We hear from Deborah Panesar on the influences behind the pavilion display in St James’s Market and her personal ties to the neighbourhood. 

Nottingham-based artist Deborah Panesar has spent her career drawing on nature, history, and a little bit of magic. This festive season, her artwork brings a playful side of St James’s to life at the pavilion at St James’s Market. 

Deborah’s illustrations celebrate the neighbourhood’s best-loved sights, from the pelicans of St James’s Park to its famous Christmas window displays. For her, the project also held a personal connection as her late grandad and mum both had careers in the neighbourhood. We spoke to her about the influences behind her work, her creative process, and the family history that ties her to St James’s. 

Where creativity begins 

Before picking up a pen, Deborah does her due diligence in research first. For the pavilion artwork, this meant learning the history and importance of every corner of St James’s. 

Knowing that she was tasked with illustrating the iconic Christmas window at Paxton & Whitfield but having never shopped there before, her approach was to delve deep into the heritage of the company and the products they sell. 

“I like to fully understand the subject I’m illustrating, otherwise there is no connection and I feel that shows through the work. After sketching out rough concepts, I then began going over digitally with pen and ink brushes before colour.”

How the artwork came about 

Deborah's work is largely influenced by nature and history. “There is also something about nature that is a bit magical, and I always like to try and add an element of the mystical into my work", she explains, "I love to know where we’ve come from and how we might go forward.” Weaving that mindset into this project, her hope is that her work in St James's Pavilion will help reconnect people with a part of themselves that can be forgotten amidst busy lives in even busier cities. 

Walk through the display and a sense of quiet enchantment emerges, with a multicoloured Wishing Tree, glittering spirits, and a pelican in a scarf keeping watch over it all. These details brought their own challenges. Getting a scarf to sit correctly around a pelican’s neck was, as Deborah puts it, “always an interesting one to consider!”. Mostly, she focused on ensuring each iconic sight was drawn faithfully. “I was conscious about making sure that I illustrated each iconic St. James’s destination and sight as accurately as possible as they are beloved by locals.”

A family connection

Seeing her designs on display in St James’s Market means more to Deborah than meets the eye. Her late grandad served as a cold stream guard for 28 years, based at Wellington Barracks on Birdcage walk, and her mum worked for an architect practice on Pall Mall. 

“I know it would have made my grandad so incredibly happy and proud to have seen my work up in the streets he knew well, and I feel like I’m contributing to our joined family history of the area.”

A lasting message

Deborah hopes to leave visitors with three things: “Joy at the playful nature of festive additions, connection to the area they love, and curiosity for those who may not know the area well.”  We couldn't have put it better ourselves.

As fo Deborah's own festive plans, a visit to St James's to see her artwork is firmly on the cards, and her regular London travel partner - her mum - will be enthusiastically by her side. After witnessing the Pavilion in all its glory, they’ll pop into Fortnum & Mason for coffee, tea and sweet treats, then finish with a walk through St. James’s Park. A festive day out done right.

See it for yourself 

Deborah’s artwork is on display at the Pavilion in St James’s Market throughout the festive season, featuring the icons of our neighbourhood. On your visit, be sure to take some snaps and share them with us on Instagram - @StJamesLondon.

Looking for more ways to enjoy the festive season in St James’s? Visit our guide for food, drinks and culture under the lights to find your new favourite spot.