Custom engraved tile portraits of historic homes, created from present-day photography, family photographs, architectural clues, and careful artistic reconstruction.
I create each piece personally for local homeowners. The example shown here demonstrates the idea: one engraved portrait of an earlier chapter in a home's history, paired with a smaller portrait of the home as it appears today.
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For many Southport homes, the most interesting story is the relationship between the house people know today and the house as it may have appeared years—or generations—earlier.
An artistic rendering of an earlier appearance of your home. Whenever possible, I work from old family photographs or other visual evidence. When photographs do not exist, I can develop a carefully considered AI-assisted reconstruction using the home's architecture, documented changes, and other available references.
A companion engraving of the house as it looks now. I photograph the home myself so the finished image can be composed specifically for engraving rather than being limited by an existing snapshot.
No uploading photographs into a website and no complicated online ordering. I prefer to meet the homeowner and see the house.
The finished work is a physical engraved tile, not simply a digital image. These local examples show the level of architectural detail and character I try to preserve in each piece.
I am Drayton Hawthorne. I have lived and worked in this area for many years and have developed a particular interest in the buildings, stories, and visual history of Southport.
My tile work combines a developed fine-line engraving style with modern digital tools. For historic reconstructions, I use AI as a drawing and visualization aid—not as a substitute for evidence. Old photographs, architectural features, homeowner knowledge, and documented changes remain the most important guides.
The finished artwork is intended to be both personal and attractive: something that records the house as it stands today while also giving a thoughtful glimpse of an earlier chapter in its life.
Tell me a little about your home. There is no obligation, and you do not need to have old photographs or know the home's full history before getting in touch.