When Yard from The Vintage Drum Yard in Essex contacted me to ask if I was able to paint a drum head, without even thinking I immediately said "Of course I can!" Then as soon as I'd put the phone down, I googled "drum head" to see what I'd let myself in for. It turns out that a drum head is the drum that faces outwards at the front of a drum kit, usually with the name of the band on it - the most famous example which most people will know is The Beatles.

Yard asked me to try and replicate a vintage landscape design from a 1920's Ludwig drum head (scroll down to the bottom to see a photograph). In the 1920s and 30s, many swing band drum heads were painted with beautiful, intricate hand-painted designs, and it was a highly specialised job which only a few artists were trained to do. It was a challenge, but I think I did a pretty good job.

A Ludwig drum set from 1929