A live illustration drawn in real time during Prof. Chris Lintott's talk about Why Pluto is not a Planet at Gresham College in London, June 2026

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@joanna-bucur
A live illustration drawn in real time during Prof. Chris Lintott's talk about Why Pluto is not a Planet at Gresham College in London, June 2026
Thank you for travelling with Woman in Time! © Joanna Bucur 2026
I had this idea to try a new technique for me - pencil, liner, pencil, ink - just to see what kind of texture and finish it would create.
And when it comes to finding objects to draw, nothing inspires me more than scrolling through online museum collections. This time I chose this beautiful Moche Warrior Pot (200-600 CE) from the British Museum collection. I've always been drawn to South American history, artefacts and visual culture, so I'll take any excuse to learn more about it through drawing.
The technique itself was ... interesting. In the end, I don't think it worked quite as well as I hoped - the ink doesn't glide very smoothly over coloured pencil, which makes it difficult and uneven to colour in. Still, that's part of the process, and experimentation is half the fun of sketchbook practice anyway. Every drawing teaches you something.
What do you think? Have you ever tried layering ink over coloured pencil before?
These are my entries for the Platforma BD: International Cluj Comics, Illustration and Animation Festival. A friend sent me the open call and since I already had the work that fit in with the theme, I said, why not. I was very happy to find this festival and space that celebrates comics creativity in Romania, and one in the city of my birth (!) The festival is in its second edition and I hope there will be more to come.
The works reflect on the transition of women across time, from being considered inferior to their male counterparts until self-possession. The illustrations trace the lives of women in London, starting from Roman Britain to the present (just like my Woman in Time comic), through a continuous visual and emotional thread, positioning progress not as a singular moment but as a collective journey.
Structured as three composite images, each scene centers on pairs of women moving through the streets of their respective eras, emphasising companionship, continuity and shared experiences. The repeated act of walking becomes both a narrative device and a metaphor. Initially marked by fear and restriction, it gradually transitions to deliberate unified movement forward towards collective resistance and individual self-determination.
Visual explorations for my upcoming comic Woman in Time, showing the surprising ways women have left their mark in history:
Around 40,000–12,000 years ago, humans left handprints on cave walls, which we think signified ritual, communication, or identity. These were long assumed to be the marks of male hunters, but later analysis of finger length ratios suggested that many of these handprints were in fact made by women.
In Ancient Egypt, women played a vital role in agriculture and food production, working in the fields, grinding grain and brewing beer, all of which underpinned a healthy economy. Wealthier women could also oversee household resources and staff, managing estates that fed into the broader economic life of their communities.
In Ancient China, women often prepared everything needed for tea gatherings in the home, from food to the careful setting of the space. While formal tea ceremonies were usually led by men, women’s unseen labour shaped the social rituals that held their communities together.
In Roman Londinium, people literally left their mark through graffiti carved and scratched into walls and plaster. Inscriptions show that women as well as men participated in this everyday writing culture, quietly proving their presence and literacy in the city.
During the Ancient Maya civilisation, women of high status took part in bloodletting rituals, piercing soft parts of the body such as the tongue as an offering to the gods. These ceremonies were central to religious and political life, and women’s participation placed them at the heart of sacred authority.
In the Renaissance, elite women used their social skills, letters, salons and patronage to influence powerful men and shape politics, art and ideas behind the scenes. Their networks and reputations became another way to leave a mark on history, even when official records tried to overlook them.
Enslaved women on plantations used songs as a way to endure backbreaking work, to share stories and to pass on culture to their children. Work songs and lullabies became quiet acts of resistance, preserving identity and helping to sustain the spirit of rebellion against enslavement.
Women stood together to demand the vote, organising marches, petitions and acts of civil disobedience for women’s suffrage. Their collective, peaceful resistance changed laws and redefined who counted as a citizen.
During the Second World War, women drove ambulances, often in dangerous conditions, bringing the wounded to hospital and keeping emergency services running. They developed advanced driving, mechanical and first-aid skills, proving that women belonged on the front lines of public life as well as on the home front.
Today, women leave their mark in STEM, from coding and engineering to medicine and climate science, reshaping the world we live in. Their discoveries and inventions are part of a long, often hidden history of women changing the future.
A quick character research sketch. I love the red orange/blue coloured pencil combo!
A drawing of the Thai inspired, Soho based delicious restaurant Kiln, for The Hungry Society. We came, we ate, we savoured!
A shoe repair shop front in Broadstairs
A steamy bowl of ramen in good company
A Brief History of Information Access (a.k.a. Gossip, Glyphs & Google) From grunts and gossip to group chats and Google, here’s how humans have passed on info through the ages, all illustrated by a history-obsessed cartoonist (that’s me), because memes aren’t that different from medieval manuscripts.
I've been hinting and quietly working on a project for the past few months and now I am finally ready to talk about it!
Please join me as I am debuting my upcoming comic called Woman in Time. It's a graphic exploration of daily life through the eyes of twelve women in twelve different eras across the history of our humanity.
From flint to phone in one common thread I am aiming to fill in that part of history that has been overlooked until how. That part that looks at what women have been doing with their time since humans have been humans, because they've always been 50% of the population and we already know very well what men have been up to!
I'll post the comic in here once it launches (don't worry, you'll hear about it), and if you're interested in seeing more backstage stuff, I have a Substack page you can subscribe to! If you like the idea and want to support it by buying me a coffee, that's also very much appreciated!
Thanks for travelling with Woman in Time!
I give you a toast, ladies and gentlemen May this fair land we love so well In dignity and freedom dwell
Though worlds may change and go awry While there is still one voice to cry
Freedom remains
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This week, we celebrate 80 years since VE Day - the end of the Second World War in Europe. We remember the 85 million people, both military and civilians, who died during the global conflict.
Today we stand to maintain the same values they fought for: peace, freedom and equality without discrimination.
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Excerpt above from the song "There'll Always Be an England" by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I had the honour of being i volved in an amazing project called Auto Amor - Art without Labels.
Along with another amazing and very talented 49 artists, we each received a wooden board to work our own individual magic, our names hidden on the back.
The launch was this past Saturday and I had a lovely time meeting mew people and seeing what everyone else has done with their boards.
You can find more about the project here:
Contemporary Sculpture & Emerging Artists
Can you guess which one is mine?
How many times can you re-draw a character?
As many as it takes. Not sure she's there yet.
This is Gwhanna from my upcoming comic, Woman in Time!
Very excited and honoured to be included in this awesome project: 50 artworks made by 50 artists, all for sale without a name label!
More info in due course!
I am still working, slowly and whenever I can at my upcoming comic - Woman in Time. ⏰
This is the first character (out of 12). Her name is Gwhanna, and she's a pretty badass Stone Age lady who knows her way around healing plants and makes sure everyone has something to eat. 💪
It took me a while to finalise the style of drawing for this comic. I got pretty far into creating all the characters until I decided to scrap all the work and simplify everything.😳 I love how the first version of the character came out, but unfortunately, it just doesn't work.
I think it's a good drawing, but sometimes you have to take a step back and look at the greater picture. With this, I will continue work until I can launch it and show you everything!
Pedal-powered art delivery! 🚲🎨
The sketch kinda stole the show (it just spoke to me more), but I’m rolling with it. Spring is on the way, the days are getting longer, and watercolour joy is in full bloom. Nothing like good light and good vibes to draw out the best of the season!