Photographs provide an essential component in the travelling experience.
At the outset, they offer the visual information needed to help determine if and when to visit a particular destination.
And, having done so, photographs provide a stack of memories from that visit.
So photographs, by their nature, offer a pinpoint accurate reflection of a specific shot at a precise moment in time.
Because of this they tend to leave nothing to our imagination.
The artist's approach to a scene
An artist's approach to the scene they purvey is, in contrast, a more personal perception and one that is coloured by both emotion and creative approach.
As a result, the world presented to us through the artist's eye brings with it the freedom for us bestow our own perceptions from what we see.
The portfolio of London scenes by artist Benjamin Hope enables the viewer to create a genuine appreciation of the excitement, bustle and beauty that permeates every aspect of one of the world's great cities.
Round about route from the City to the city streets
I remember, as a lad, quizzing my father, a second generation journalist, as to whether I should follow him into the profession.
His advice was emphatic. "If you are destined to be a journalist you will need to write, whatever I say".
For my father, putting pen to paper was just that (or rattling out his words on a trusty manual typewriter).
How times have changed.
And so, after a couple of successful but ultimately unrewarding careers, my need to write could no longer be suppressed and journalism came to the fore.
Benjamin's round about route
The same applied to Benjamin Hope who took an unconventional route to his destined calling as an artist
The son of artist Jane Hope, Benjamin grew up surrounded by her creative endeavours and influences.
And that may be why he felt the need to initially buck the trend and opt for maths and physics at university
A City quant
Achieving a PhD from Cambridge, Benjamin went to work as a 'quant' in the City of London, using his skills to build models of risk for a loan portfolio.
What may have been financially lucrative was creatively unfulfilling, and Benjamin knew he would return to the artistic fold as soon as he had accrued the resources to do so.
Opting for life of an artisan
In 2011, Benjamin's bank balance gave him the breathing space to give up the City and embark on life as an artisan - specialising in city and landscapes, still-life and portraits.
Within two years, his Teacups in the Financial Times had been selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition - a pinnacle of artistic achievement.
Benjamin has also had work selected for annual shows by the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, the Royal Society of British Artists, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, and the New English Art Club.
His portfolio of work depicting London street scenes and landscapes (some of which is shown here) offers a personal and evocative reflection on the Capital.
Hottinger Art
Ben Hope was selected to be the first featured artist for Hottinger Art, a unique w venture launched by a private wealth management group with a history of supporting the arts going back to the eighteenth century.
Hottinger Group, based in St. James's Park, London, will be supporting emerging British and Irish artists through a combination of acquisitions, promotion through its Featured Artist scheme, awards and funding of bursaries.
Lucy Carmody, Director of Hottinger Art and Head of Business and Operations at the Group, says 'We are excited to be working with our partners in the art world such as Mall Galleries and Heatherley's School of Fine Art to build a structure which can identify and support artists such as Benjamin, who are yet to fully establish themselves but display huge potential in their work.'