Here are a selection of our most recent meetings:
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MARCH 2021
The theme this month was animals and birds. We started off with an excellent zoom demonstration by visiting artist Karen Thomas on drawing animals in charcoal and pencil. She drew a cheetah by building up layers of marks using different pencils and tools in an impressively detailed way, and gave members lots of tips to help with their own pictures. In the second demo of the month, artist Elizabeth Baldin showed how she painted in ink and watercolour, using an owl photograph as a subject. She explained the differences between inks and watercolour, and stressed the need to vary the marks made, rather than falling into the trap of making regular patterns, especially when depicting fur and feather markings. Members were inspired to create their own pictures of animals and birds, which were then reviewed in a very positive, helpful zoom critique evening. |
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FEBRUARY 2021
The theme this month was Portraits and we were treated to not one but two demonstrations by visiting artists via zoom. In the first, Keziah Burt gave a fascinating and entertaining practical demonstration of her method of building up a sculpture of a head, concentrating on the underlying bone and muscle structure and looking carefully at the angles and shapes of the features. In the second online demo, Peter Keegan showed us how he creates a portrait in oil paints, looking at placing the right tones and colours in an accurate position on the face, working wet into wet. Both demos were very well attended and exceptionally interesting. Members then spent time creating their own portraits of people, with some excellent results. |
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JANUARY 2021
The theme this month was Landscapes in Acrylics. Members were treated to an inspiring online demonstration by visiting artist Susan Grey. She used acrylics to paint a Cornish landscape on a gessoed MDF board ( a useful support given the vigorous painting and scraping methods she used). She emphasised the use of a variety of brushes and tools to make a wide variety of marks, and encouraged members to be brave and energetic in their painting. Members then created their own landscapes, which were reviewed in a good natured evening critique zoom session at the end of the month. Some excellent works were produced, some of which are shown here. |
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DECEMBER 2020
The theme for the month was winter. We really enjoyed an excellent online demonstration by HAC member and artist Mitzie Green on painting a snowscape in watercolour. Some members painted along with the demo, while others worked on their wintry pictures at home afterwards. Here is a selection of the work produced. Many thanks to Mitzie for the demonstration and inspiration! In addition, members spent time at home creating their own Christmas card designs, some of which are shown here also. The month ended with a jolly online review of all the art produced, with a few glasses raised to wish everyone a Happy Christmas! |
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NOVEMBER 2020
The theme for this month was the work of artist Georgia O'Keeffe. We started by watching a film about her life and work, and then had an excellent online demonstration by artist and HAC member Susan James Dean on painting autumn leaves in the style of O'Keeffe. Members enjoyed having a go at creating their own work in the style of O'Keeffe, and submitting it for a fun online discussion/review session at the end of the month, via Zoom. Despite the difficulties of taking the art club online, members expressed the view that they enjoyed having a monthly theme to focus on, and having more time to learn more about it. Many thanks were given to Susan Dean for leading the demo, and to the members of the HAC Committee who have been working hard to make these online sessions work! |
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OCTOBER 2020
The new season started in a rather different way to previously. No longer able to hold in person art meetings, we moved online and carried on. The theme for October was Cubism. We watched a recommended film on Picasso, Braque and Cubism. HAC Committee Member Debbie Knight gave an excellent Zoom presentation and demonstration on how to create a still life painting in a cubism style, and members had a go at doing their own cubism artwork at home. Finally we held a sociable Zoom meeting to review the works created. 38 HAC members got involved in one way or another. A really great start to the term! |
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SUMMER SKETCHING DAYS (JULY - OCT 2020) It was great fun to get back to sketching after the long lockdown. A number of our members met to sketch and paint outside (socially distanced), and thoroughly enjoyed seeing friends again. Here are a selection of photos from the sessions. |
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THURSDAY MARCH 12 WORKSHOP ON PERSPECTIVE IN LANDSCAPES LED BY PETER BROWN Peter gave a brief but instructive presentation on rules relating to atmospheric and linear perspective, including an excellent technique for depicting equally spaced columns receding into the distance. Then it was the turn of members to create their own landscape pictures using these tips. Peter continued to give help and advice to members individually, which was very much appreciated. (Peter's presentation on perspective has been uploaded to the Hints and Tips section of this website as requested by members.) |
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THURSDAY MARCH 5
WORKSHOP ON LANDSCAPE PAINTING IN WATERCOLOUR LED BY FRANK WALTERS Despite the rain, the hall was full this week as members took part in Frank’s workshop in which he gave some tips on painting landscapes in watercolour. He encouraged members to work on two landscapes alternately, letting one dry at a time. He worked step by step to progress the paintings in three phases – a light colourful sky wash reflected in water, then the mid tones, and finally the shadows and darks. He emphasised working with vigour using a big brush, varying the shades of colour, not joining up all lines to create lost and found areas, and avoiding regular patterning in the mark making. His tips included the use of raw sienna colour, particularly in the initial washes and to make greens, and using a beaten up old brush to make irregular marks for foliage. A very enjoyable workshop with some lovely paintings created! |
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THURSDAY FEBRUARY 27 PRESENTATION AND TALK ON PICASSO LED BY VALERIE BROWN This week, members enjoyed a fascinating presentation and talk by HAC member Valerie Brown on the life and some of the works of Pablo Picasso. She took us through the various periods in Picasso's life (Blue Period, Rose Period, African influenced Period, Cubism, Neoclassical, Surrealism) and looked at examples of his work, whilst explaining the political, artistic and personal influences on him at that time. A very enjoyable and informative evening, with many amusing anecdotes from a knowledgeable Valerie! |
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THURSDAY FEBRUARY 20 CLOTHED LIFE DRAWING LED BY KEITH HIGHAM Keith organised a successful life drawing session in which our model Yollanda wore some colourful costumes and held a series of poses ranging from 5 minutes to 20 minutes. Many thanks to both Yollanda, and also to Keith for rearranging the structure of the evening when Yollanda was unavoidably stuck in traffic. Thanks too to the members who volunteered to be sketched in the early part of the evening before our model arrived! |
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THURSDAY FEBRUARY 13 WORKSHOP ON ABSTRACT PAINTING LED BY DEBBIE PROTHERO Debbie gave a brief presentation discussing the difference between abstract and semi-abstract art, which looked at various examples such as Mondrian and Kandinsky's work. She then made suggestions for making marks in different ways using a variety of implements, after which it was up to members to be creative. A thoroughly enjoyable session! |
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THURSDAY FEBRUARY 6
DEMONSTRATION ON SEMI-ABSTRACT PAINTING IN ACRYLICS LED BY HEATHER MILLER Heather started off the demonstration by discussing the sketch she had done earlier of three trees on the edge of water. She then proceeded to mark out using dark acrylic paint her "main characters", the trees. After that she built up the composition in layers to give the glowing light and reflections she wanted to portray. She demonstrated a number of techniques including scumbling dryish paint, dripping thin paint, using complementary colours to knock back bright tones, using newspaper to tonk the painting (remove the top layer of paint), and using a variety of brushes and implements to make different marks. A very informative evening. |
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THURSDAY JANUARY 30
PRESENTATION AND WORKSHOP ON MATISSE CUT-OUTS LED BY DEBBIE KNIGHT Debbie gave a brief introduction and then asked members to paint sheets of paper in colours that appealed to them. While these dried, she gave a very interesting presentation on Henri Matisse, his art over his lifetime and his artistic influences, which culminated in his work in old age with cut out shapes. Members then used the now dry coloured paper to cut out simplified shapes to express an idea in a Matisse style picture, whilst balancing the shapes in terms of colour and weight. A very fun session - ideal to loosen up and be a bit mad and creative! |
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THURSDAY JANUARY 23, 2020 WORKSHOP ON SKY AND WATER LANDSCAPES IN PASTEL LED BY YVONNE BOLTON Yvonne introduced the workshop with a brief video which illustrated using pastels to create a seascape. She then went on to describe the process she uses to create her own pastel landscapes of dramatic skies and seas. Members then created their own pastel paintings, with help and advice from Yvonne. |
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THURSDAY JANUARY 16, 2020 WORKSHOP ON LANDSCAPES IN PASTEL LED BY SONIA BACCHUS In a change to the published programme, Sonia stepped in to lead this workshop. She discussed types of pastels and papers, did a quick demonstration painting in pastel, then encouraged members to create their own landscape painting. She spent the rest of the evening talking to each member individually, and giving tips, ideas and encouragement. A very good start to the new year which was enjoyed by all. Many thanks Sonia for helping out at short notice! |
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THURSDAY DECEMBER 5 CHRISTMAS WORKSHOP AND SOCIAL As a continuation of last week's theme of looking at fundamental shapes, the evening started off with a workshop in which members drew or painted Christmas baubles and holly. This seemingly simple still life amused and challenged members when it came to the complex reflections seen in the baubles. In the second half of the meeting, members enjoyed a sociable time with wine and a wonderful selection of food. Happy Christmas! |
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THURSDAY NOVEMBER 28 WORKSHOP ON FUNDAMENTAL SHAPES - A BREAKFAST STILL LIFE, LED BY SARAH POPPLETON Sarah gave a brief reminder of some aspects of perspective, particularly relating to ellipses, and some tips about accurate measurement of proportions and angles. Then members drew or painted sections of the breakfast table still life arrangements set up with plenty of spherical, cylindrical and cuboid shapes to grapple with. |
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THURSDAY NOVEMBER 21 WORKSHOP ON PORTRAITS IN MIXED MEDIA LED BY ANNE HIGNELL Anne gave a brief recap of last week's portrait demo and then discussed other potential ways of depicting portraits using a variety of mixed media methods including using collage, paint, pastels and inks. Members then enjoyed putting some of these ideas into practice. |
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THURSDAY NOVEMBER 14 DEMONSTRATION ON PORTRAIT PAINTING IN ACRYLICS LED BY TONY JACKSON Tony gave a very helpful demonstration in which he used ultramarine acrylic to create a tone portrait of his grandfather from an old photograph, which he then brought to life with thin washes of colour. He emphasised the need to keep working on all areas of the portrait at once rather than concentrating on just one area at a time, and to keep adjusting and changing it until it is right. |
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THURSDAY OCTOBER 31 WORKSHOP ON COLOURED PENCIL TECHNIQUES LED BY AMANDA XUEREB Amanda gave a very interesting talk on various aspects of using coloured pencils in artwork, including some useful techniques such as shading, burnishing and using Zest-it medium to improve blending. She was then very helpful with advice as members tried out these techniques. |
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THURSDAY OCTOBER 24 LIFE DRAWING LED BY KEITH HIGHAM The life drawing session began with a few quick five minute poses, and progressed to longer 10 - 15 minute poses. With many thanks to Andy the model, who held some strong positions with a variety of shapes, that members enjoyed drawing. |
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