Tag: zoom demo

Graham Webber zooms us into autumn

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On 23rd October, Graham Webber ROI gave us our first Zoom demonstration of the autumn season, and what a corker it was! Graham presented an East Anglia landscape in oils, from start to, more or less, finish.

Why more or less? Because he finished by talking about that thorny problem ‘when do you know it’s finished?’ Graham’s solution is to leave it around, so he can look at it from time to time, and pick up a brush and palette (because the paint is usually soft enough to move in small amounts) to make adjustments. And when he stops doing that, it’s probably finished.

But we started with a blank piece of MDF, with 3 coats of white gesso (already dry). This gives a textured ground which the paint likes, give something for the brush strokes to get hold of. Then he makes an approximation of the shapes he wants to make in a dark neutral colour. Graham uses vermilion, red ochre and yellow ochre, and white, and that’s all. Everything comes from there. Need it warmer: mix a little red in. Cooler, add yellow, darker, add blue. That’s how it seemed anyway. You can see from the photos of his palette what a range he made, and also how they all go together, all the time. They pick up each other’s tones and support or contrast with each other.

He blocks buildings in to start, along with the other shapes. Everything is worked on at the same time, provided the tone on the brush is right. He especially mentioned not making buildings too ‘right’ to start. The surroundings you add later will do that, along with highlights and key features.

He also showed how he composed the picture to create balance and interest, drawing your eye to the key part, not sticking to the photo. In this case he completely changed the sky, firstly indicating in quite dark paint how he wanted to bring the sky forward over the sea by taking a diagonal line from top left towards the fishing huts, and scribbling it a bit to indicate bulk. His treatment of sky was something I particularly valued, although I still couldn’t spot what he did later to turn the clouds from scrubby patches into dramatic clouds.

There is a recording of the demo (will be available for one more week, for members only) and I should go through it and see if I can spot this stroke of genius on second (or third) viewing. Roy circulated the details by email on 24th October.

I wish I could read my notes on the words of wisdom I scribbled down at the end, but I did get this one:

Remember, you don’t have to put everything in the photo, or in front of you, in the picture. It’s yours.

Thank you for a most enlightening and engaging demonstration, Graham.

Jacky Pett

all images screenshots, copyright for artwork belongs to Graham Webber.

Autumn is upon us

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September whizzed by in a whirl of excitement, plus whirling weather and a mini-Indian summer followed by rain. If you were trying to get any outdoor sketching done, you were lucky if you didn’t get wet!

October is more sedate, except that preparations are in hand for our Autumn exhibition at the Dovetail Centre Large Hall, over the Remembrance weekend. You need to get your entries entered (if you are a member you have been sent details), and your artwork ready to hand in!

And we finish the month with our first Zoom demonstration of the winter season. They all look particularly interesting, and ‘painting along’ is optional, but encouraged! You could always sketch, of course 🙂

October activities

Wednesday 9 Oct – Drop-In Session – Community Large Hall – Details

Saturday 12th October – Helen Talbot – Flour Paste art – details

Sunday 20 Oct – Life Drawing –  Church Hall 2-4pm Details

Monday 21st Oct – Sketching Group (details as per email)

Wednesday 23 Oct– Zoom Demo – Graham Webber ROI – East Anglia landscape in oils – Details

I was impressed with the artwork Graham Webber displays on his website – he has the North Norfolk coast light exactly right! Do check it out. Graham Webber

Header image (c) Graham Webber ROI

Abstract Watercolour Paint-along with Kerry Bennett

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by Jacky Pett

Kerry Bennett paints abstracts of landscapes using blobs of paint and a straight edge, like a credit card. She showed us how this works, taking the paint from a dish onto the card, then scraping along lifting at times. Then she took a large brush, slightly damp to move it around a bit.

For those who work in watercolour, I think this was mainly a chance to try a different technique. I don’t, so it was fascinating to see not only the way Kerry approaches the abstract element, but also the tips and tricks she gave to solve problems watercolorists tackle routinely.

She showed lots of examples, most of which I thought were gorgeous. Especially the more monochrome and the one that looked like a highland loch

Not just watercolour paints

Use anything you like, including salt, clingfilm, ink, pen. It will depend what you see on how you want to develop and what tools to use.

You need a dark colour in the middle, so start with cobalt and burnt sienna. Also a cerulean and magenta. Take some of all together on your card and make the first marks.

Fill the bottom with some water and tilt to help the paint spread. This takes time. Use a normal brush to bring some of the other colours in, and move the paper around (tilt) till it’s dry enough to stay there.  Don’t let it puddle when flat or you get cauliflowers.(hard edges)

Paper has three stages of wetness:

  • Very wet smooth and glossy
  • Sheen, you can do wet into wet
  • Matt… too late. Dry completely and reset to add new wet in wet.

Putting salt on, grain by grain, gets a little bloom.

Alcohol gives a dandelion or lichen effect!

When dry enough, turn and wet the other half, and repeat tilting and playing with the paint effect. Decided she wanted a waterfall effect, so held board vertical and spray with water to make a gap in the colours that runs down the paper.

Use the edge of the card to create marks from any blobs of paint. If the paper is still wet you can do white marks, but judging the wetness is tricky.

I found it fascinating to watch how the colour spreads itself on wet paper. Kerry showed one example of ink on watercolour where the ink on water had made very realistic(if dense) foliage. A small spray bottle is essential equipment! Quink ink, or the one she uses has a white an purple vertical label and Japanese characters (or Chinese)

Quite often she ends up choosing the other way up for the sky from what she first thought!

The Paintalong

Joy Hatherell’s example

There were lots of people who showed their efforts on the screen, but I only managed to ‘collect’ one. I imagine those painting along had a lot of fun!

Kerry asked if we had a lot of water colourists. I’m not one, but seeing her paint like this, instead of the mostly neat and controlled watercolours that I’ve always thought ‘proper’, this approach I’d like to try.

Some more tips

  • Size 10 zero black velvet has a lovely tip. Use older brushes to wet your palette box, and the nice ones to take the paint from there.
  • Getting rid of cauliflowers: dampen, scrub and dab!
  • Use a hake brush to throughly wet the whole paper. Use long brush strokes.
  • Note that some colours e.g.  Paynes Grey dry a lot lighter than you expect.
  • Ink on dry paper you can’t lift off. On wet paper you can get rid of most, but it leaves a patch.
the initial abstract after tilting
painted highlights as a cliff seemed to appear

all images taken as screenshots, copyright remains with Kerry Bennett

Abstract Landscape in watercolour – update

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Members looking forward to next week’s zoom demonstration have something extra to excite them!

Kerry Bennett will be demonstrating how to paint abstract landscapes – but with you painting along at home. 

Hopefully many of you will take part – this is a lot of fun to create and quite unpredictable.

Time permitting Kerry will also demonstrate creating landscapes using watercolour and black Chinese ink.

Joining details for the zoom meeting will be emailed to members this week.

REQUIREMENTS for the paint along

A3 or A4 watercolour paper, NOT cold pressed

A credit card or a piece of stiff plastic.

A water spray bottle

Watercolour in tubes  between 3 or 4 colours.  Pans will not really work well for this as what is needed is a thick blob of paint to scrape on the paper, but if you can create a thick paste from the pans it will be okay.

A large brush for wetting the paper.  

A board a little bigger than the paper and masking tape to tape all 4 sides down.

A hairdryer, or hot air gun.  If you want you can also use other mediums, like white gouache, fine salt, a fine tip ink pen.

Kitchen towel and/or cloths.

2 containers of water and plenty of creative imagination.

Juggling all this and our screens might prove challenging for some of us!

Pastels with Rebecca de Mendonca

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Our Zoom demonstration at the end of January was from Rebecca de Mendonca, a prize-winning member of the Pastel Society. As a keen pastel painter, I loved it – and learned, or was reminded of, things I’d forgotten.

This report is mainly just notes of things Rebecca did, said or recommended. If you missed it there is a link to the recording of the zoom event in the 25 January Newsletter, together with dates of her April exhibition at Royal Wootton Bassett (Wilts) and links to tutorial activities on her website.

The View Gallery, Royal Wootton Bassett, 4th April to 18th May. This is a new gallery, which has opened this year. The exhibition, ‘Equine’, will show the work of a selection of artists, working in different media.

Why put figures in landscape pictures?

Figures in a landscape give a sense of scale. I want to tell a story through the landscape.

Take photos of landscape for reference and of people in it — rear views for privacy.

Remember to compose things in the foreground big, and then smaller further away. Also light and dark are more extreme in front. Middle tones in the (hazy) distance. Also use more saturated or intense colours in the foreground. Foreground marks tend to be more jagged, and also not blended.

Make test grades of similar hues – useful to have them at the side of your painting for reference..

Rebecca uses pastels from The New Pastel School which she runs with a friend. Note the Wild landscape set!

Tip: to put e.g. clouds on an already pastel background, use a stiff card to scrape off some of the powder so you have more chance for the top layer to stick. Lilac works well in cloud base rather than grey.

And now add people….

Placing people… place their feet, then their heads, then turn them into tadpoles! Men tend to have broader shoulders and smaller hips. Good idea to work it out at the side of your painting. Uses pastel pencil to get them placed as silhouettes. Then adjust tones etc with ordinary pastels. Don’t need fantastic detail, but do need light in the right places. On this scale you have to be very careful with your marks. Remember to add shadows that work.

Discussing some other paintings… street scenes, etc. gets more complicated because of light on blocks. Eyeline is important. Draw in eyeline, vanishing points and block grids. On streets, start with heads level as their heads should be on your eye line, allowing for height differences, and feet go up and down!

People who don’t have their feet together seem to look odd.

A good reference for drawing people is Figure drawing without a model by Ron Tiner. Develop your shorthand of a basic figure to make more than stick figures and give them body language.

A Beach scene

Rebecca did a second picture, children on a beach, after the coffee break. Her reference photos were taken on different days!

Figures on a beach… think about composition and do small sketches to get the body language. When doing groups, think of negative space. You can put them together from totally different times, but it’s easiest if the light is coming from the same point.

Create sense of space by doing figures and then concentrating on background space and how they fit in it.

Uses Conte pencils for detail including where shading — works in creases. A detail like eyelashes makes all the difference!

How to frame without the pastel making a mess

Tip for framing… apart from knocking it so loose pastel comes off, frame the painting with a second mount with a larger opening between the primary mount and the picture so that any dust falls down between the primary mount and glass.

All images are screen grabs from Rebecca’s talk. Copyright remains with her.

February treats

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February may be a short month, but there’s still plenty of goodies packed in for you.

Regular events

Saturday 10 Feb

Workshop with Helen Talbot using Collage & Mixed Media (fully booked) – Details

Wednesday 14 Feb

Drop-In Session – Community Large Hall –  Details

Sun 25 Feb 2024

Life Drawing session –  Church Hall 2-4pm (some places available) Details

Wed 28 Feb 2024

Zoom Demonstration by Kerry Bennett; Abstract Landscapes in Watercolour – Details

At time of writing there is still space on the Curtis Tappenden monoprint workshop on Sunday March 10th. Contact Roy or Beverley if you’re interested (priority for members). It’s sure to be fun!

Animals in Art

‘Animals’ is the theme of our Postcards display for later in the spring. It’s not too early to start working on yours – small but beautiful A6 postcards – see details here.

The Power of Design and Composition

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Our demo at the end of November was by Peter Keegan, on the Power of Design and Composition.

He gave so much wonderful information, about the business of the art world as well as composition. I’m not going to say much about it, as you can watch the whole presentation again. Gill sent round the link and Passcode by email, so I won’t put a link in as the Zoom presentations are for members only, and so I had better not release it to the world. But we received an unusually large amount of positive feedback afterwards, so don’t miss it.

Peter Keegan (screenshot)

Peter started by mentioning the several ‘rules’ of composition, adding that they are a matter of opinion, and you are completely free to ignore them. In my humble opinion, artists, like authors, ignore rules at their cost, as the viewers have certain expectations of the accepted standards, whether consciously or not!

Apart from composition design, the second most important is tonal value, i.e. the light and shade in the painting. Third is colour, choices and the way colours work together, and finally the painting process itself, the way you lay the paint on your chosen base. Then he said another one: your artistic intention. What are you trying to say? This should underpin everything – the four principles should deliver your intention.

If that has piqued your interest, and you missed it–or even if you didn’t miss it and want to take another look–then hunt out the email link from your inbox, sent on 23 November by Gill.

Abstract mixed media with Barbara Whitbourn

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Our Zoom demo in October was by Barbara Whitbourn, who gave a fascinating discussion and demonstration of how she works in mixed media – and takes an abstracted approach. I took a lot of notes while she was talking, so I hope they make some sort of sense on this page. The pictures are screenshots, and a bit rough.

Barbara started by asking: What do you enjoy about pictures you look at? 

Is it Colour? Technique? Abstraction?

She suggested that whenever you see a picture, especially one you like, decide what elements attract you and edit out the things that don’t interest you.

She followed this with examples of a trip to the Cornish tin mines, which she did recently. She keeps a sketchbook of all projects like this so she can refer back.

  • Take your time to look around, the shapes, the sizes,
  • what would you move to make the picture more interesting.
  • Take photos, make notes on the day.
  • Start sketching, just feel your way in.

You’re looking for your emotional response to the scene.

Things that help to transfer the mood to the paper:

  • Print photos out in black/white to get values.
  • Do robot drawings to get the emotional response to the scene. Add in what else is happening, birds, bees, footsteps. Soil colours.
  • Use random marks with nondominant hand
  • Thumbnails of what might work and what’s important to me.

Another idea is to look at a scene, look away, and sketch for thirty seconds. That helps you decide what’s really important to you.

Paints and other media (not complete!)

  • Off-primary colours, transparent . Golden brand. List of materials to follow.
  • Titanium white, adds oomph. Later liquid white or other liquid paint. Only three colours so all harmonious when mixed.
  • Pencils and marks. Puts charcoal, graphite etc in the end of a twig to get a rather uncontrolled line/mark, 
  • Also look for unusual tools e.g. wood grading tools.

Works on birch panel with rough gesso surface and works standing up. Sizes vary, A2 if working on paper, up to 1m or so with a birch panel.

I found the stencils she used very interesting. I liked those, especially the writing and the music. She has a collage box of interesting items, mono prints on tissue paper, using her regular colours, putting it on with transparent medium to build up layers.

Development

There is no ‘up’ at this stage; she turned it round to work on it as she felt appropriate

As Barbara progressed covering the paper, I started to like it. The layer effect was very striking, and using the harmonised colours worked well – even when she started to use some paint sticks that made a ridge.

Next stage, turning it into a picture. 

  • Where to put the horizon.
  • What features or impacts need to go in.
  • What are the hero colours
  • Use stronger versions from same palette.
  • Make sure you take care to keep your instruments clean!
  • Stay abstract!

Knock back the sky using zinc white and lots of glazing layers

The first knock back of the sky – she did a lot more later which covered most of the patterns underneath

Then block the lower part, don’t be too regular and have lots of thin layers. Think of what they represent for your purpose.

Add the details! Like the wheelhouse and chimney for the arsenic pits… Then add cogs and wheels for the main pattern in the centre.

Aim is not to obscure layers underneath – and just to enjoy herself with no end in sight. See what happens. It uses a lot of paint/medium. Not a cheap method!

The end result, held upright for the camera

Conclusion

All in all it was a fascinating demonstration, one in which the picture built from nothing, looked like nothing much but pleasing shapes and harmonious colours, then (for me) lost its appeal, and then got it back again when the tin-mine specific motifs came into play.

Certainly gives one food for thought!

November News

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I hope by now you have put your clocks back onto winter time (GMT). Check your car’s one, too!

Drop-in session

As November starts on a Wednesday, the second Wednesday is next week!

As usual the drop-in session will be at the Community Centre Large Hall on Hursley Road. Check this page for details.

Autumn Exhibition Sat/Sun 11/12 November

Our Autumn Exhibition will be at the Dovetail Centre (Church Hall), open to the public from 10 till 4 on both days. You should have received all the details about handing-in etc, and collection afterwards. If you are able to volunteer as a steward, even for an hour or so over the weekend, please contact Roy.

The success of the exhibitions relies on people telling their friends, neighbours, and even casual acquaintances about it, so don’t be shy, spread the word.

Wednesday 22nd – Zoom talk/demonstration

Our next Zoom evening is with Peter Keegan on “The Power of Composition & Design”. Details are here, and you will be sent the joining link by email about a week beforehand.

A number of members had difficulty viewing the separate Zoom screen that the speaker was using for the painting last time. I hope to get some basic hints added to the Demonstrations page before this next session.

Life Drawing Sunday 26th

Our last life drawing session for this calendar year takes place on Sunday 26th in the Church Hall. There are a few places left at present. Contact Roy or Peter Maule to book yourself in.

Advance notice

Don’t forget to put the Christmas social event in your calendar: Wednesday 6th December in the Dovetail Cafe from 7.30 pm

After the success of the New Year’s Lunch last January, details are being finalised for one this coming January. Watch your newsletters for details!

Your treats for February

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After five Mondays in January – such a long month – we have a short and snappy February programme.

On Wednesday, it’s our monthly Drop-in Session to help you get on with your own project in appreciative company. Details here, and remember it’s at the Community Large Hall on Hursley Road, not the Methodist Centre.

Saturday 11th it is the Watercolour workshop with Kirstin White. We put out a call for a late place available last month. I think it’s been taken, but if you are interested, contact Roy.

Sunday 19th Feb we have our monthly Life Drawing workshop in the Church Hall. Wrap up well as the priority for the limited heating is our poor model!

Wednesday 22nd brings us a Zoom demonstration from Chris Forsey entitled ‘Moorland in Winter’ in Acrylic. This looks to be very interesting. Since our painter in oils decried the plastic used in acrylics, it will be interesting to see what Chris says on the subject.

Members will have received two emails with the opportunity to book workshops (life drawing and tutored painting ones) late in January. If you haven’t already responded you may be too late, but check the email anyway. The process after taking all workshop requests is for a computer to allocate places taking account of whether you’ve been successful in the past or not. The aim is to ensure everybody gets at least one of their choices. Then there is the waiting list, so all is not lost if you miss out on a place you hoped for.

If you are not a member and wish to take part in workshops and other active art, then why not invest a very small amount of money in joining us? Contact Gill for details.