The Shard - 3 years to build - 18 months for me to make a collage!

Sometimes things don't come together as quickly as I'd like, and I knew making this stamp collage picture of The Shard was going to be quite a challenge.

Stamp collage of the Shard

 I didn't think it would take more than a year to complete though! I was making good progress initially, having accurately traced and enlarged one of my photos, and enjoyed the absorbing placement of the stamps as they climbed steadily up the steep sides of the tower, but then enthusiasm waned, and other interests took over, so this ambitious project was abandoned in favour of ships, cats and numerous other projects, and other trips which provided further inspiration!!

In March 2018  we enjoyed our  "View from the Shard" experience, on a clear day, with  great panoramic views  London and beyond from the 72nd   floor. I took many photos from this vantage point and one of my favourites was  the shadow of the Shard cast on the land below, with its  top just reaching the Thames!

My interpretation of  the Shard is a stamp collage using British definitives to make the numerous panes of glass in this iconic modern London building, designed  by Italian architect Renzo Piano  and completed in 2012.
London landmarks, ancient and modern appear on many British commemorative stamps and we could see the Tower of London, St Paul's cathedral, the Gerkin, the GPO Tower ,once the tallest London buildinh, but now dwarfed by later additions to the skyline, and many of the bridges over the River Thames.

Detail showing some of the landmarks on stamps

I've allowed myself a bit of artist's licence in their placement  around the Shard, including a few which can not easily be seen from here.