I've been working on some sketches of the front side of manor houses to whittle down the particular shapes and features that I would want to include in the final design of my manor. Using a combination of reference images and working from my imagination, I've produced a few different versions of manor houses.
I quite like the recurring triangle forms in this one, I think the peaks feel quite intimidating. It reminds me a lot of the place that I took my horse riding lessons growing up - Lynch Farm, Orton, Peterborough. I think I will aim for the final design to have this 'large house' feel as opposed to a bigger scale castle/palace building.
Photo belongs to Michael Trolove http://www.geolocation.ws
This sketch was a rough copy of an image I found that had inspired me. However I think it doesn't quite fit in with the English setting of my story. The spires are perhaps a bit too magical looking. But I do like the look of the overgrown grass and the plants that have begun to grow in the bricks.
Photo belongs to Benjamin Weissner http://www.flickr.com/photos/benjaminwiessner/
This sketch was about getting a few ideas for features down. I think it's a bit too messy and feels like too much is compacted into the area.
This is an attempt to play with architectural features that I had seen in my reference images, and to try out combinations of these features in my own design. I think it feels a little too grand and palatial. The clock tower and the spires are reminding me of a Disney princess' palace. I would like to stick with something more like the section on the far left, not quite as fantastical.
This is more in the right direction. I like the squareness of each section of the buildings, with triangles at the top. I think keeping all the forms in the architecture angular rather than rounded will make the building colder and perhaps more intimidating. It will still be grand, but more overpowering than soft and elegant.
