“45 drawings were published over 16 days. John chose this because it was so heavily reported in the media. He researched particular cases, one being the Soham murder trials in which Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr were tried and eventually convicted. Prior to his career as an illustrator and lecturer, John worked as a clerk for solicitors, so for his PhD subject he chose to focus on one of the few places the worlds of law and art intersect. “She renders the whole courtroom to the edges of the page, showing urgency and speed.” Siân learned the trade from her father, also a courtroom artist, while Julia apparently trained by drawing portraits in nightclubs. “Courts are very still places,” he describes, “it’s better for memory, lawyers can recite their lines.” By contrast, Siân Frances’ drawings are more conventionally illustrative, as she uses pencil lines and washes of watercolour – “also a skill to do so quickly,” says Katie. “Julia chooses to focus on one or two of the key characters while the background fades out,” says Katie, “like she’s focusing on the key detail of a memory.” John Hewitt, an illustrator and senior lecturer in illustration with animation at Manchester School of Art, who did a PhD in the subject of courtroom sketches, says Julia and Elizabeth’s styles are equally fitting of the in-court atmosphere. In contrast, Julia Quenzler and Elizabeth Cook’s drawings, also pastel, are more static. One had long sideburns so I wrote Elvis, one was skinny so I wrote ‘skeleton man’, for others I wrote ‘potato nose’ or ‘fried hair’ or for another, I wrote the name of an ex-boyfriend he reminded me of! People’s faces are fascinating.” Once I had to draw a line of airline hijackers, and they all had black hair but different hairstyles. “You forget the details so you have to write something that will trigger your memory. “It’s as if you’re memorising for a test,” she tells It’s Nice That. Priscilla has countless anecdotes about the mad scramble to make her work, often under almost comically difficult circumstances. In the context of such horrific crimes, a recounting of the artist’s working day makes for brilliantly light relief. Her portfolio features depictions of Rose and Fred West, Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr, Barry George and Harold Shipman for ITN, Channel 4 and others. With newspapers wanting to show the inner workings of courts more heavily on their pages, Priscilla took a chance commission from ITN to draw the Jeffrey Archer libel case, and hasn’t looked back since. Her mother was a fashion illustrator, another industry trained in high-speed draftsmanship, and she grew up “seeing artists depict the Watergate hearings”. Priscilla Coleman has been doing this job since the 80s, when she moved over from the US following a career as an art director with ad agencies and print companies. To make their artworks, they take written notes during the case, before running outside to the press room to draw and paint as fast as possible, usually with an hour or two deadline to make it to their client, the publisher or broadcaster. So these artists not only have to be expertly skilled portraitists but also have elephant-like memories for faces and spaces. What most people don’t realise is that drawing in court – or making an image of any kind, be that a photograph, doodle or otherwise – is illegal in British courts. If you’ve read a newspaper at some point in your life, you’ve most likely seen the work of one of these four women, and would recognise the style anywhere: busy, emotive and dynamic, all for good reason.
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