A very typical street within the historic town of Valetta. Grid iron plan, steep street all buildings built with the local stone.. Apartments of the same height with timber enclosed balconies. Ecclesiastical buildings breaking the building line as monuments. The grid plan for the city was laid out by the Knights of St John from 1566 onwards after the destruction caused by the Ottoman siege of Malta in 1565.

Valetta World Heritage Site

5/8/2026

The city of Valetta viewed from the Sliema ferry terminal is a complete whole with its medieval skyline intact. Modern buildings are interspersed with the old, but use of the local stone and strict height limits have maintained a character of world heritage importance.

Summerhouse behind Christainsfeld Museum

2/8/2026

This cross axial view shows the rear of the former communal sister house (now the museum) in Christiansfeld. A fountain can be seen on axis in the courtyard.

Christiansfeld , Denmark

1/8/2026

The church in Christiansfeld, occupies a central position in this ideal religious settlement of the Moravian Church. Central Chrisiansfeld is bisected by this building with the cupola and fountain in front on the axis. Inside, the building is white and simple. The village is part of the Moravian Church Settlements World Heritage Site.

Odense, Denmark.

31/7/2026

Hans Jensens Strade A street of preserved historic houses and shops beside what was a former dual carriageway but now greened over (2014-2022) and replaced by a tramway and a modern mixed use development which steps down to the curved building in the foreground. Behind the historic street are the modern glass pavilions of the largely subterranean Hans Christian Anderson Museum (2021). Amazing place, well worth the visit.