On 11th July we were lucky enough to have Colin Brown as our demonstrator. He was extremely entertaining and showed us ways to approach our painting that could revolutionise the way we paint! He has now bee very generous in sharing the finished painting with us. I'm sure you will agree the end result is amazing!
On Thursday June 13th, at our monthly demonstration, we had a fascinating insight into how 'Procreate' may be used to paint a portrait and how the process compares with a watercolour portrait. Thank you to Chrisi Eastham who has shared the finished portrait and movie of it's creation and to Tom Shepherd for his energetic and engaging watercolour demonstration.
19th May Trip to International Watercolour Masters Exhibition
Lilleshall Hall Shropshire
Staged at the beautiful Lilleshall Hall the show was a unique event, bringing together the best Watercolour Artists from across the globe. This is the only watercolour event of its kind, in the UK. We were able to view the exhibition and watch the 3 demonstrations of the day.
Art Appreciation Visit: Gwen John Exhibition, Holburne Museum, Bath, 17th March 2024
Leaving Stratford in the rain on route for Bath, we voted for no stopping unless requested, and enjoyed a very comfortable ride with our capable driver Danielle. Disembarking two hours later at the gates of the lovely, modern and stately Holburne Museum, first stop was for Coffee and Danish pastry, in the Garden Café, before visiting the Gwen John exhibition on the third floor.
First impressions: beautifully framed work, well hung, with information on a card adjacent to each work. There were a significant number of small works on paper and some wonderful portrait drawings - with clear lines and the occasional touch of colour.
Gwen experimented with a type of oil containing a lot of chalk, which looked very difficult to apply. On becoming a catholic, she focused on portraits of nuns, often (and strangely) several of the same person. Perhaps, this focus on lone female sitters, reflected John’s own life as an independent, often solitary, woman. Being excellent at impromptu sketches, to work from later, and using this method in church, she was once rebuked by the Priest and told it was a sin.
Exchanging views of John's work with two friends, we agreed that her weakness, like that of many artists, was painting hands.
We next visited the gallery of British Paintings, mostly portraits, some huge, some by well-known artists (e.g. Gainsborough), some by those not so well known.
One highlight was seeing Lubaina Himid’s 'Lost Threads', being 400 meters of vibrant, colourful Dutch wax fabric flowing across the front façade and around the permanent collection, "... reflecting the movement of the oceans and rivers that have been used to transport cotton, yarn and enslaved people throughout history ..." (www.holburne.org, accessed 28Mar24).
What an interesting, informative, and happy day, seeing old friends, meeting and welcoming two new members Ann and Nicky on their first outing with Stratford-upon-Avon Art Society (pictured with Wendy, a more longstanding member.
We do hope more members will join us on future outings and our thanks go to Sue and Rosemary for their hard work in arranging these trips.
Pauline Bamber (Past President)
