Paint November 2006

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The Newsletter of the SAA

www.saa.co.uk

19/10/06

NOVEMBER 2006

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CONTENTS

The SAA at your service Chandy Rodgers Society Secretary and Publishing Editor PAINT

The SAA, PO Box 50, Newark, Notts NG23 5GY Tel 01949 844050 Fax 01949 844051 email: saa@saa.co.uk www.saa.co.uk

Welcome to your November issue of PAINT

What’s New For Christmas?

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Wildlife in Pastel

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Some treats in store for lucky members Vic Bearcroft test drives Daler’s new soft pastel range

8 Portraits 10 Change the way you think Watercolour Pencils Simplified 12 Charles Evans draws this series to A Watercolour Sunset Jeremy Ford Comments

Yup, its that time of year again, chilly mornings and short days – not the most appealing time of year, unless, like me you love nothing more than

Jeremy Ford President of the SAA

a close with a simple winter scene

Bringing a Still Life to Life Painting glass in watercolour with Joyce Faulknor

Being Bold and Bright

Sarah Janavicius reminds us of some basic watercolour techniques

What Makes a Good Picture?

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Artist of the Year 2006

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Paul Talbot-Grieves discusses the importance of contrast and tone A look at some more of the award winners

Inspiring Others to Paint

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Practise With Your President

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Meet Elspeth Collier one of our two SAA Bursary 2006 Winners An English Rose.

An interview with...

Cara Teece talks to SAA member Karen Adams

Let’s Reflect

Your letters to the SAA

Dates For Your Diary Tuition at Hand Front Cover: Ray Hardcastle 62116 ‘Barn Owl’ Media and size unspecified

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26 28 30

I look forward to this time of year as the days grow shorter and we approach Christmas - the end of one year and the beginning of the next. There’s a great deal of subtle beauty around us just now; misty mornings, low golden sun casting long shadows, the gorgeous rich colours of fallen leaves. It’s also a good time for reflection, to stop and think about what has happened in the past year; the things I meant to do and never quite got round to doing. This year, amongst other things I had intended to do more oil and acrylic painting. I had intended to clear out cupboards and drawers of redundant drawing and painting accessories, probably only to make more room for things to replace them with, which I probably won’t get round to using either!

In the "busyness" of life many things get overlooked because we only have so much time available to do all the things we have to do, and therefore something has to give. It’s not everyone who can

battening down the hatches, donning a big baggy jumper and cosying up by the fire. It really is the ideal time for thumbing through all your art instruction books to rekindle ideas and goals that you might not have had the time to pursue. Nothing on the TV another ideal opportunity to sit and watch those instructional DVD’s you bought earlier in the year, but have not had time to enjoy over the summer months. So, it may be too cold to venture out much, but it is

the perfect time for practising some basic painting skills - so until the New Year may we wish you a very happy festive season and above all happy practising

Cara Teece Assistant Editor PAINT

devote time to draw or paint every week, let alone every day. Many people don’t go to a regular art class and don’t have the “discipline” of being in an environment where learning can take place. It’s often the case that without the habit of having routine painting-time we find something else that needs our attention and consequently the painting is squeezed out.

many of us. It might be possible to get together with a friend or two and meet in one or other’s houses to paint, offering mutual help and encouragement. If the weather’s fine you could go out together and sketch from life. What I’m trying to say is that unless we put time aside to specifically draw or paint, another week has gone by, another month, and then another year.

With that in mind, if you’ve never been on a painting holiday, painting course or workshop, why not think about it for next year?

Now is the time for homework and planning. In an earlier edition of PAINT there was mention of finding the right one for you and a little research in this regard will pay dividends if you find the right course and the right tutor.

I hope this makes a difference to someone out there, particularly anyone who is nervous, who doesn’t think they are good enough to bother, or who lacks self-confidence. Many people I talk to about painting events say they fear that everyone else attending will be better than they are, but it’s usually the case that most people are in the same boat feeling just the same way.

The joy of a painting holiday is the fact that you can devote all day to painting without the distraction of meals to cook, clearing up, washing-up, and everything else that needs doing. With few of the everyday chores that occupy so much of our time, you can spend quality painting-time with likeminded people and learn so much while having a lot of fun.

I know everyone doesn’t have the opportunity to do this but even the occasional day workshop can be a wonderful “pick-me-up” for

I also hope that some of you may write in about your own positive experiences and that by doing so we may all encourage one another.

Happy painting!

Details of Jeremy’s workshops and painting holidays can be found on page 30

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The Final SAA Challenge 2006 - 2007 NOMINATE A FRIEND TO PAINT Congratulations, the winner this time is Jennifer Goodwin of New Zealand who was nominated by her friend Tina Stewart (11921). Tina’s letter can be found on page 27 of this issue of PAINT. We look forward to seeing some wonderful New Zealand landscapes from Jennifer in the months ahead.

Rounding off this series of challenges for 2006-2007 we have one more opportunity for a friend or family member of yours to win a fantastic prize to give them a gentle but inspiring push in the right direction.

A reminder of what to do: 1) Find a friend or family member who you want to catch the painting bug.

2) Write to us and tell us why we should choose them.

3) Send your letter to us at head office marked ‘SAA Challenge 2006-2007’ by 20th November.

Fantastic Prize

Your nominee will win their very own copy of the brand new DVD in the Art in 20 Minutes series Charcoal Portraits with Joy Thomas, plus a box of 10 assorted willow charcoal sticks and a Daler Rowney Drawing Pad A3 size, containing 50 sheets of 96gsm acid free cartridge paper. See page 10 of this issue to see how much can be achieved after just one 20 minute lesson.

Please remember – we really do want to see the results of the challenge and to be able to share them with other members in PAINT. Watch this space.

Congratulations To the winners of the ‘Beautiful Gardens of Hidden England’ Postcard Painting Challenge launched in the March issue of PAINT. We hope all of you who took part enjoyed your visits to some of England’s hidden beauties.

Mr Mike Weston was the overall winner with his delightful painting of Grimsthorpe, and will see his work transformed into postcards to take home, keep, and send.

Second place goes to Mrs H Archer for her painting of a wheelbarrow.

And third place goes to Mrs Mary Hills for her painting of Barnsdale.

NOVEMBER 2006

Members’ Gallery Reminder!

Please send your entries as good quality photos, copies, digital images (300dpi, minimum 8cm x 8cm) on disc or via e-mail, to head office, stating title, size (cm), and medium.

PLEASE NOTE that due to a number of factors, we are no longer able to return your entries, so please DO NOT send original works of art, if you need them to be returned.

Themes &Closing Dates for 2007 JANUARY (15th November) An open door / unusual people MARCH (17th January) Tools of the trade / a different perspective MAY (16th March) Artistic licence / call of the wild JULY (16th May) My favourite colour (monochrome) / a festival of colour SEPTEMBER (18th July) Dreaming / down to earth NOVEMBER (12th September) After the rain / a strange new world

www.saa.co.uk The new SAA website is now up and running – there have been a few wrinkles but we hope that these have been ironed out. Make sure you pay us a visit for arty discussions, galleries, shopping, help and advice, and of course if you are a Gold Member of the SAA don’t forget you can benefit from your own free web pages – have a look to see how it is done. If you already have your own SAA web pages, please check that your information is as up to date as you would like it to be.

If you have any comments or suggestions for the site, don’t forget you can pass them on to us through the Forum pages. We look forward to your visit.

If you are a professional artist and wish to publicise your paintings and/or your teaching activities, you may find it beneficial to become a Gold Member of the SAA – visit the website to find out more.

left to right: 1st, 2nd and 3rd

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What’s new for you?

Christmas is coming early for five lucky SAA members! We are giving away five amazing ‘Christmas stockings’ worth over £140 each, containing fantastic new art materials! In true SAA spirit, we want to inspire you to find new mediums and new challenges and with one of each of the following top quality products from Derwent, Daler-Rowney, Search Press and of course the SAA in every ‘stocking’, you’ll find it easy to discover the joys of pastels and colour pencils.

The Pastel Artist’s Bible Everything you ever wanted to know about pastels and more, the Pastel Artist’s Bible published by Search

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Press, includes advice on mixing pastel with other media, use of colour, basic and advanced techniques along with a variety of subjects.

This new addition to the excellent ‘Essential Reference Guides for Practising Artists’ range contains beautiful projects and easy to follow explanations to inspire and encourage all pastel enthusiasts, from the complete beginner right through to the more experienced artist.

Daler-Rowney Artists’ Soft Pastels What better than this fabulous set of Daler-Rowney’s new Soft Pastels to tempt you to try this rich and versatile medium. For the more impatient artist, pastels provide immediate results – no paper stretching or drying time, and mistakes can be easily rectified, encouraging even the most cautious artist. You can get more tips on page six from artist Vic Bearcroft who created his amazing images using

Daler-Rowney Soft Pastels. The range now has the softest, creamiest mark providing the most consistent coverage, and the new larger diameter means you get more pastel for your pennies. Armed with these, and the Pastel Artist’s Bible, you’ll be producing perfect pastel paintings in no time.

Derwent Coloursoft As if that’s not enough, this amazing tin of 72 Derwent Coloursoft pencils will set you off to a great start as a coloured pencil artist. Derwent have worked with artists to develop this range, creating rich, vibrant colour with easy blendability, and

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the results are stunning. This 72 pencil tin, containing the full Coloursoft range, should certainly inspire you to experiment with this convenient and flexible medium.

Whether your preference is for finely detailed work, or bold contemporary pieces, anything is possible with your Coloursoft pencils and a little practice!

Tracedown Transfer Paper Kick start your paintings with wax free transfer paper to help you easily and quickly transfer the image you want onto your page. It’s ideal when you are itching to try out the pastels and pencils in your hamper; a quick sketch around the outline of your chosen image and instantly you have a basic picture to experiment with. Don’t worry if it goes wrong – you can re-use them again and again and again…

SAA Watercolour Pads and SAA Pastel Pads Not forgetting the trusty staples, we are also throwing in an SAA Watercolour Pad and an SAA Pastel Pad, to help you get started.

Excellent quality and value, you can experiment as much as you want to without worrying about the cost.

If you aren’t lucky enough to be one of the five Christmas stocking winners, don’t worry!

All of these goodies are available in the latest SAA Home Shop catalogue, at the usual low prices for SAA members.

Win your Christmas stocking!

Historically many of our members have veered towards watercolour painting, and there is nothing wrong with that, although many artists advocate trying your hand at something new from time to time – if only to return to your original medium with a fresh eye and renewed energy. Some however have been completely converted when given the challenge of trying something new.

We’d like to tempt you to try out something new, with this ‘stocking’ full of pastels and coloured pencils, and other goodies to help you along the way.

What do we want from you?

Simply tell us why you want to try something new or if it’s not new to you, tell us why other artists should have a go with pastels, or coloured pencils… be as persuasive as you like… and if you persuade us, in no more than 60 words, then one of these five sets of goodies could be winging their way to you. Entries to be sent to chandy@saa.co.uk marked ‘what’s new for you’ to arrive no later than 20th November.

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STAGE 1

STAGE 2

STAGE 3

Wildlife in Pastel ‘Free Spirit’ Following on from his step-by-step demonstration of ‘Inuk’ in the September issue of Paint, Vic Bearcroft demonstrates the use of Daler Rowney’s Soft and Hard Pastels for capturing wildlife. His subject this time is another wolf, ‘Free Spirit’.

This is a piece that I have tutored in several of my ‘Wildlife in Pastel’ workshops with some fantastic results. I hope that you will attempt this version of ‘Free Spirit’ yourselves.

I use velour paper in my wildlife paintings. It has a beautiful velvety surface, ideal for painting animals, and a nap which allows many layers of pastel to be applied, without the need for fixatives.

The pastels used are from the Daler Rowney Soft Pastel and Hard Pastel Ranges.

These pastels are larger than before - 12mm, as opposed to 8mm, and boast an impressive range of 186 colours in the soft pastels. The soft pastels that I used in this painting were very consistent in smooth coverage, which is perfect for under-painting, without grit and very little dust.

Daler Rowney now also have a range of 24 colours (12 earth

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colours and 12 blacks and whites) in their hard pastel series.

Daler Rowney’s hard pastels are softer than most, so therefore can be used for soft details without scratching. I found that I can even get fine details in my painting by keeping the corners sharp. They can also be used in parts of the underpainting where more control of depth of colour is required.

Colours used Soft pastels (for under-painting) Phthalo Blue (tint 4) Prussian Blue (tint1) Prussian Blue (tint 4) Red Grey (tint 4) Blue Grey (tint 4) Hard Pastels (for detail and some under-painting) Ivory Black Burnt Sienna (tint 3) Warm Grey (tint 3) Yellow Ochre Cream White

STAGE 1 Begin by drawing the outline onto grey velour paper using an Ivory Black hard pastel stick. If you are a little nervous in drawing the outline directly with the pastel, you can use a very soft pencil (5B or 6B) first to sketch onto the velour. Harder pencils will not work on this surface.

Then go over this with the black pastel stick.

The background for this painting is very simple - just a piece of sky in the top of the picture. First of all paint a ‘wash’ of Phthalo Blue soft pastel, using medium pressure.

Then, to soften the background and create a dappled cloud effect, apply patches of Prussian Blue (tint 1), rubbing the colour in, using circular motions with your fingers.

STAGE 2 This is the start of the underpainting stage.

Under-painting tonal values in soft, flat washes of colour strengthens the finished painting by giving depth to the layers of detail which are applied later.

Using a Red Grey soft pastel, paint a ‘wash’ of colour over the muzzle, starting at the nose and working upward to the forehead, then around the edges of the ears, again using medium pressure with the side of the pastel. *TIP When using a new soft pastel stick for the first time, sand down the edge on

a sheet of fine sandpaper to give a flat surface. This will make it easier for you to apply broad areas of colour evenly.

Notice at this stage how the hard black pastel shows through the colour, allowing you to maintain overall form and detail.

Next add a touch of colour to the ears using the edge of a Burnt Sienna hard pastel. Quite a lot of grey wolves have this reddish brown tinge to the backs of their ears. You can also bring a little of this colour down into the forehead, the corners of the eyes and the side of the muzzle, which will help with the shaping at this stage.

Then, complete the underpainting of the fur with a Blue Grey soft pastel, leaving areas of paper untouched where the whites and highlights will appear at the end.

Finally, under-paint the nose with a soft Prussian Blue (tint 4). This will help to create a ‘cold’ nose when black is layered on top of this colour later.

STAGE 3 Now that the drawing and underpainting are finished, it is almost time to move on to that all important wolf fur texture. But first, you need to re-establish some of the stronger blacks that might have been subdued by the underpainting.

Using a sharp hard black pastel, start in the centre of the portrait

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and work outwards. Re-define the shape of the eyes first, before moving onto the ears, mouth and muzzle. When you get to the nose, paint a medium layer of black over the blue, so that some of that colour shows through, and creates a blue/black.

Still with the black, put some detail in the darkest areas of fur around the sides of the face, the mane and the ears. *TIP To keep your hard pastel sticks sharp, rub them vertically on a piece of fine sandpaper. This will give you four sharp corners to work with before they need re-sharpening.

STAGE 4 The process of creating fur texture involves applying alternate layers of dark, medium and light, culminating in highlights when you have decided you have enough layers.

Normally, I would apply a minimum of three layers (usually more). This enables me to achieve a degree of realism not necessarily associated with pastels. For this tutorial, we shall apply just one layer, which will give you a very satisfactory finished result. I will leave it for you to decide if you want to continue and add more layers after class.

Using a Warm Grey hard stick, apply very short strokes in an upward direction on the bridge of the nose. (Always paint in the direction of hair growth; this will help to form the shapes and contours correctly).

Then, with the same short strokes and, keeping the pastel sharp, move to the side of the nose, outwards and downwards.

Next, do exactly the same again, going from the top (between the eyes) and up the centre of the forehead, noting the direction of hair growth - upwards and outwards. Continue around the

STAGE 4

STAGE 5

eyes, top and bottom, using slightly longer strokes.

The ears need particularly close attention as the fur here grows both outwards (around the edges of the ears) and inwards towards the centre.

Finally, with the same colours, you can apply some thicker strokes around the mane where it meets the black shadow area. These strokes can be less fine because the fur here is thicker in texture.

thicker strokes here and there in the mane.

STAGE 5

Take your sharp Cream White hard pastel and pick out highlights in the fur, using exactly the same technique as before. Concentrate on the areas around the edge of the forehead, the ears (those fine white hairs inside the ears), the eyebrows, beneath the eyes and around the mouth.

Next, use thicker strokes to highlight the clumps of fur in and around the mane. On the left side of

For the mid tone, we are going to use a Yellow Ochre hard pastel. This will create a warmer feel to the fur, and contrast nicely with the greys and grey-browns. As in Step 4, work from the nose and up through the forehead, using small strokes, and applying the pastel in between the blacks and grey-brown strokes then again, around the eyes and ears, before laying down a few

STAGE 6 Before we apply the highlights, we need to strengthen the very dark areas once more - especially the eyes, nose, ears and mouth. So, sharpen your black hard pastel stick and make the details as crisp as possible. The final bit needed before the highlights is to apply a touch of yellow into the eyes.

STAGE 7

the painting, these highlights should be flatter and less defined, to keep the focus of attention and detail in the face and right side of the portrait.

Finally, simply dab a few white spots onto the nose for highlights and finish off by giving those eyes a glint with highlights along the top of the eyes.

These steps when applied to any animal portrait will give you very good results.

But, feel free to add more layers and realise that there are no limits to what you can achieve with pastels on velour.

Vic Bearcroft is a professional wildlife and pet portrait artist who exhibits internationally in wildlife exhibitions and events, as well as a select number of dog shows, including Crufts.

Through his artwork, Vic has raised thousands of pounds through sales and auctions of his prints at the California Wolf Centre and other wildlife and domestic animal welfare groups nationally and internationally. www.aboutface-art.co.uk Vic is also a qualified teacher – for details of his classes please see page 30 of this issue.

The Daler Rowney Pastels featured in this article are available through SAA Home Shop, visit www.saa.co.uk or see your latest catalogue enclosed.

A new Sand Paper Block is available on page 122 of SAA Home Shop Annual Catalogue and Velour pastel paper can be found on page 99.

STAGE 6

STAGE 7

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Practise With Your President You read the article, tried the exercise and here are some of the results.

It was wonderful to see so many of you trying your hand at Jeremy Ford’s Step by Step Sunset in the May issue of PAINT. We hope that you find Jeremy’s comments on this selection helpful whether you did the exercise or not.

Betty Swinscoe (56738) JF ‘You say you hesitated to send it in Betty, but I'm glad you did because on the whole you've done very well. The clouds could have been a little softer perhaps - you need to make sure the sky is still wet or damp if you don't want hard edges to the clouds.’

Jeremy Ford’s finished Sunset painting from May issue of PAINT. have been shaped a touch more here and there. The painting has a pleasant light quality and has not been overworked. The field could have been stronger and this contrast would make the sky appear brighter.’

Ron Stokes

Betty Swinscoe

Julian Lovegrove (65607) JF ‘I feel the clouds are a bit too blue, particularly on the lower left. Don't have your paint too watery when you put the clouds in, as they can run a little too much on the wet paper. I particularly like the lower sky where the sun Julian Lovegrove and trees work well. I'd give the field a wash of yellow-ish orange to brighten it up a little and develop the foreground tree with a few more high up twigs.’

JF ‘The clouds and the sun don't quite stand Richard Lloyd out enough for me. The background trees are delicately handled as is the foreground tree which looks as if it is blowing gently in the wind. The middledistance and foreground contain some interesting texture which would benefit from deeper, brighter and stronger colour.

This can still be applied Ron Stokes as a wash over the land.’

Richard Oswell (21123) JF ‘When laying the sky washes, if you blend the colours together where they meet, you are less likely to get the downward streaking of the colours.

Wendy Pritchard (66040) JF ‘I like the sky, although if you want soft clouds you need to put them in while the sky is wet or damp. The field would benefit from stronger colour to get the rich effect of the grass. Be generous with the paint!’

Richard Lloyd (61649)

Wendy Pritchard

JF ‘I think the top of the sky needs a little more blue and the clouds could Richard Oswell

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It looks like the sky had started to dry by the time you put the lower clouds on, so you need to make sure the sky is still wet or damp to avoid hard edges to the clouds. A damp brush rubbed gently under the distant trees would have softened the line and made that part of the picture slightly gentler. Good colours, well done!’

Derek Oldham (55654) JF ‘The trees could do with some gaps between them, and some tonal variation so they're not all too dark.

There's some nice delicate handling of the clouds and a fresh, bright sky. A damp brush run along the bottom line of the Derek Oldham background trees would soften them in the distance, blending them into the ground.’

Alan Manger (61111) JF ‘The red-orange of the sky would have looked brighter if it was slightly paler, allowing the paper to shine through the transparent paint. The Alan Manger field might have been slightly less green and a touch darker to contrast more with the sky, and a few more trees added in the distance. Well done!’

Pat Woodfield (48562) JF ‘Super sky, well handled! Delicate trees and grasses, well painted. I think you just need a little more orange glow on the top of the distant trees with one or two paler areas in the gaps between the trees.’

Frances Harvey

Alan Gordenfelt (6802) JF ‘The blue at the top has been lost in the grey cloud which has been slightly overworked. The field and background trees are nice; I would have painted the foreground tree twigs with a finer brush to achieve a more delicate effect.’

Ted Merewether (48205)

Alan Gordenfelt

JF ‘I like the sky in this. I feel the background trees could be a little softer to have less impact.’

Mr W Bowley (48480)

Pat Woodfield

Emily Jones (57020) JF ‘Nicely painted with good colours, good tonal variation and good contrasts - a very clean-looking fresh picture. Well done!’

Frances Harvey (40203) JF ‘This is a good attempt. I would have Emily Jones made the lower sky slightly less intense orange, but this is only a minor criticism. Well done!’

Next time we will reveal some of the paintings you have produced following Jeremy’s demonstration in the July issue of PAINT – the leafy lane.

JF ‘While there is a good contrast between the sky and the land, I feel the orange part of the sky has become a Ted Merewether little overworked where there are visible brushstrokes. If this happens, get a soaking wet sponge and remove as much paint as possible, then while it's wet, redo the sky. The sun stands out well and there's a nice streak of light across the horizon.’

Mervin Steeples (50101) JF ‘The background sky Mr W Bowley is excellent, but the lower clouds could have been brushed in or worked in a little more while it was wet. I think the background trees are a bit solid and would have benefited from one or two gaps.

The foreground tree gets lost against those trees, so I'd have made it a bit stronger where they overlap. Nice fresh colours.’

Mervin Steeples

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The Art of Portrait Drawing

Change the way you think Tone and Contrast using Charcoal In the last article in this series Joy Thomas encourages us to change the way we think and Richard, one of her students, an absolute beginner to portrait painting describes how he got on when he attempted one of Joy’s exercises following this principle.

‘When drawing portraits it is important not to think in symbols, don’t think about eyes, nose, mouth, etc. Instead think in terms of a shape map – the light and dark pattern that becomes apparent when you squint your eyes and look at the subject.

Establish the form, then step back and appraise, then you can start moving things around and creating a likeness.

Using a pre-toned paper, look for the darkest shapes first. Try to make your brain think like a black and white photo copy machine. It helps if you squint your eyes, obscuring the distracting details even more. Start blocking in large shapes of value (light and dark) to describe form and volume

through tonal value instead of line. Then evenly apply areas of broad tone where you see the darkest darks. The first tone serves as the middle value then the values can be used to achieve rich, velvety darks and subtle gradation.’

About your materials:

Shape map based on a black and white photograph.

Toning your paper

chamois cloth, using light pressure and a circular motion.

sprayed with a fixative before transporting or framing).

You can model form much more quickly and effectively on toned paper. If you tone it to a midtone, you can add dark areas with charcoal or lighten areas with a kneaded eraser. Hold the charcoal stick over the paper’s surface and rub it gently against a sandpaper block, sprinkling the paper with dust. Tone and blend this with a

Charcoal – comes in a variety of densities and sizes. Vine or willow is available in sizes ranging from thin to thick, extra soft to hard and may be purchased in boxed assortments. Willow is the best choice as it has the finest particles and the best consistency and is easily manipulated or removed (your finished work must be

Subtractive Tools This might seem a fancy term for erasing, but it is actually about lifting tone to shape form, add line or create highlights. Kneaded erasers are incredibly useful for erasing, lifting and redistributing tone. They can be kneaded and shaped to create a fine point for lifting out lines, or a more rounded finish for manipulating larger areas of charcoal.

Tortillions are made of rolled paper felt and are pointed on one end. Blending stumps, which are pointed on both ends are also made of paper felt but can be sharpened or sanded for detail and softening techniques. These tools are excellent for toning.

Chamois leather is also useful for toning and subtractive work.

Richard Toning paper

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‘I have never really tried doing a portrait before – I really didn’t

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think I would be able to tackle it, and judging by my first attempt before any tuition from Joy, I was probably right.

Joy explains how she believes that painting and drawing is often all about adjusting one’s way of thinking, and following her exercise, I realised how right she is.

Being an absolute beginner to portraits I found that looking at the model, I drew what I thought I saw rather than what I could actually see. Therefore with my first attempt, I drew hard lines to distinguish the features. By following Joy’s method of looking purely for shapes and tone, I observed that in fact, there were no distinct lines defining the nose for example, but more a tonal variation, depending on the light source.

Sitter (Joy’s husband)

Joy’s finished charcoal portrait.

I found Joy’s method for beginners to portrait painting changed my whole approach to how I might tackle a portrait.

By starting with a mid tone (a toned paper as described earlier), you can make areas both lighter and darker. If you start off just with a pencil or paint, you can only make it darker or lighter depending on the colour of your support, you cannot do both. The other bonus with the method Joy describes is that the charcoal is not a permanent medium, you can correct and re-correct as much as you need, almost moving the charcoal around the painting as you go.

Richard’s portraits: before ...

...and after

When doing this sort of portrait sketch, Joy taught me not to search for a likeness to begin with. By doing this, I immediately relaxed and found myself, as she suggested, playing loosely with the charcoal – I stopped thinking in terms of features and symbols, and instead started observing lines, darks and lights and shadows.

Although my attempt is far from perfect I came away feeling that at least I knew what I was aiming for and that with practice I could get better.

After watching Joy’s DVD ‘Portraits in 20 Minutes’ and really listening to what she was demonstrating, this is my second attempt, which I must admit even I was shocked by. It was seriously just 20 minutes of concentration, maybe a little more as I skipped back a step or two to remind myself of where I was up to.’

Joy – self portrait This is my reflection looking in the mirror with a single light source to one side. I heavily toned the entire surface then massed in the dark. Then I worked subtractivley (I removed tone by lifting it with a kneaded eraser) to create the light shapes.

Joy’s beautifully illustrated book the Art of Portrait Drawing, published by North Light Books, with tie in DVD from Teaching Art is available from SAA Home Shop as is her brand new DVD, ‘Charcoal Portraits’ - the latest title in the Art in 20 minutes series - perfect for anyone wanting to take the first steps towards portrait painting, boosting confidence with easy to follow instructions.

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Watercolour Pencils Simplified In the last in his series on watercolour pencils, Charles Evans successfully captures the chilly atmosphere of a winter morning.

So here we are. It’s nearly Christmas. What better time to use our watercolour pencils to create a simple but effective snow scene?

The Outline For my outline drawing I am going to use Blue Grey instead of the usual Cool Grey used in previous exercises.

[Fig 1]

The Sky I want a fairly cool sky so I start off with my Coeruleum Blue taking the blue off the pencil with my 3/4 inch wash brush. Whilst this is still wet I drop in a little bit of Raw Sienna onto the bottom half and then a few touches of Blue Grey, good and sharp to give the effect of a few harder clouds. [Fig 1] Very importantly I let it dry before going any further.

The Far Distance For the far distance I use a little bit of Indigo, again taking the paint off the pencil with my wet no 8 round brush, and simply stipple on with the point of the brush creating the effect of the distant trees. [Fig 2]

The Middle Distance Slightly more complex in the middle distance, with my Blue Grey I am going to draw the outline of a few tree trunks which are simply a few sticks. I also add a few tiny touches of Light Red here and there, but not too many - just a few touches to warm it up ever so slightly. [Fig 2]

Fig 1

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Fig 10

Back to my Indigo - I take a bit of paint off the pencil with my no 8 round, and using the side of the brush simply daub on creating the effect of the tree canopy. Again with the side of the brush, I stroke up from the base of the trees, merging the colours to give it a rough base.

[Fig 3] Now whilst this is still wet I go back in with my pencil, the Blue Grey, and have a few sharper lines here and there just to pull out a few boughs. Don’t go mad with these you don’t need too many.

Fig 2

Incidentally another effect of going in with a dry pencil onto an already wet piece of paper is that the line is then immovable. No matter how much water you put on, that line is going to stay put. Leave to dry thoroughly. [Fig 4]

The Foreground Trees I do a very quick outline using the Blue Grey before colouring in with Mars Black. I add a touch of Raw Sienna to the left hand side of the trees just to lighten them ever so slightly as the light is coming from the left. At this point, when using the

Fig 3

black, it’s an ideal opportunity to create a few extra twigs, but don’t go mad! [Fig 5] It’s always useful in a snow scene to exaggerate the darkness of your trees. You will see before I wet these just how dark the colours really are. Now, with the tip of my no 8 round brush, I stipple on rather than stroking on, so that some of the parts of the trees remain dry giving a few hard edges here and there.

[Fig 7] For the canopy of the trees I use Indigo again and with my 3/4 inch

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wash brush take a little paint off the pencil and apply it ensuring the full length of the hair is on the paper. To do this I make sure that the metal of the brush is slapping on the paper.

[Fig 6] While this is still wet I add a few more sharp pencil lines with my Mars Black. [Fig 7]

The Snow I go in with a little bit of Indigo, stroking paint off the brush and still using my 3/4 inch wash brush. Yes it is a snow scene but that doesn’t mean you need masses of white paper left. A few shafts of darker shading will make all the more of the white you leave. [Fig 7] I add a few touches of Raw Sienna, Light Red and Blue Grey beneath the foreground tree, creating just a few bits of rough grass and twigs sticking up from beneath the snow here and there.

[Fig 8] I then add just a few squiggly bits here and there which I then wet down. This adds a little bit of difference in colour and warms up areas here and there. [Fig 9] I add some nice hard shadows cast by the trees using a strong

Fig 4 Indigo with my 3/4 inch wash brush, remembering to put the shadow on the opposite side to the light side of the trees. At the same time, I daub on with my wash brush into those bits of rough grass and twigs sticking up from the snow. [Fig 9] Finally I add a few hard bits here and there. Using my Mars Black I add a few squiggly twigs coming out from the base of the foreground trees. I press on hard – remember, just like any pencil, the harder you press the stronger the mark. [Fig 10] A few ticks in the sky for the birds and there you have it. [Fig 10]

Fig 5 I hope that this series has illustrated the versatility of watercolour pencils reassuring you that you truly can, armed with a tin of pencils, a couple of brushes and a pot of water, capture everything you

need to create lovely little sketches or indeed finished works with the minimum of fuss and effort. There really are no excuses - get out there and give it a go.

Visit Charles’ website for more online projects in various mediums and for details of his workshops, demonstrations, painting holidays and exhibitions www.charlesevansart.com

For full details of Charles’ book ‘Quick & Clever Watercolour Pencils’ published by David & Charles, with tie in DVD from Teaching Art, and the new range of Daler Rowney watercolour pencils, see your latest copy of SAA Home Shop.

Fig 6

Fig 7

Fig 8

Fig 9

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Fig 1

American Artist Joyce Faulknor shares with us her passion for watercolour in this demonstration painting a bevelled vase with distorted shapes.

Adding an organic subject always brings “life” to a still life.

Finding man-made objects that reflect and complement nature is always a plus. I love this piece of glass and the fun distorted shapes of the onions and garlic that run through its bevelled edges.

Materials Arches 140lb. cold press watercolour paper Brushes: No. 6 round, 1/4" flat square, 2" one stroke brush Pigments: Permanent Alizarin Crimson’, Phthalo Turquoise, Quinacridone Gold, Winsor Green (blue shade), Burnt Sienna PAINT THE LARGEST AND MEDIUM DARKEST GREY VALUES As you can see from the reference photo, the glass appears to have curved stripes. The majority of the dark shapes appear at the base.

Mix two puddles of pigment - one to represent the black shapes and another, a few shades lighter, to represent the teal shapes. For both, use Winsor Green (blue shade) and

Fig 4

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Fig 2

Fig 3

Bringing a ‘still life’ to life!

Permanent Alizarin Crimson with a hint of Phthalo Turquoise.

Use a 1/4" inch square brush to gently paint in the black shapes that are the edges of the bevelled portions. While this area is still wet, clean your brush and lay in the teal pigment next to the dark shapes. The two should bleed together slowly. Think one shape at a time [Fig 1] PAINT THE VASE’S BASE Add the swirls and shapes within the shape of the vase base using your no.6 round brush and a puddle of the Winsor Green (blue shade) and Permanent Alizarin Crimson mixture. Within the dark shapes you will see highlights separating the tight swirls. It is important to keep these highlights; they will help you establish the shape of the base.

As you can see from the reference photo, the darkest shapes appear on the right side. But you will have a few dark shapes on the left side that will reach up to the top. [Fig 1] BEGIN THE DISTORTED ONION SHAPES WITHIN THE BEVELLED EDGES Separating the bevelled edges from the flat glass section of the vase will help you get this

Fig 5

Reference photo portion of the painting organized and keep you from getting lost.

Concentrate on one task at a time.

Mix Permanent Alizarin Crimson and a hint of Phthalo Turquoise for the onion colour. Begin with the large dark shape on the bevelled edge. Look for a starting point and a stopping point within the shape.

Use the no.6 round brush to paint in a nice juicy shape at the top of the edge, pulling the pigment with your brush. Rinse the brush and begin where you left off, to lighten the pigment. [Fig 1] ADD THE GREY VALUES Once you have placed in the dark shapes representing the onion, you can begin adding the lighter-valued

onion shapes. Add Winsor Green (blue shade) to your puddle of pigment to turn the pigment grey.

Add the grey shapes that begin to develop the vase using your no. 6 round brush. Follow the swirl of the bevelled edge. The left side of the vase has a vast array of lines that look as though they blend together as they swirl to the top.

When painting this area, leave a little of the white of the paper to give the lines the separation they need. [Fig 1 & 2] PAINT THE DISTORTED GARLIC SHAPES IN THE BEVELLED EDGES Mix a hint of Burnt Sienna into Quinacridone Gold and paint the distorted shapes of the garlic on the bevelled edges using your 1/4" flat brush. Some of the darkest shapes are almost brown in colour; add a hint of Winsor Green (blue shade) to the puddle of those spots (you should get a beautiful rich brown). Some of the shapes begin with a very dark value of brown then change to a lighter shade of gold.

For those add water and pull the pigment down to create the lighter shape. [Fig 2 & 3] PAINT THE ONION BETWEEN THE BEVELLED EDGES Premix three values of the Permanent Alizarin Crimson and a hint of Phthalo Turquoise to get ready for the next few steps. The distortion is not prominent in between these spots, but it is still there. You’ll keep working on the onion shapes.

With your 1/4" inch flat square, paint in the darkest values. Let it dry completely.

Then, using the lightest puddle, glaze using your 1/2" one stroke brush. As you are glazing, add the middle value while the glaze is still wet. Adding this value creates the illusion of depth and transparency

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PAINT to the glass. [Fig 3] BEGIN THE GARLIC Using your mixture of Quinacridone Gold and a hint of Burnt Sienna, begin painting the darkest shape in the garlic. Because it’s so light, you will need to lay in the dark shapes, rinse the brush, then lighten the pigment following the curves of the garlic. Just paint the shapes and the values as you see them. [Fig 3] GLAZE THE GLASS AND SHADOWS With your 1/2" one stroke brush, glaze some of the lightest shapes of the vase using Winsor Green (blue shade) and Phthalo Turquoise, mixed with 95% water. This glaze is very very light.

The shapes just give the slightest amount of colour to the white of the paper. [Fig 4] DETAIL THE EDGE OF THE VASE The rim of the vase has lost and found lines and edges. Using the premixed pigment that you used for the onion, the garlic, and the glaze add edges as you see them in the reference photo. [Fig 4] Tip SAVE ADJUSTMENTS FOR LATER Now that the glass piece is finished, you may be tempted to work on adjusting some values or glaze over some areas. It is best if you wait and finish the background, shadow and the onions and garlic.

Finishing the rest of the painting will give you more information at which stage you can decide whether you still want to add more detail.

PAINT THE OUTSIDE ONIONS’ DARKEST VALUES Using the dark to light method on the onions will help define their shapes and textures. Mix Permanent Alizarin Crimson with a hint of Phthalo Turquoise. Using a no. 6 round, follow the curves of the onion as you paint in the darkest values.

[Fig 5]

Fig 6 PAINT THE ONIONS’ MEDIUM VALUES Add water to your previously mixed pigment to create your medium values. Using your no.

6 round brush, paint in the shapes.

[Fig 6] ADD THE STEMS AND GLAZE THE ONION Add Quinacridone Gold to the medium value mixture for the stems. Then add water and more Quinacridone Gold. The final glaze should have a hint of gold showing. [Fig 7] BEGIN THE ROOT OF THE GARLIC The root of the garlic is where you will find the darkest of values.

Mix Burnt Sienna and Winsor Green (blue shade) for a rich brown.

Using a no. 6 round brush, paint the dark shapes as you see them, creating the circle image at the base of the garlic. Let it dry completely.

[Fig 7] BEGIN THE GARLIC’S MEDIUM VALUES With a medium value Burnt Sienna and Quinacridone Gold, paint the shapes following the contour of the garlic. [Fig 8] ADD COOL VALUES TO THE REST OF THE GARLIC The rest of

NOVEMBER 2006

Fig 7

Fig 8 the garlic needs a cooler value. Add a hint of Phthalo Turquoise to the medium value, then water to lighten the mixture even further. Follow the contour of the garlic and soften the edges, with a no.6 round brush.

Erase any remaining pencil lines.

The garlic may look a bit unfinished - needing more details to make it “pop”. But it’s best to wait until you finish the background before making further adjustments. [Fig 8] PAINT THE BACKGROUND TO FINISH Mix Burnt Sienna and Phthalo Turquoise. Use the wet-ondry technique and a 2" one-stroke brush for large washes and a no.6 round for the small areas. Twist the one-stroke brush to get the texture for the background. Begin on the dark side and add small amounts of water as you move to the lighter side.

Once the background is bone dry, begin painting the shadows. The background shadow is the same mixture of pigment. The tabletop background has a bit more grey in it, so add Permanent Alizarin Crimson and add water so that the shadow is a little lighter in value.

Add more Permanent Alizarin Crimson to get an even greyer shade for the shadow under the onion.

[Fig 9] And there we have it – the finished painting. Have a go and see how you get on.

Joyce began painting at a very young age, coming from a family of artists. In 1987, she attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco to study Illustration. In 1991-2001 she opened an art school of her own, "Emerald Lake Art Academy", in Redwood City California. Since Joyce’s work exploded onto the art world, it has been published in numerous books including North Light's “Watercolor Magic”, “Splash 8” and the more recent “Stunning Crystal and Glass”, a watercolorists guide to capturing the splendour of light (available soon through SAA Home Shop). To see more of Joyce’s work visit www.joycefaulknor.com

Fig 9 Finished painting

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Being bright and bold using some of the basic watercolour techniques

Creating Textures Textures may be used in watercolour painting and created through experimentation with a whole variety of useful materials. These materials may include sea sponges, tissues, sea salt, bubble wrap, etc. You may wish to experiment with different materials on scrap paper to establish the textural effect you desire for use in a particular painting.

Dry Brush Dry brush is a very effective and useful watercolour painting technique. Its effect is textural and well suited to natural subject matter such as portraiture and animals and is invaluable in landscape painting too. For dry brush painting, very little water is used. You can use any brush for this technique and it will work on any paper surface. Keeping a tissue at hand, load your brush with almost all paint, using little water.

Drag it across the surface leaving behind some of the white texture of the paper.

Negative Painting Negative shapes are known as the spaces formed between objects. Pleasing shapes play an important part in creating a composition. By leaving certain areas of the watercolour paper unpainted, a strong contrast can be made between foreground and background, or that of certain chosen subject areas.

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PA Sarah Janavicius shows us how to put some basic techniques into practice.

Colour Glazing A Contrast Colour is applied to dry paint, in a colour overlay fashion, to enhance or brighten up the original colour. For example if some Burnt Umber watercolour paint has dried and looks a little flat, you may decide to colour glaze with Lemon Yellow. This technique will transform your painting.

Wet–in-wet Wet-in-wet is a very free, expressive, delightful and fun watercolour painting technique. Diluted watercolour pigment (to a milk consistency) is applied to a damp sheep of stretched watercolour paper. Then, further diluted paint can be dropped into this area of still wet paint, it will run out over the surface, giving a soft, hazy edge to the painted shape(s). This techniques is particularly effective in painting skies which evoke the ever-changing quality of light.

Wet on Dry Wet on dry is when colours are applied in a series of pure, transparent layers, one over the other, each wash being allowed to dry before the next is added. This technique gives clarity and forms outline to your chosen subject matter.

Sarah Janavicius, now living in Bedfordshire, England, spent 10 years living in Sydney and her work is strongly influenced by the Australian landscape and its flora. The striking vividness of colour, ranging from abundant subtropical splendour to the opposing contrasting colours of its desert landscape, is interpreted in Sarah’s work.

Sarah offers group courses, private tuition and workshops in Bedford.

For more information contact Sarah direct on 01234 363112 or visit her website for more examples of her work www.eaglegalleryartists.co.uk

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What Makes a Good Picture?

In the second in his series of articles, PA Paul Talbot-Greaves stresses the importance of Tone and Contrast and encourages us to always be on the lookout for it in every day life.

Using contrast When I first started to paint I concentrated so much on trying to create a masterpiece that I completely ignored the essential basics such as learning the characteristics of watercolour, controlling washes and so on. For a long time colour was something I didn’t really understand, working from light to dark was a hit and miss affair and tone was about as interesting as ironing shirts. We all go through it. It is the sheer excitement of creating a painting that shields us from beneficial study.

As time went by and the masterpieces continued to elude me I began to train myself in these important factors and slowly but surely my paintings began to improve.

Source photo Nowadays when I choose a subject to paint, more often than not it is the tonal qualities of the scene that attract me first rather than the content. Why? Because tone is so important – more so than colour and it is definitely more important than detail. By understanding tone you will be able to control paint better and you will be able to create

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wonderful contrast effects that make your paintings stand out.

Controlling tone Learning about tone needn’t be as dull as lead. Make the subject interesting and positive for yourself.

You can start training straight away by simply looking at subjects. Ignore colours and details and note where the darkest tones and the lightest tones are. These are the extremes and so all other tones must come somewhere in-between. You should be looking for shapes so for instance if you were looking at a chair you are not necessarily looking at a seat on four legs but the various shapes that are arranged around it which collectively form the seat. There may be triangles and rectangles of various sizes. Look at objects adjacent to each other and work out if one is darker than the other. What makes them stand out?

One exercise you can do to train your perception of tones as well as improve your paint handling abilities is to draw. Keep your sketches simple but use pencils from B to 4B and use careful shading.

Use light pressure on the B pencil for the lighter tones and heavy pressure on the 4B for the darker tones. All the time you are drawing think about the tonal relationships of the shapes within your study. Oh, and don’t say you can’t draw because you can. You just need to keep practising it!

Working on small tonal studies in watercolour is another great way of learning. Use a single colour such as Payne’s Grey as this will create a full

Stage 1

Stage 2 range of tones and again, concentrate on the strengths of tone remembering to hold off the detail.

When you have practised these exercises many times you will begin to feel confident about putting stronger paint on your paper and the more contrast you can create the more impact your paintings will have. For how long should you practise? From now onwards. If you can find just half an hour per day to make one simple study you will reap the rewards in next to no time.

Stage 1 I drew out the main shapes of the scene carefully and began by painting the trees either side of the barn using Sap Green and Lemon Yellow. Where the trees are in

shadow I neutralised the colour with a little Payne’s Grey mixed with the green. To create the random, broken edge to the tree canopy I used a very simple spattering technique. Load the brush with paint, hold it over the area to be painted and tap it sharply with the forefinger. Parts of this are then blended into the main body of the tree with a more conventional brush stroke.

Stage 2 When the first wash had completely dried I worked on the most exciting part of the painting – the darker background. Here a mass of woodland rising out of the valley provides excellent contrast to the light stone building and indeed it is this tonal difference that initially

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Stage 3 excited me about the subject. Using strong but fluid colour I steadily brushed on to the paper Hooker’s Green, Payne’s Grey and Intense Violet, mixing them gently in places as I progressed my way from the left of the scene to the right. In places I managed to create some wonderful negative shapes around the edges of what are now the lighter foreground trees. The appropriate tone combined with the general changes in colour negates the use of any further detailing.

Stage 3 With the background dry I was able to return to the nearer trees and suggest some form and shape. Using a size 6 round brush I applied Payne’s Grey and Sap Green in parts and then immediately blended some of the edges away with clean water.

Stage 4 With the majority of the darker tones now in place I began to work on the lighter sections. I find that it is often beneficial to create some darker tone at an early stage, as the lighter tones are then easier to place.

With very (and I mean very) pale Raw Sienna and very pale Cobalt Blue I brushed in the colours of the stonework. Here I have allowed each colour to show so that an overall varicoloured effect is created. In parts I introduced pale Burnt Sienna to the walls to add a little warmth.

Whilst the area was drying I painted in the background section of field seen on the right using Sap Green and Raw Sienna. The small section of fence was painted in Burnt Sienna and Cobalt Blue.

Stage 5 When the walls were dry I was able to pitch an even lighter tone on the roof. This was painted using the same colours but paler still – so more water in the mix. The paint in my palette was barely visible but I knew it would show on the paper when it was dry. I blocked in the foreground grass using Sap Green and Raw Sienna mixed on the paper and painted the door and window

NOVEMBER 2006

Stage 4 frames with Burnt Sienna. The interior parts of the building were blocked in with Burnt Sienna and Cobalt Blue mixed to a very strong tone.

Stage 6 Finally I painted in the darks and details. On the walls of the building I used a variety of techniques to suggest the stonework – in places the stones painted as small blobs, in others the darker mortar lines with Cobalt Blue and Burnt Sienna. I painted the dark tree trunks and branches and the narrow slit windows with Payne’s Grey and Burnt Sienna and added a shadow underneath the fir tree using a mix of Sap Green and Payne’s Grey. When the foreground area had dried I spotted in a few wild flowers using Opaque White and Lemon Yellow direct from the tubes.

Raw Sienna Sap Green Cobalt Blue Hooker’s Green Intense Violet Lemon Yellow Opaque White Brushes Sizes 8, 6 & 4 round brushes

You can find more comprehensive information about working with tones on Paul’s DVD titled ‘Improve Your Tone and Contrast in Watercolour’, which is available from SAA Home Shop.

Paul runs watercolour courses and workshops throughout the UK. He is an associate of the British Watercolour Society and is the author of Watercolour for Starters, published by David & Charles. He has also produced four art tuition DVDs on watercolour painting.

See: www.talbot-greaves.co.uk

All you have to do is look This painting relies on contrast for the impact and instant attraction it achieves. This was accomplished by capturing the building in strong light. Had the day been dull and overcast when I walked past this subject I may well have not noticed it. The excitement of painting is an endless entity as the proliferation of subjects combined with ever changing light and weather provides us with infinite amounts of inspiration. All you have to do is look.

Tips You don’t always have to create a finished painting. Work on small exercises concentrating on creating tone and contrast and in time this will make you a more confident painter.

To create stronger tones you need to use more colour and less water. In this instance don’t try to make colour go further by adding more water as you will only make it paler. Instead try using bigger tubes (SAA 14ml artist quality watercolours), as these tend to encourage you to put more paint out on your palette.

Colours Payne’s Grey Burnt Sienna

Stage 5

Stage 6

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Artist of the Year 2006 – Second Glance As always, the standard of entries in the Artist of the Year competition was extremely high, making life very hard for the judges. Here we take a second glance at a few of the category winners and finalists in this year’s competition.

Proving that inspiration can be found anywhere, Khairul Anuar Abdul Hamid found his in a bowl of rotten oranges (below) and his resulting painting won the Still Life category.

Originally from Malaysia, Khairul and his family moved to Loughborough so his wife could pursue a doctorate in Biotechnology. During a visit to the local market soon after their arrival in the UK, Khairul found these lovely, sweet and juicy oranges; his wife enjoyed them so much she hid some on a plate on top of the refrigerator. “It was too well hidden,” said Khairul. “She only realised about them two weeks later!”

Peter Goodhall’s striking depiction of the sea, Serenity, (below right) not only won the Seascape Khairul Anuar Abdul Hamid receiving his award

Rotten Forgotten – watercolour 54x64cm

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category, but also captured the attention of the public who voted it best in show on the SAA stand at the Artists & Illustrators Exhibition.

Peter is a fine arts graduate who has had the benefit of a studio overlooking the sea on a Devon cliff top for 25 years, and describes it as ‘inevitable’ that his painting would evolve around the many aspects of marine art.

When Annie Vince began her painting (right) she had no definite idea in mind of how it would end up – let alone that it would win the Abstract category of the competition.

Annie explained: “I started in my usual way by applying some random lines first in charcoal followed by paint. As I went along, I discovered that the image depicted the outline of a waterfall. I then decided to take the waterfall as my theme, but keep it at an abstract level.”

French born, Annie married an Englishman and moved to the UK teaching French as a profession.

She began

Waterfall – Oil 67x57cm painting when a friend persuaded her to join an art class and have a go. “I have never looked back, and since then I have been attending different art groups and classes, and a fine arts course at the Arts Institute in Bournemouth.

“Joining the SAA has given me the confidence to exhibit my paintings. The magazine’s encouraging articles convinced me to participate in art groups and exhibitions where my work could be displayed.”

Professional Artist Audrey Hammond was winner of the Portrait category, with her painting, The Wednesday Model (above right).

The portrait was painted from life

Serenity – Oil on Canvas 105x152cm

during a Wednesday afternoon portrait class she attended last year.

Graphic Designer Ken Gosling took up sketching and painting in 2000 as a way of getting ‘back to basics’. He finds his inspiration in nature and the great outdoors, particularly the wilder landscapes, and spends many weekends in Snowdonia.

His painting, Storm over Tremadoc Bay, (above far right) was awarded a Special Highly Highly Commended by the judges. Ken said: “I attempted to re-create the immense power of the storm that I had witnessed a few months earlier in Tremadoc Bay. The task of distilling realism from a scene,

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Wednesday Model – Water-mixable Oil, 26.5”x22” without losing the initial reason for recording it, I still find difficult, however I like to think that this painting goes a little way towards achieving this.”

Budding Lincolnshire artist Fraser Scarfe had not one but two paintings hitting the top spots of the competition; his Snow at Edlington won best young artist in the landscape category, whilst Sunset Docks won best Young Artist in the Waterscene category.

The 19 year old only started painting with acrylics a couple of years ago at school but has already found it to be the ideal medium. He is currently coming to the end of an

Fraser Scarfe receiving his award

Sunset Docks – Acrylic 67x57cm

NOVEMBER 2006

Storm over Tremadoc bay - Acrylic – 70cm x 80cm

Art Foundation Course, and says: “I find painting a very rewarding activity and enjoy the struggle to capture the subject or make a certain area work as it should.”

Sunset Docks was painted from Fraser’s imagination. “I wanted to create a scene of nature and industry, side-by-side. For me the painting is quite mysterious – the rising smoke gives the impression of on-going work, hidden from the world behind factory walls.”

Our youngest finalist was 13 year old Grant Lewis who also had two paintings in the final line up.

His Mediterranean Still Life was judged the best of the junior still life entries, while Villa Publius came top of the junior entries in the Landscape, Townscape or Woodland category. Grant explained how he ‘broke free’ from conventional ways with Villa Publius. “I explored with different textures like tissue paper and sand.

I always think it good to have a change of subject and style. By doing an exercise like this, I can loosen my brushstrokes and be free with my medium.”

LAUNCHING THE SAA ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2007 An international painting competition open to all artists of all ages from beginners to professionals.

1st Prize - £2000 The winning artist will receive £1000 cash and £1000 worth of art materials along with an engraved crystal goblet, plus £500 worth of art materials for the art club, group or school of your choice.

Closing date for entries is Friday 9th March 2007 This is your chance to enter and win an international art competition! Remember that there are prizes for all levels and abilities so don’t feel daunted, just get painting. You have nothing to lose since entry for SAA members is free – and you can enter as many times as you like (for nonmembers the fee is £7.50 per entry).

Entry form enclosed.

Grant Lewis receiving his award

Villa Publius – Oil & Acrylic 46x62cm

Mediterranean Still Life – Pastel & Oil

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The First SAA Bursary Awards 2006 Encouraging Others to Enjoy Painting

2006 saw the launch of the first SAA Bursary Award Scheme aimed at encouraging members to help others find a sense of achievement and success through painting, to build self confidence and open their eyes to see what is around them as well as increasing their enjoyment of many other activities.

Applicants were invited to submit a plan for their project. The awards were open to any SAA member who has a goal of teaching others to paint. The Bursary of £500 worth of materials could be used in any way that helps the most people benefit from painting - local groups, clubs, schools, retirement homes, hospices hospitals or any other group that already exists or is formed for that purpose.

This year two winners were chosen from the many applicants and each received £500 worth of art materials. A further six runners up each received £50 vouchers for art materials. A further 18 entrants received highly commended certificates and a £10 voucher.

Here we are proud to showcase the ambitions of Elspeth Collier, the first of two very different winners and hope that her goals and achievements will inspire others to take the plunge and share their love of painting with others and to

Some of Elspeth Collier’s work.

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Elspeth Collier consider applying for the 2007 bursary.

Congratulations to Elspeth J Collier 'My initiation into the benefits of helping others to make art began in 2005, when I was involved as a volunteer artist for a Tayside Healthcare Arts Trust project called ST/Art. This involved working with stroke patients in a hospital setting encouraging people with physical and sometimes mental difficulties to produce artwork using various media and techniques. Most were elderly and many of them had never done any art since leaving school.

‘An immense sense of achievement’ ‘The enjoyment and sense of achievement felt by the participants

was a revelation and a joy to watch.

I felt an immense sense of achievement at having played a part in their experience. Positive feedback from both the lead artists and the project co-ordinator gave me the confidence I needed to put into action another idea. As a part time practising artist I know how much pleasure I personally got from making my own artwork and I wanted to use my skills and experience to pass this sense of joy on to others.

‘Fun and experimental workshop’ In January 2006 I decided, with

some trepidation, to tempt people into trying something new. I sent out an e-mail to my work colleagues (what if no one replied!?) asking whether anyone would be interested in ‘releasing their creativity with a fun and experimental introductory workshop - all materials provided’. I was amazed at the response - 16 people attend my first workshop, most of whom had not painted since their school days. I provided a large range of materials - acrylics, watercolour, pastels, crayons, inks along with good quality paper. A long table was placed down the

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centre of the room, covered with brightly coloured cloths, and topped with vases of flowers, ceramics, ornaments and plants – an inspirational feast of colour, texture and pattern.

For the first workshop…

I suggested my new students apply an all over wash in their chosen colour, to a stretched piece of paper.

Following a quick demonstration of the different media and techniques for their application they were left to try things out for themselves. There were no rules with the emphasis on experimentation. I was amazed at the enthusiasm and enjoyment around the room. The silence was deafening apart from the occasional ‘ooo this is so relaxing’ and ‘I haven't done anything like this since primary school’ as they spattered, printed, collaged, swirled, sprayed and squiggled away.

‘The results were beyond my expectations’ My instructions to them were to produce a piece of finished work inspired by the still life I had set out.

This work could be as abstract or as representational as they wanted and any combination of media used.

The results were beyond my expectations and regardless of drawing ability, lively, colourful images were everywhere. The initial wash had served its purpose in uniting the images they painted on top with the background.

Since that first workshop I have organised one a month and my list of people keen to participate is now over 40 with an average age range from 6 - 60 plus.

I believe the main criteria for encouraging people to be creative are:Providing the space and materials Showing techniques Offering initial ideas and inspiration Being approachable, enthusiastic and encouraging Not forcing your own style or ideas onto your students After initial guidance and sharing of ideas stressing that there is no right or wrong way to proceed.

Allowing students to feel free to develop their chosen theme in a way they choose.

If anyone is uncertain, offering ideas

and advice as a starting point and observing their progress from a distance.

Commenting constructively and encouragingly as the work progresses.

The resulting final images are always a delight to look at The same initial starting point and materials will reveal a multitude of different interpretations. I have watched my participants become more confident and able to express their own personal ideas and carry them out.

I feel it is important to use the best materials possible.

An artwork produced on cheap paper with student quality, insipid chalky paints will never reach the same heights as an image painted

NOVEMBER 2006

onto thick watercolour paper, using juicy, vibrant artist's quality paints.

Winning this SAA Painting Bursary will enable me to further encourage and inspire people to be creative This will invoke in them feelings of relaxation, delight, satisfaction and empowerment (as well as the odd bout of frustration along the way!)I feel, in this over-busy and rather selfcentred world, the making of art as a shared experience is one that needs to be promoted as much as possible.’

Thank you Elspeth for your enthusiasm and determination to share the joy of painting with others – we look forward to talking to you again in the near future and seeing how your ambitions are progressing.

If you would like to see more of Espeth’s work visit www.elspethcollier.co.uk To find out about her classes, call 01821 642648 (Perthshire) or e-mail enquiries@elspethcollier.co.uk Mrs Jenny Ward was our other Bursary winner for 2006 and next issue we will tell you all about her campaign to expand the works of ‘The Eden Project Florilegium Society.’

If you would like to consider applying for an SAA Bursary 2007, please contact Head Office and ask for an application form on 0800 9801123 or visit www.saa.co.uk

Elspeth students experimental, abstract work, inspired by still life

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NOVEMBER 2006

An English Rose PRACTISE WITH YOUR PRESIDENT

Read the article … Try the exercise… Show us the results

By SAA President Jeremy Ford.

Roses can be particularly awkward flowers to paint, but I hope you enjoy painting this in a fairly simple way.

Colours used: Permanent Rose, Cadmium Yellow, Burnt Sienna, Phthalo Green (Viridian will do)

Stage 1.

Draw the flower with a B or HB pencil, but not as dark as you see here. Make your drawing as pale as possible so the pencil lines don't show up later. Mix a small amount of Permanent Rose with a very small amount of water so it's not too runny. Wet an outer petal and while it's wet brush the mix around its outer edge and a little pointing towards the centre of the flower.

N.B. The wetter your Permanent Rose and the wetter your petal, the more the paint will run. Let this dry.

Repeat the process with each outer petal, adding a small amount of Cadmium Yellow to Permanent Rose to give an orange for the lower left petal towards the inner edge.

Stage 1

Stage 2.

Using the Cadmium Yellow and Permanent Rose mixture of orange, work your way around the inner petals in the same way as before, wetting each petal first. You may require different strength mixes of the orange so the inner part of each petal has stronger, more concentrated colour. Again, be careful not to have too much paint on your brush. Do each petal individually, letting each one dry before painting the next.

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Stage 2

Stage 3.

Paint a series of strokes in slightly curved lines, using some of the orange mix, spiralling in and getting narrower towards the middle. A little stronger redder-orange colour can be added here and there while it is still damp.

Tip: It might be a good idea to practice this bit on a piece of spare paper before doing it on your picture.

Stage 4.

Mix a variety of different strength greens using the following colours: Phthalo Green and Cadmium Yellow (if this is too vivid, add a touch of Burnt Sienna to the mix), Phthalo Green and Burnt Sienna with a touch of Cadmium Yellow. Also mix some Permanent Rose with Cadmium Yellow. Wet the paper almost up to the edge of the rose, and quickly drop the mixed colours in all around starting with the palest, finishing with the darkest.

Remember you must get all the colours on before the paper dries.

You will need to be careful painting the colours right up to the edge of the petals, so use a brush with a good point.

Tip: Before painting your picture, try the mixes out on a piece of spare WET paper so you can see if they're too weak/too strong.

Stage 4 may need to practise lifting out, which requires gently loosening the dried paint with the narrow flat end of the brush. N.B. The brush should be damp, not wet.

You can also touch some tissue onto the damp lifted area which makes it stand out more. Once dry, go over the lifted out areas Stage 3 with a pale yellow-green, and deepen any petals with pink or orange as necessary.

Roses can be very difficult to capture

Stage 5.

Once the background is dry, use some of the very strong dark green mix ( Phthalo Green and Burnt Sienna) to paint a few leaves, grasses and stems in a loose style. Once dry, you can lift out some colour for the light grasses, stems and leaf veins with a damp narrow flat brush. You

Stage 5

but given lots of practice they will become easier. Have fun and don't forget to let us know how you get on.

Remember to show us how you get on. Please send in your attempts either by e-mail to chandy@saa.co.uk or as a good quality reproduction of your work. Please do not send your original painting as we are sorry that we are unable to return it.

For details of Jeremy’s workshops, demonstrations and holidays and more examples of his work, visit www.jeremyford.co.uk or call him on 01977 615843.

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NOVEMBER 2006

An Interview with Karen Adams

Karen Adams was training for a charity run when her lung suddenly collapsed, setting off the chain of events which led to her becoming the successful artist she is today. Karen chats to Cara Teece, and explains how art has helped to turn her life around.

Although you have always been a creative person, it is only recently that you have started painting. How did you get started?

I studied graphic design and worked in it for a few years but never really enjoyed it. I did various other jobs over the years, until four or five years ago I studied domestic and commercial interior design, and in 2004 completed a six month course in decorative paint techniques.

And it was while doing this course in February 2004 that your lung suddenly collapsed?

Yes, it happened first in the February, and I had to complete the course from home. Then I suffered a second collapsed lung in August.

That’s really for me when a lot of things changed. I had just been on

holiday in the Lake District, where I had visited an exhibition and seen two paintings, very simple abstracts.

I looked at them for some time and I thought, ‘I could do those’, and that’s really I suppose where it all started. I came back on the Tuesday, and started my first painting the very next morning, but five days later my lung collapsed again.

This must have been a very difficult time for you, but you carried on with your painting throughout your recovery. How did your work help?

While I was in hospital I hit a very bad low – I actually said to my mum: ‘I’m going to call my painting Total Anarchy’, because for me and my family that’s exactly what it was. When I came out I carried on with this painting, and it was the first one I sold. My

second painting, which I called Healing for obvious reasons, sold sometime later.

At that time I was told that my lungs could collapse at any point. Being told that really affects you, you don’t want to do too much or go too far from home.

The only time I wasn’t thinking about it was when I was painting.

Your paintings are unique, how did you develop the style…

I started using paint techniques learnt on my course, and developed my own techniques, and my own methods. I use a lot of matt emulsion, along with acrylics, varnish, string, and very fine powders to create a 3D effect. I describe my work as contemporary rather than abstract, because I don’t try to reproduce or copy – it’s my interpretation, my impression. My paintings are very

tactile, I’ve been told it’s like a ceramic feel on a canvas. It took off because it was something different.

I’ve just sold my 54th painting, and am branching out into a new market with a range of prints of my most popular pieces.

How has art helped you?

What is so enjoyable is that when you put your heart and soul into a painting it’s a wonderful feeling when someone chooses to buy it and enjoy it for themselves, and display it for others. I’m constantly being inspired to do another because it’s such a terrific feeling when one sells.

I have met people through my art I never would have met otherwise, and its taking me to places I never imagined.

What’s exciting is getting home and into my studio and starting to paint.

I believe everything happens for a reason, and that I had to go through what I did in 2004 with my lungs in order to find this path to painting.

Karen can be contacted on 01279 834300.

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NOVEMBER 2006

LET’S REFLECT...

LETTERS TO THE SAA received a ‘write up’ in the Dundee Courier and Advertiser as an exhibit at the Dundee Art Society Exhibition and later sold it in a local art shop!

Not too bad for a first attempt with this medium. But, the SAA is always about ‘trying’ and hopefully about success, in the end!’

Frank Steven (57405) picture can be seen in Members’ Gallery

‘LEFT HANDED SHOULDN’T MEAN LEFT OUT!’ I am finding being a new member of the SAA so interesting. … Art was always alien to me. At school being left handed I was never allowed to take part as I couldn’t keep up and the teachers wouldn’t help, or couldn’t help, so I was left to do other things. On nearing my retirement my husband gave me a box of paints, paper and brushes and said ‘go and paint – it’s something you have always wanted to do.’ I played around a bit but wasn’t getting anywhere. My good friend Jean stepped in and suggested I went to her art lessons with her. I have never thought that I would be able to paint a picture let alone have one good enough to frame. Bob Erends has changed all that. At long last I look forward to my next painting class and being left handed doesn’t mean I have to miss out on this wonderful hobby. I don’t suppose I will ever be able to thank my two good friends enough.’

Susan Polley (67025)

BETTER THAN CHOCOLATES! ‘I recently broke my ankle. Knowing that it was going to be a couple of months before I would be able to go out and about again, my husband decided to buy me some new art books and DVD’s to keep me occupied. I was so thrilled when the order arrived. He had come

A BRILLIANT IDEA

Susan Polley proving that being left handed doesn’t stop you painting across the SAA website and took out membership for me. I had seen the SAA advertised in the A&I magazine and thought that is was only for the professionals. How wrong I was – it’s for everybody.

I was like a child at Christmas opening my welcome pack... Not only was the Home Shop great, what a fabulous selection, but PAINT newsletter was as good as any magazine I have seen. The article by Jenny Storey ‘Using your camera to aid creativity’ was just what I was looking for to turn my sometimes lifeless holiday snaps into exciting paintings. Thank you.

All in all, what a lovely surprise, and what a clever hubby - much better than flowers and chocolates.’

Diane Jose (68681)

encouragement. Thank you to the efficient staff in SAA Home Shop. I have received a number of items in the post here in South Africa just a week after ordering them… We were so fortunate in March to have Hazel Soan come to our part of the world and we enjoyed a two day workshop with her. She showed us techniques that we never thought possible, using just three colours, red, yellow and blue, hence my picture of the elephant, which was painted using Alizarin Crimson, French Ultramarine and Yellow Ochre. Thank you so much once again.’

Liz McLean (54501)

LITTLE GEM Lorna Secker shows how she got on with Fiona Peart’s demo in the July issue of PAINT – ‘I thought you might like to see a variation of the demonstration, I must say I enjoyed the looseness of the technique and as I usually do more detailed flowers it was lovely to try something different.’ (62915)

TECHNIQUES WE NEVER THOUGHT POSSIBLE ‘Thank you so much for PAINT, which I so look forward to receiving, so full of useful information and

THE SAA IS ALL ABOUT TRYING ‘I’d been reading Charles Evans’ ‘Watercolour Pencils Simplified’ article and had a go. I had a dark sky photograph and when I read ‘the sky at night’ members gallery theme, thought this was the chance.

This was my first attempt at a watercolour pencil painting. I

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‘This summer, my husband and I arranged our own painting holiday.

We called it our POD holiday (Painting on your doorstep). We chose locations no more than 50 miles from home. Then, we went and painted them. There was no time pressure or any ‘rules’ we just went out and had fun painting.

This year we did inland locations – next year we are hoping to plan a similar holiday, but with coastal and seaside locations.’

Dawn Scanlan (40609) Thank you Dawn for a brilliant idea – maybe we could start compiling a list of ‘painters places’ around the UK and further a field – let us know of any ‘places you just have to paint!!!’ and tell us why, and if possible send a photo of the scene along with your paintings, to chandy@saa.co.uk – maybe we can help offer members some inspiration if they are searching for new locations to capture on canvas.

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PAINT SAA CHALLENGE WINNER ‘I would like to nominate my good friend Jennifer Goodwin for the ‘November Challenge’. Jennifer is a wonderful, kind person with a big heart and is a single mum to a young son. She is always doing things for everyone else and yet makes little time, and has little confidence in herself. Throughout our friendship we have spent many a happy hour talking about all sorts of art, and on many occasions she has commented that she wished that she had the confidence and ability to paint. Jenny has recently moved to New Zealand for a fresh start with her mum and son and is incredibly homesick for the mountains of Scotland. She adores nature and loves walking and I think this challenge would be a fantastic way to open her eyes to the beautiful country that she has moved to. Terry Harrison’s instructional book and DVD would gently guide Jenny on a journey towards a new painting adventure and give her the confidence to believe in herself and be creative. It would also be great to hear and see how she gets on and give her the opportunity to be able to share the beauty of New Zealand with all of us back at home. I’m sure that once inspired she’ll fly and will never look back!’

Tina Stewart (11921)

POST IT N OT E S We are sorry to say that this is the last you will see of Post-it-Notes in PAINT. If you have any arty items you no longer need why not offer them for sale through the Art Forum Pages on www.saa.co.uk or through e-bay.

FOR SALE Easels for Sale. Brand New. Rowney Easel and an Insribe Easel. All wooden and ideal for painting.

Postage to be paid by buyer or collected. £25 each ONO. Herts area. Call Madelaine Devenay on 0208 361 0871 (evenings and weekends) Kopykake XK300 + Reducing Lens – Nearly New - £125. – Telephone Mary Bingle on 01453 511341.

(Between 5 – 8 pm) Gloucester area.

Kopykake Kopyright projector – in excellent condition as hardly used. £150. Weighs 7.5 kg and is catalogue reference PM3 in the SAA catalogue. Call De on 01264 323183 (North Hampshire Area) The Watercolour Flower Painters A to Z. Hardback. Mint Condition. £8 (£14.99) Contact Elsie Greenfield on 01903 742304, Storrington, Sussex.

CLUB CO R N E R Keep up to date with what is going on around the UK and further afield, with the SAA general club news.

Welcome New RSC, Valencia, Spain Graham Flowerdew and his wife have moved to Oliva, in Spain, where at present there is no painting group.

Graham is keen to establish one and enjoys a range of subjects and media, including watercolour, acrylics, oils and pastels. For more information on this or Graham’s painting holidays in Spain, call 0034 638715559 or e-mail flowerdew@jazzfree.com

NOVEMBER 2006

Art on a postcard Mary Coldman, Chief Officer, Age Concern, Hassocks & District wrote asking us to say ‘an enormous thank you to Sheila Southwell and to the many readers of PAINT who responded to her request for original paintings on a postcard, to raise funds for The Pauline Thaw Centre, Age Concern. Sheila runs classes at the centre and some months ago asked if her students painted on postcards, would we like to sell them at a coffee morning. I readily agreed to such a novel idea. Little did I know what would happen.

Following Sheila’s letter in PAINT, all I can say is ‘WOW’. What started as a simple idea just grew and grew.

Within weeks the paintings started arriving at her home – by the 10’s and by the 50’s until on Saturday, 5th August we had an exhibition and sale of over 450 wonderful original

Shepperton Artists, SAA

Three prize winners at their recent annual competition

paintings in every conceivable medium and raised over £700.

This large centre for Age Concern, in the rural part of Mid Sussex is entirely self-funded so the splendid result of your readers’ efforts has been received with gratitude. Thank you, each and every one of you, and if you are ever in Sussex, please drop in for a cup of coffee with us, we would love to thank you personally.’

Mary Coldman,.

Sheila also dropped us a line ‘The paintings came from all corners of the UK and as far away as France and Malaysia (above). In particular, I would like to send a special thank you to those who sent several items especially Helen Burridge from Bideford, Devon, whose group sent 50 beautiful cards!

I have been "persuaded" to repeat this exercise next year - watch this space.’

New Members Welcome The SAA South Herts Art Group invites new members to join them at their new premises in East Barnet.

They meet regularly, winter and summer, painting outdoors from May to October as well as indoors at interesting venues around Hertfordshire and Middlesex. They also hold a yearly exhibition. For more information about the group please contact RSC Madelaine Devenay on 0208 361 0871 evenings and weekends.

A small group of would-be-painters has recently started an art circle at the Jinney Ring Craft Centre at Hanbury, Worcestershire, meeting on Thursday mornings from 9.3011.30. To find out more about this friendly, very relaxed group, with a view to joining them, call Anne Linney (45024) on 01527 524926.

Rochester and West Kent Art Society is a thriving group, very active with workshops,

demonstrations and local exhibitions. They welcome new members from the Medway area and meet at the Brook Theatre, Chatham every 1st and 3rd Wednesday. Further information can be obtained from Mrs Pat Maynard-Smith on 01634 233053.

Some group members on a date out to Tate Britain to see the Constable’s Landscapes Exhibition – very inspiring.

New Members Paint a Postcard Competition Congratulations to: September Mrs Jenny Jepson (67488) ‘Twasn’t me!’ (right) watercolour pencils October Diane Jose (68681) Pen and wash, untitled. (far right) See Diane’s letter on page 26 ‘better than chocolates’.

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EXHIBITIONS AND DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Send details of exhibitions, holidays, courses and competitions and we will try to publish them here.

Should you hear about, or be involved in, an interesting event in your area be sure to let us know well in advance. Some of the dates published here may be very close to the date you receive your copy of PAINT, but this is often out of our control, if we have not been informed far enough in advance. Normally we require information at least three months prior to the publication date of the issue the information needs to appear in.

OCTOBER 28th – NOVEMBER 5th – Richmond Art Society Autumn Exhibition in the Vestry House, Paradise Road, Richmond. There will be over 100 pictures and also some ceramics from over 60 of the Society’s members. Admission is free and parking is available next door. For more information contact Martin Davison on 020 8876 6026.

OCTOBER 30th – NOVEMBER 27th – Tracey Knight’s Exhibition of Essex Landscapes is touring the libraries across Essex. The artist walks her dogs in Southend’s Priory Park where she often finds her inspiration. The exhibition is at Tarpots, Benfleet library during the above dates and at Hullbridge Library from November 27th to December 11th.

NOVEMBER 1st – 30th – The Priory Art Group of St. Osyth are holding an Exhibition at Westcliff Theatre Foyer, Clacton. Also they will be holding an Exhibition at the Christmas Market, St Osyth Parish Church on December 9th.

NOVEMBER 1st – 30th – South Cantley Art Club Annual Exhibition at The Library, Bawtry, Nr Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Open daily 9am - 5pm (closed Thursdays and Sundays). For more information call Dorothy Cooke on 01302 531868.

NOVEMBER 4th – 19th – The Society of Floral Painters Painters Annual Exhibition at The Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, Jermyns Lane, Ampfield, Nr Romsey, Hampshire. Open from 10.30am - 4.30pm daily. This year the Society, which is a National organisation with nearly 200 exhibiting members, is celebrating its 10th anniversary and there will be over 200 exhibits on show and for sale, together with cards, notelets and some craft items.

NOVEMBER 6th – Shepperton Artists Open Day at The Village Hall, Shepperton. Open 11am - 3.30pm. Refreshments will be available and entry is free. All visitors are welcome. For more information contact Peggy on 01932 229907.

NOVEMBER 8th – 11th – Kinross and District Art Club’s Annual Exhibition and Sale, in the Millbridge Hall, Kinross, Scotland. Wed 8th Official Opening 7pm – 9pm Thurs - Sat 10am – 5pm. Entries will include Watercolours, Acrylics, Oils and Pastels, also Painted Silks, Greeting Cards and other art related items. For further information, call David Cochrane on 01577863535.

NOVEMBER 9th – 12th – Ealing Art Group 91st Annual Exhibition and Sale of Original Art and Craft at PM Gallery at Pitzhanger Manor, Mattock Lane, Ealing, W5. Admission is free. For details contact the Secretary on 020 8998 5662.

NOVEMBER 10th – 12th – Clevedon Art Club Members Exhibition and Sale of Art Work at The Masonic Hall, Albert Road, Clevedon (near the Six Ways roundabout). Open 11am – 6pm Friday and Saturday and 11am - 4pm Sunday. For more information contact David Royle on 01275 857197.

NOVEMBER 11th – Association of Formby Artists Autumn Exhibition will be held at Holy Trinity Church Hall, Rosemary Lane, Formby between 9.30am and 4.30pm. There will be over 200 original paintings by local artists on display. Also on sale will be hand painted cards and other small art works. Admission is 50p for adults and 20p for children over 11 and includes refreshments and a catalogue of exhibits. There will be a raffle for an original watercolour by Jeremy Ford.

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NOVEMBER 11th – Baginton Art Group Annual Exhibition at the Village Hall, Baginton, nr Coventry, Warwickshire. Exhibition and sale of original works by local artists. Open 10.30am – 4.30pm. Admission is free and refreshments will be available. Contact Ted Bletcher on 01926 777271.

NOVEMBER 11th – St. Pauls Leisure Art Club will be holding an Exhibition of members' work at St. Paul's Church Hall, Heaton Moor Road, Stockport.

NOVEMBER 11th – Totton Art Society is holding its one day sale of paintings in Three Score Club, Library Road, Totton nr Southampton from 10am - 4pm. If you missed our summer exhibition then here is the opportunity to see and buy in time for Christmas! See a wonderful collection of original art in all media by talented local artists. Admission and parking are free. Refreshments available. For more information contact Mary Austin on 02380 863881.

NOVEMBER 11th – 12th – Kesteven Leisure Artists Society Exhibition of Members Work at Great Gonerby Social Club, High Street, Great Gonerby, Grantham. Open 11am – 4pm. Admission Free. For more information contact Paulette Jones on 01476 568375.

NOVEMBER 11th – 12th – Southwater Art Club will be holding their Winter Exhibition in the Infant School Hall, Worthing Road, Southwater, West Sussex. Open 10am – 5pm. An ideal opportunity to purchase ‘unique’ locally produced pictures, prints, cards, pottery and wood turned items in time for Christmas. Entry is free. Refreshments are available and there is ample parking. For more information contact The Club Secretary on 01403 733838 or email bchrmunford30@tiscali.co.uk.

NOVEMBER 11th – DECEMBER 2nd - Twenty-Five & Twenty-Five, an exhibition of paintings & etchings by Mo Teeuw & Stephen Teeuw at Arts Coritani, High Street, Swineshead, Lincs, PE20 3LH. Open 10am – 5pm, Tues – Sat. Visit www.artscoritani.com for details.

NOVEMBER 17th – 18th – Woking Society of Arts Exhibition and Sale of original paintings by local artists at Trinity Methodist Church Hall, Brewery Road, Woking. Open Friday from 8pm – 9.30pm and Saturday from 10am – 5pm. Admission is free and refreshments are available. Further details from Rosalind O’Connor on 01483 760171.

NOVEMBER 17th – 19th – Hagley Art Club’s 17th annual exhibition of framed and unframed work. This promises to be a display of a high standard of work by the members, much of which will be for sale. Ample free parking at Hagley Community Centre, Hagley High Street, Stourbridge, West Midlands. For further information ring Anna Marie Tew on 01384 296565.

NOVEMBER 17th – 19th – Tadworth Art Group Winter Exhibition to be held at St John’s Hall, The Avenue, Tadworth, Surrey (opposite the station). Open Friday 7 – 10 pm, Saturday 10 am – 8 pm and Sunday 10 am – 5.30 pm.

There will be a painting raffle in aid of Tadworth Court Children’s Hospital Trust and over 300 paintings on display in a variety of styles and mediums. For more information contact Nova Bailey on 0208 642 7808.

17th NOVEMBER – 1st JANUARY 2007 – The Pear Tree Farm Special Xmas Art Exhibition with the Morph Group of Contemporary Artists is open 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. every day. For further information please contact Sue Barber, Pear Tree Farm, Lea Bridge, Nr Matlock, Derbyshire DE4 5JN Tel: 01629 534215 or email sue@derbyshirearts.co.uk or see our web site www.derbyshirearts.co.uk.

NOVEMBER 18th – Hedge End Art and Craft Club Winter/Christmas Exhibition at the Village Hall, St Johns Road, Hedge End, Southampton. Open 10 am – 4 pm. Admission free, refreshments available, large car park.

Demonstrations by members. Paintings, portfolios, cards and crafts for sale. Further details from Joan on 01489 798233.

NOVEMBER 18th – 19th – Clare Art Club Art and Craft Exhibition at the Town Hall, Clare, Sudbury, Suffolk. Open 10 am – 4 pm. Admission Free.

Includes original paintings, prints, cards and crafts for sale, Painting Prize Draw, Children’s Painting Competition and refreshments are available.

Further details contact Sue Eaton on 01440 786810 or sue@plustoneplus.com.

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PAINT NOVEMBER 18th – 19th – The Frome Valley Group hold their 12th Annual Exhibition at the Greenfield Centre, Park Avenue, Winterbourne, Bristol.

Admission 50p, raffles and refreshments. All proceeds will be donated to Guide Dogs for the Blind. Opening times Saturday 10 am – 6 pm and Sunday 10 am – 4 pm. For more information contact Brian Weaver on 01454 778371.

NOVEMBER 18th – DECEMBER 3rd – Pollyanna Pickering Wild About Derbyshire – an exhibition inspired by the wildlife landscapes and history of the Peak District of Derbyshire. It includes original sketches of deer completed live on camera for the forthcoming BBC2 series Nature’s Calendar, to be screened next year. The Gallery, Oaker, Matlock, Derbyshire (AA Signposted) 10 am to 6 pm. Admission is free. For more information call 01629 55851 or www.pollyannapickering.co.uk NOVEMBER 18th – DECEMBER 9th – A Venetian Odyssey - a One Man exhibition of watercolour paintings of Venice by SAA PA Tony Slater at The Lizarc Gallery, Cropwell Road, Radcliffe on Trent, Nottingham. Tony will be in attendance at the gallery on the opening weekend. The gallery will be open daily thereafter except Sundays. For further information visit www.tonyslater.co.uk or telephone Tony on 0115 9123613.

NOVEMBER 20th – Skegness Art Group Workshop with Plates and Co. at Algith Road Church, Skegness from 7 pm – 10 pm. Admission is £2 including refreshments. Visitors welcome. For more information contact Avril on 01754 810003.

NOVEMBER 20th – 24th – The York Art Society 184th Winter Exhibition to be held in the Guildhall, York (behind the Mansion House, St Helen’s Square).

Opening times Monday – Thursday 9am – 5pm and Friday 9am – 3pm.

Admission is free. For more information contact Caroline Townsend on 01904 704100.

NOVEMBER 2006

NOVEMBER 25th – 26th – Derek Walsom and John Kennedy are holding an exhibition of their oil paintings at the Rothley Centre, Mountsorrel Lane, Rothley, Leics. Open daily 10am – 4pm. Admission is free and will be supporting Rainbows. Over 80 paintings will be on display – all for sale.

NOVEMBER 25th – DECEMBER 2nd – Wisbech Art Club Winter Exhibition at St Peter’s Church, Wisbech from 10am - 4pm daily and 9am 2pm on 2nd December. There will be pictures for sale in all media and admission is free. For more information contact Carol Nicholls on 01945 584294.

NOVEMBER 25th – JANUARY 6th 2007 – Stockport Art Guild 87th Annual Exhibition at Stockport Art Gallery, Wellington Road, Stockport. For more information contact Doreen Leach on 0161 4744453.

NOVEMBER 28th – DECEMBER 2nd – Jane Box-Grainger sale of watercolour for Christmas including 2007 calendars and cards sold for Age Concern (Hassocks), The Cricket Society Trust and the Hampshire School 50th Anniversary Educational Trust. To be held at The Chelsea Gallery, Chelsea Library, Kings Road, London. Admission is Free. For more information contact Jane Box-Grainger on 020 7584 0744.

DECEMBER 2nd – Art on the Railings December Exhibition at St Mary’s Church Walk, St Mary Street and High Street, Chepstow from 10am – 4.30pm.

There will be paintings, prints, ceramics, jewellery and more. For more information contract Steve on 01291 627393.

NOVEMBER 24th – The Art Group in Eastwood will be having a demonstration by Geoff Kersey of his skill in watercolour at The Dora Phillips Hall, Wood Street, Eastwood, Notts from 10 am to 12 noon. Non members are welcome. Admission is £3 by ticket only. Contact Maureen Lowe on 01773 716786.

DECEMBER 3rd – 4th – Virginia Water Art Society will be holding their Winter Exhibition at The Community Hall, Beechmount Avenue, Trumps Green, Virginia Water. Open daily at 10am to 5pm. Parking and entrance free.

The Society meet on the first Wednesday in the month, 7.45 for 8 pm.

We have artists giving demonstrations or talks. We arrange ‘workshops’ on a Saturday twice a year and outings to galleries, gardens or houses and places of interest two or three times a year. We hold an outdoor exhibition in June. We would welcome new members and visitors to the meetings at the Community Hall. More information can be found at www.virginiawater.org.uk/artsociety or call Rosa Sears on 01483 223592.

NOVEMBER 25th – 26th – Sarais Crawshaw Wildlife & Countryside Artist will be opening her Studio in Willey to the public from 10am – 5pm.

Drawings and paintings of wildlife and landscape in pencil, pastel or acrylic, will include new work from recent trips to Scotland as well as wildlife seen closer to home. Prints and Greetings Cards also for sale Prices of originals range from £50 to £1200. Donation from proceeds to The Mammals Trust UK. Contact 01455 553270 or e-mail SaraisCrawshaw@aol.com.

DECEMBER 27th – JANUARY 10th – Conundrum Painting Group are exhibiting oils and mixed media works at Denbies Wine Estate, Dorking, Surrey. Open from 10am – 5pm daily except 1st January (closed). Denbies is the largest vineyard in England, tours are available and there are two restaurants and a large gift shop apart from the gallery, so a visit can be a pleasurable day out. For more information contact Angela on 020 8643 4661.

NOVEMBER 20th – DECEMBER 4th – Cowbridge Art Society will be holding its Annual Exhibition and sale of paintings in Old Hall Community Centre, High Street, Cowbridge, Glamorgan. For more information contact Brenda Dwek on 01446 775735.

Stick this date in your diary!

Monday 4th December at 4pm ...turn on your TV - and tune into

on Sky Digital Channel 181 (free to all Sky Viewers) At last!

A TV channel dedicated to the art of learning to paint....whatever you do...don't miss it!

Tune in every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4pm...and you'll see some of your favourite artists in action - Geoff Kersey, Jeremy Ford, Sheila Southwell, Arnold Lowrey, David Hyde...to name but a few!

Remember to tell your friends to tune in too, whether they paint or not. This might be the perfect way to get them hooked on painting and drawing. ........and if you don't have SKY - don't worry, you can also view the programmes live on Broadband at www.paintingdrawingchannel.com

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NOVEMBER 2006

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TUITION at Hand margaret.ellis@bigfoot.com or contact her through her website - www.margaret-ellis.co.uk

Do you need help with your painting? Are you looking for an art tutor – as an absolute beginner or an improver who needs a helping hand? The SAA now has over 350 Gold members who are registered Professional Associates – here we bring you a listing of many who offer classes workshops and painting holidays. Be sure to contact them direct or visit their websites for complete details on their activities for the coming year. Visit www.saa.co.uk ‘Professional and Tuition’, for many more tutors who are not mentioned in this issue.

Wildlife in Pastel workshops with award-winning wildlife artist Vic Bearcroft. Learn techniques for painting wildlife in pastel, and discover how this often under-used medium can be tamed to create beautiful, realistic fur textures on velour paper. Vic tutors all levels in small groups (maximum 10 per workshop). All materials and light refreshments provided. One and two-day workshops are currently being held near Nottingham. The cost is £50 per person for the one day workshops, and £95 for the two days, after which you will be able to take home and frame your own wildlife masterpiece! Vic is also available for art club demonstrations and workshops, please ask for details and prices. For further details contact Vic or Liz on 01636 651699, or e-mail vicbearcroft@tiscali.co.uk. Please see website for updated details and more samples of pastel work at www.aboutface-art.co.uk.

Painting in Croatia with Joe Francis Dowden (above right) and Margaret Ellis (below). The two artists are joining forces to offer a unique watercolour painting holiday in Mlini, Croatia – about 10 kms from Dubrovnik. Both are experienced at running

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Courses and holidays with SAA President Jeremy Ford.

One-day watercolour workshops in Shaw, Oldham – December 1st and 6th,10.30 am - 3.30 pm.

Phone Jeremy on 01977 615843 or email jeremy@jford40.freeserve.co.uk (picture below) Art course in France 2007 with Jeremy Ford - 17th26th May For brochure and further details please contact Ann Wright Tel. 01926 624880, email annwright13@yahoo.co.uk or visit www.gites-du-roc.com.

Art courses at Pear Tree Farm, Derbyshire, 2007 with Jeremy Ford.

Beginning with Watercolour - 16th-18th April - for those with little or no experience of watercolour.

Mastering Watercolour - 4th-6th July - for those with experience of watercolour painting who wish to improve and learn more.

For further details please contact Pear Tree Farm on 01629 534215 or visit www.derbyshirearts.co.uk holidays from Mlini and are PA members of the SAA. Both have individually hosted many successful painting holidays in Britain and abroad.

This holiday will be split into two small groups, alternating on a daily basis, between Joe and Margaret. This innovative way of teaching has been developed in the light of much experience and practice in the field, painting and sketching glorious scenery in and around the beautiful city of Dubrovnik. Both groups will meet together in the evenings for demonstrations, critiques etc. with both tutors. By the way, during the day …

“WE TEACH – YOU PAINT!” Price of £849 includes accommodation, full board, flights, transfers, tuition, some extras, and insurance, at the Hotel Astarea, no single room supplement. Flights available from Gatwick, Manchester and East Midlands airports.

October 9th to October 16th 2007 Non painting partners only £569.00 For information or booking, phone 0114 2367380 or e-mail margaret.ellis@bigfoot.com.

Painting in the Peak District with Margaret Ellis Monday June 4th – Friday June 8th 2007 Watercolour and mixed media course at Losehill Hall, Castleton, Derbyshire in the heart of the Peak District National Park will include painting excursions each day to some of the stunningly beautiful venues in the area – such as Chatsworth House and Park. The group will be kept small – a maximum of 10 painters – so that everyone can have plenty of individual attention. Beginners are especially welcome.

Accommodation is bed, breakfast and evening meal with either a packed or buffet lunch. All rooms are en-suite.

Total cost is £330 per person. (Non painting partners are welcome at a cost of £260 each).

To book a place phone Margaret on 0114 2367380 or e-mail

North Yorkshire Painting Holidays with PA Sue Ford.

Sue will running a wide range of workshops and residential holidays, including Balmoral Castle 11th-17th March 2007.

A fantastic holiday you’ll never forget, painting on varied locations within Balmoral. Full board includes single rooms with T.V and coffee facilities, plus transfers from Aberdeen air and train station included in the price of £675. For a brochure/booking form tel 013397 42534, or visit www.balmoralcastle.com. For a full itinerary of Sue’s courses see www.saa.co.uk/art/sford, or contact her on 01642 712926.

Water and Life – Essentials for Art - with PA Chris Francis (below). Masterclasses are organised on an ad-hoc basis but revolve around the central themes

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PAINT of Chris Francis’s work – namely the nude, riverscapes and landscapes. He aims to get likeminded individuals concerned with these subjects together and will counsel them on their individual needs in terms of developing techniques and styles.

‘The aim of my workshops or demonstrations is to get people to overcome their inhibitions in terms of painting and drawing’ states the sixty-year old artist. Sessions are organised at his Deptford studio, or at venues around the Thames and London. Chris is also happy to do demonstrations and workshops with art groups throughout the South East, East Anglia and the Home Counties, and a three-day workshop on painting harbour scenes is set up for Easter 2007.

For more details contact Chris on 0208 300 4769/ 07976 707614, email franciscomms@aol.com or visit www.artbychrisfrancis.co.uk.

Professional artist Fiona Graham’s art courses are run throughout the year from her studio at Bayford House, Sandhurst, Kent. The courses include one day drawing/painting, life drawing, landscape and watercolour and also ten week courses in which she explores in greater depth the joys and challenges of painting and drawing, in a relaxed and friendly environment.

Within the structure of the courses she encourages visiting artists to lecture about their work and includes many field trips to galleries and places of interest both locally and in London.

Her main vision is to spread excitement and open people’s awareness to the process of making art and to make it accessible to all who show an interest at whatever level.

For more details of Fiona’s courses visit her website at www.fionagraham.net, or contact her on 01580 850177 or fgraham1@mac.com.

Catherine E Inglis Learn the techniques and delights of pastel painting. Catherine runs private classes in pastel painting throughout the year.

Classes are held in Pocklington near York, absolute beginners and experienced painters are equally welcome. Workshops will be held from January 2007. These will be full day sessions with one-to-one tuition, suitable for absolute beginners to pastel and those who want to gain more experience in this wonderful medium.

Some workshops will be planned around Catherine’s speciality of wildlife and animal work.

Catherine is also available to groups for both demonstrations and full day workshops.

Catherine will be holding a solo exhibition of her work at the Taylor Pick Gallery in Beverly from 13th December 2006.

Contact telephone 01759 372629 Email: cath.inglis@btinternet.com Website: www.cath.inglis.btinternet.co.uk

NOVEMBER 2006

on hand from experienced English botanical artist and PA Sally Pinhey.

30th March to 12 April 2007. Information from www.snowleopard.nl or call Sally on 01305 813307.

Prices start from €1270 p/p excluding international flights, to book ring +31(0)70 388 12345 (Netherlands).

Geoff Kersey will be holding three residential painting holidays in 2007 amidst the beautiful surroundings of Pear Tree Farm Arts Centre in the Derbyshire Dales. In addition to this he will be conducting a series of twelve, themed one day workshops, also at Pear Tree Farm. If you would like details of these, Geoff can be contacted on 01629 735191, or email info@geoffkersey.co.uk Painting courses with PA Linda Matthews at her studio at The Links Country Park Hotel, West Runton near Cromer. Linda offers a variety of four-day, two-day and one-day courses, plus Saturday & Sunday Tasters, which run once a month throughout the year, giving a good foundation for you to enjoy painting and drawing for years to come.

For full details of courses go to http://www.lhm-artworks.co.uk or call Linda on 07961 813885.

Painting holidays and courses with PA Jan Osbond, an experienced artist and tutor working in Fowey and in Leicestershire at the Rural Training Centre, Owston (above). Her courses offer students an opportunity to explore mixed media techniques.

Jan’s portfolio includes projects for the National Trust and she will be ‘On Location’ at the Marina Hotel, Fowey, next year. An exhibition of Jan’s oils inspired by the Du Maurier coastline ‘Light Sea and Sky are for sale at the Marina Hotel for the next six months.

For information on painting holidays in Fowey and courses at the Rural Training Centre, contact Jan at lindyedge@aol.com or tel: 01949 81728.

Nepal's Botanical Beauty - A Botanical Art Trek in the Himlayas with PA Sally Pinhey.

On this botanical art trek you can enjoy the double pleasures of the trek and having the time built in to observe and paint the flora.

The Himalayas are like a garden, full of varied and wonderful plants, and the rewards of seeing these plants in their natural habitat are exhilarating.

Tutoring and guidance are also

Judi Whitton (below) is holding Watercolour Courses in the Cotswolds, Cornwall and Spain in 2007. Judi specialises in helping students to free up their landscape paintings and is a keen en plein air painter. Judi has been teaching watercolour painting since 1993 and is an enthusiastic and caring tutor and has a recently published book ‘Loosen up your Watercolours’ by Harper Collins (available from SAA Home Shop). For more details email Cotswold based Judi on Judi@watercolour.co.uk or telephone 01453 542837 or visit www.watercolour.co.uk Cotswold Courses 14 – 18 April 2007 (Minchinhampton), 19 – 23 September 2007 (Painswick) Cornwall Courses 30 March – 5 April 2007 and 8 – 14 September (Crantock Bay Hotel) Northern Spain Course 1 – 8 October 2007

Capture the magic of wet-into-wet - join PA Sue Ellen Wilder for an uplifting workshop, with much individual guidance in lovely garden studio with free, easy parking. Autumnal flowers and still life in abundance. All levels welcome.

Sat 18 Nov - perfect your skills - now is the time to sort out all those tricky bits.

Tues 21 Nov - try something new perhaps make your own holiday card.

Sat 27 Jan - break out of winter doldrums and have a creative, uplifting day for yourself- perfecting your skills and wetinto-wet techniques.

Sue also runs a weekly, ongoing class in NW London with free parking. Please contact Sue Ellen for the latest details and up to date confirmation on 0208 830 7755, sue.ellenwilder@virgin.net, or visit www.sueellenwilder.co.uk.

Special event painting holiday in SW France - 16-23 June 2007 - Sue Ellen Wilder -Artist in Residence. A chance to have in-depth, hands-on tuition in a lovely French farmhouse with grounds and pool.

Contact Sue Ellen on above number for further information.

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MEMBERS’ GALLERY ‘The Sky at Night’ or ‘Animal Antics’

For further details of themes and how to send in your pictures, please see page 3 of this issue.

Anne Barclay Whittington (68635) ‘Eye Spy’ Mixed media 26 x 17 cm

Anthony Webb (13862) ‘Baboon Mystery Tour’ Oil on Canvas 41 x 31cm

Elaine Gaffney (1106) ‘Hands off’ Charcoal, Size unspecified

Mrs Linda Sharman (51695) ‘Late Evening Cromer Beach’ Pastel 30 x 40cm

Frank Steven (57405) ‘Last Night Arisaig, West Coast, Scotland’ Watercolour Pencil, Size unspecified

Ray Morris (37859) ‘My ears are bigger than yours’ Watercolour and gouache 24 x 32cm

Anne de Silva (20508) ‘Pussy in Petunias’ Watercolour, Size unspecified

Mrs Ans van der Linden (44809) ‘Gibraltar at night’ Acrylic 73 x 60 cm

Hilary Dancer (65606) ‘Australian tree frog’ Size and medium unspecified

Liz McLean, Nelspruit (54501) ‘Ellie’ Watercolour (Limited palette) 46 x 61 cm

Livio Lobo (37559) Picture 2 ‘Chicago night sky’ Pastels 29 X 21 cm

Joan Eggins (32544) ‘Moonlight in New Zealand’ Pastel 39.5 x 30cm

Anne James (44219) ‘Night Sky in Ledbury’ Acrylic & soft pastel 33 x 25 cm

Wendy Youlton (52297) ‘Lioness & Cub’ Pastel with coloured pencil 17 x 29cm

Pauline Toseland (35349) ‘Looking for Dinner’ Pastel, A4

Teaching Art Ltd. Registered in England No. 1976314. Registered Office: 2nd Floor, 27 The Crescent, King Street, Leicester LE1 6RX. Design and reproduction by DigitalStone, Unit 1, Sleaford Road Industrial Estate, Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln LN4 2ND Tel: 01522 800816.

PAINT NOV06