Artist Jason Brooks is perhaps best known for his fashion illustrations, which he regularly contributes to Vogue and Elle, but he has always been fascinated by cities. London Sketchbook is the second instalment in his series of illustrated travel books: Paris was the first and a New York book is in the pipeline.

“This is a dream publishing project for me,” Brooks says. “I’ve always loved travelling and taking my sketchbooks with me. On a subconscious level, I think I’ve been preparing for it since my art college days of travelling round Turkey or Mexico or Guatemala, producing colourful sketchbooks.”

Brooks lives in Brighton with his family but has strong ties to the capital. Born in south London, he studied at St Martin’s and the Royal College of Art and spent a good part of his 20s in Ladbroke Grove, where he got married.

“London is very much part of my psyche. Now that I live in Brighton I really appreciate coming back with fresh eyes each time I take the train to Victoria,” he says. “I think if you live in London it’s easy to become blase, because it has become so familiar, and not notice how spectacular it really is.”

With his sketches, Brooks attempts to capture the different textures and tones of the city, depicting both the landmarks and smaller, out-of-the-way sights and museums. “It was really important for the book to feel complete, but in a way it’s also about sharing my personal take on the city.” One chapter focuses on the city’s cultural institutions – from Tate Modern to the Freud Museum. As Brooks explains: “Each one I’ve chosen holds memories for me; they have a special significance.”

For each location, Brooks would identify and isolate a key feature. “It’s about communicating information: paring things to their essentials, getting a single picture to convey the atmosphere and some of the detail of the place to the reader.”

Brooks works using a variety of media: “The technique depends on what the architecture lends itself to: for the Natural History Museum I used very textured paper and soft pencils, whereas for Tate Modern I used mainly Photoshop, as it suited the industrial-looking Turbine Hall.” Although some of the finer details are added later in his studio, he always sketches on location. “It really is the only way to get that atmosphere, otherwise there’s no feeling, no life behind the illustrations. It’s so important to go there and experience the place.”

His favourite thing about London is “the sheer diversity, which can almost be quite overwhelming. But if you just delve into it and enjoy it it’s just one of the most fascinating cities – it’s got so much history and it’s evolving constantly”.

Jason Brooks’s London Sketchbook is published by Laurence King (£19.95). Click here to buy it for £15.96