Five things about London.
London is a big, important, interesting, popular, exciting, place.
I was born and brought up here as well. That’s why I paint pictures of London.
LONDON SKYLINE
Here are a few things from Wikepedia about London.
London is Big.
Its estimated mid-2015 municipal population (corresponding to Greater London) was 8,673,713, the largest of any city in the European Union.
The city’s metropolitan area is one of the most populous in Europe with 13,879,757 inhabitants, while the Greater London Authority states the population of the city-region (covering a large part of the south east) as 22.7 million.
More than 300 languages are spoken in the region. The 2011 census showed that 36.7 per cent of Greater London’s population were born outside the UK.
London is Important.
London is a leading global city, in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism, and transport. It is one of the world’s leading financial centres.
London’s universities form the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe, and a 2014 report placed it first in the world university rankings.
In 2008, London was named as Nylonkong, alongside New York City and Hong Kong, being hailed as the world’s three most influential global cities.
London is a major retail centre and in 2010 had the highest non-food retail sales of any city in the world, with a total spend of around £64.2 billion
London is Interesting.
London contains four World Heritage Sites: the Tower of London; Kew Gardens; the site comprising the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and St Margaret’s Church; and the historic settlement of Greenwich (in which the Royal Observatory, Greenwich marks the Prime Meridian, 0° longitude, and GMT).
Other famous landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Paul’s Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, and The Shard.
London is home to numerous museums, galleries, libraries, sporting events and other cultural institutions, including the British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum, Tate Modern, British Library and West End theatres.
London is Popular.
London is one of the leading tourist destinations in the world and in 2015 was ranked as the most visited city in the world with over 65 million visits.
As of 2016 London is rated as the world top-ranked city destination by TripAdvisor users.
The top 10 most visited attractions were: (with visits per venue)
- The British Museum: 6,820,686
- The National Gallery: 5,908,254
- Natural History Museum (South Kensington): 5,284,023
- Southbank Centre: 5,102,883
- Tate Modern: 4,712,581
- Victoria and Albert Museum (South Kensington): 3,432,325
- Science Museum: 3,356,212
- Somerset House: 3,235,104
- Tower of London: 2,785,249
- National Portrait Gallery: 2,145,486
London is Exciting.
Leisure is major part of the London economy, with a 2003 report attributing a quarter of the entire UK leisure economy to London. Globally, the city is amongst the big four fashion capitals of the world, and according to official statistics London is the world’s third busiest film production centre, presents more live comedy than any other city, and has the biggest theatre audience of any city in the world.
There is a variety of annual events, beginning with the relatively new New Year’s Day Parade, a fireworks display at the London Eye; the world’s second largest street party, the Notting Hill Carnival, is held on the late August Bank Holiday each year. Traditional parades include November’s Lord Mayor’s Show, a centuries-old event celebrating the annual appointment of a new Lord Mayor of the City of London with a procession along the streets of the City, and June’s Trooping the Colour, a formal military pageant performed by regiments of the Commonwealth and British armies to celebrate the Queen’s Official Birthday.
Conclusion.
No wonder then that I paint pictures, and publish prints and cards, of London.
