My first newsletter.....

There's a slight chill in the air, the leaves are starting to fall and my daughter keeps coming home with pocketfuls of conkers.....It can only mean one thing... yep... the Autumn art classes are about to begin and I cant wait to get creative with you all again!

Here's a few pictures from my last sessions of the summer term where we get adventurous and go plein air..... it was so roasting we had to hunt for shade for fear of over heating : )

This was the from my Drawing and Painting class up near Havering-atte-Bower at the back of the Green and the horses stables. It was recommended from a learner (thank you Terry) as one of his favourite walks and I can see why, it is absolutely beautiful. If you want to get inspired by nature definitely head up there for breath taking views and you might be as lucky as us to have the horses wondering past.

Here's the watercolour class enjoying the views and shade of Hornchurch Country Park. It was so lovely down by the river where it was cooler than in the centre, glorious.....

There's something magical about drawing and painting outside, almost like a Cinderella moment as chicks swim past, dragonflies dance in front of you and the birds sing. Definitely good for the soul. If you havent tried it I would definitely recommend it.

Getting in the mood for summer.....

Another week and another topic, this week we looked at seascapes. Here's my seascape of Holywell Bay in Cornwall which always brings back happy memories. It's looking a bit empty at the moment but next week i'll be adding life into paintings so I'll add some people and a good old wind breaker. 

Here's all the lovely students getting creative...

Feeling the cold.....

January has been full of germs for me but that hasnt stopped any creativity, maybe slowed it down a little : ) My classes are in full swing and we have one more session until half term, where does the time go?

Last week we looked at a winter snow scene in my Oils and Pastels class and I did a little simple scene working wet on wet. It can be quite frustrating work wet on wet as the paint moves around a lot! But if you go with it and have a little fun experimenting it can be a fun way to work. 

I'm always blown away by the work of the students and there's been no stopping them so far this term. Here's what they created.....

I love the fact that everyone is different and they all bring their own unique quality to their work which is always a joy to watch.

Merry Christmas everyone....

The College decided to use one of my learners festive images as their Season's Greetings this year. 

There was a lot of great entries including all of the great works below but they settled on Deborah How's lovely snow scene above. I'm really proud of all the learners who submitted amazing work, well done everyone.

Mark, painted the beautiful deer above, and made it to second place in an online festive greetings image competition. Big congratulations especially as he's only been painting for just under a year now. It's amazing what you can achieve when you try. 

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone : )