News
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May 2022 Newsletter
Samford and Surrounds Arts Trail and Open Studios 2022
The Samford and Surrounds Arts Trail and Open Studios is now in it's 8th year. I will be taking part again this year. My studio will be open for the first 3 weeks of the Trail and I'd love to see you. This year I will be showing a lot of new work. I have been very busy since last June with several IG online challenges plus taking part in CVP 2022 as an alumni. The Strada Easel challenges in September and January invloved an en plein air painting everyday for the full month. I am almost finished with the #100dayproject. I have drawn from life in my garden every day since February. Just in case I didn't have enough to do I have also produced a play piece in acrylic every day too. During the Trails I will be running workshops and the details are here. I have learnt so much from my 100 day project and am looking forward to sharing it all in my Amazing Acrylic workshop. I have run my encaustic workshop many times now. I love sharing everything I know about this beautiful media. If you have joined me before, I will show new techniques and help you refine your process. Details and booking are on my website. https://www.thearttrain.shop
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Flower Tree
"Flower Tree" ran as a live Guided Painting class in 2016. I offered two paintings that day, “ Flower Tree” and “ Enid”, a gorgeous violet elephant. It was the first time that I had offered a "double bill", you could choose one or the other. It proved to be a challenging afternoon -
Love and Blue
Love and Blue was the first live Guided Painting class I ran at The Art Train, so I will always be fond of it. The image originates in the whimsical practice of my early career. I used to draw little birds endlessly, they would be on branches, in trees, balancing on top of one another, in birdhouses. My early sketchbooks are filled with drawings of these little birds, which have so much character. The slightest change in the shape or position of a beak, eye, tail or wing can alter the personality radically. Little birds and leaves were imagery I used constantly in my embroidery work too. -
"How Does your Garden Grow?"
This painting was inspired by the classic children's nursery rhyme, "Mary Mary". I loved this rhyme as a child, my mother was called Mary and I would wonder if she was Mary of the rhyme. She was always out in the garden so it seemed perfectly plausible. I also thought my Aunt was Princess Margaret, I had a colourful imagination or I was just easily confused. -
Hydrangeas : Guided Painting
"Hydrangeas: first ran in May 2014 and proved to be a massive learning curve for this fledging style of class. I have learnt so much since the early step by step classes and you get all the benefits of that knowledge. I have ironed out all the problems my " live" class encountered.
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Guided Painting on line
I rebranded my art teaching business The Art Train in 2019. This was a great opportunity to enable customers to book and pay online for classes an... -
Agapanthus : new downloadable Guided Painting Class
Agapanthus I have always loved agapanthus and blue is my favourite colour, I remind myself not to paint every image I make blue. As a child I loved... -
Blue Jug , Downloadable Guided Painting, new for November
Blue Jug, Downloadable Guided Painting November 2019
I first painted this image in early 2018. I love blue and white and as a child had loved the Cornish ware pottery we had at home. Cornish ware is blue and white striped earthenware.
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Paint your Own Van Gogh
On Saturday I ran this term’s Guided Painting class. This time I tried something different. I offered two images to choose from, my take of Van Gogh’s Starry Night and his Sunflowers.
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Drawing for Adults
When a new adult student comes along to my classes I encourage them to start with my back to basics drawing course. The aim of the course is to int... -
Guided Painting Live
Term Two Guided Painting 2019 is a little different. I ran a Van Gogh kid's workshop over the Easter break which was a huge success, so I thought why let the kids have all the fun. Students paint their own Van Gogh with a choice of two of his most famous paintings, “Sunflowers” or “Starry Night” in a step by step style class. -
Adult Classes at The Art Train
I have been teaching adult classes on a weekly basis for around 9 years. The programme has developed over time
So, I don’t want my students to feel confused and I’m certainly not worried about you making work like me. You aren’t me. I aim to be completely transparent in my teaching. I do not claim to know everything, but I will tell you everything that I have picked up along the way. I teach many things which I was never told at art college.
