The New Murrey and Blue blog

Joanne Larner: Please would you provide a short introduction for those who don’t know you.

Andrew Jamieson: My name is Andrew Jamieson and for over 40 years I have been a fully trained and qualified painter of heraldry, calligrapher and traditional manuscript illuminator. In 2023 His Majesty the King asked me to design and paint his Coronation invitation.

JL: Did you always know you wanted to be an artist, growing up?

AJ: Partly. I loved ships and the sea and knights in armour – I thought I would join the Royal Navy but in the end, I decided to pursue art. I had a love of ships and the sea because my uncles were in the navy but I loved the colour of chivalry and watched films at Saturday Morning Pictures. Films like the Black Shield of Falworth, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, Ivanhoe and El Cid. These films really sparked my interest in heraldry and chivalry. I wanted to be a knight when I grew up!

JL: How did you become interested in heraldry and coats of arms?

AJ: From the childhood love of heraldry depicted in films and going to old churches with my mum and dad, seeing illuminated manuscripts at the British Museum.

JL: How do you go about researching a coat of arms? What difficulties are involved?

AJ: I do not actually research coats of arms. People either commission new arms of ask me to paint existing arms. With the new arms I send a patron a questionnaire asking things which might be relevant in the design of new arms. For example, ethnicity, where their ancestors came from, career, religious beliefs, favourite symbols, colour and things like that.

JL: Do you just create coats of arms for existing armiger families or do you invent them if requested?

AJ: I design new ones for people who live in countries like the USA where there is no official heraldic body. In countries where there is a heraldic authority, I tend to paint existing arms. Having said that, I also work with people who want a new coat of arms granted by the authorities in England and Scotland.

JL: How do you go about illustrating a heraldic coat of arms? How long does it take, typically?

AJ: I work with traditional materials. 24c gold, calfskin vellum and I use designers’ gouache for paint. Paintings vary, they can take up to one week if they are smaller and anything up to 6 weeks if they are larger. First, I design the coat of arms on tracing paper, then once happy with it I show a drawing to the patron so that they can sign off on it. Once I have their approval, I trace the drawing onto vellum and then add any gold and burnish it. After that I paint, mostly using lighter colours first and moving to darker colour last as these are water-based paints.

JL: What is your greatest achievement as an artist?

AJ: That is a good question and not so easy to answer. I love what I do and so in that respect everything I paint tries to be better than the last thing. If I were to name a couple of commissions they would be, An illuminated poem, The Lady of Shalott. Commissioned by Sir Paul Getty KBE in 2000. He was a fine patron and very interested in what I do. The King’s Coronation invitation, just because it has become part of the history of this great nation and gave my work publicity that it would never have received and a painting I did of King Richard III for the Richard III Society. I really enjoyed painting that because of my deep interest in him as a person.

JL: What was the most difficult commission you have worked on?

AJ: From a pressure point of view, the Coronation invitation. In the end I had to mentally convince myself it was just another commission, otherwise I think the pressure would have taken a hold of me.

JL: Is there a project you would like to do in the future?

AJ: Indeed there is, in an ideal world an illuminated Ricardian prayer book and maybe another Tennyson poem as an illuminated book.

JL: You created the Richard III coat of arms for the Richard III Society – how did that come about?

AJ: I didn’t actually create the Society coat of arms; that was designed by the College of Arms in London. I wish though the society had used me to design it in conjunction with the College. I think the result may have been more pleasing!

JL: Would you consider yourself a Ricardian?

AJ: I am yes. I have been since I read Paul Murray Kendall’s book on Richard when I was 14. In fact the first money I ever made was at an AGM when I painted pebbles with the shields of Richard and his knights, aged 15.

JL: What is your opinion of Richard III?

AJ: A much-maligned monarch. Victors write the history and slant it in their favour. I do not think he was a saint, by any means, but neither was he the character portrayed by Shakespeare. He was very much a man of his time and they were violent times. I believe he was a pious, Christian prince who ruled fairly and had he won at Bosworth this country would be a very different place today.

JL: If you could go back in time to visit Richard III, what would you say to him? (Question or advice).

AJ: I would say, be not too trusting of those you think your allies.

JL: If you couldn’t be an artist for some reason, what other career would you like to follow?

AJ: Something outside and adventurous – a motor yacht skipper perhaps, as I love the sea.
 

Here is a link to Andy Jamieson’s website

You can also follow him on Instagram