EXMOUTH ART GROUP

. Alex will be guiding us in capturing birds in motion. We will need to bring our own drawing materials. We can then have some time drawing the birds and landscape and then go into Lyme Regis to see Alex Boons exhibition at the Town Mill .We can car share. There will be a small fee but details to follow.

David lives in Topsham and has had a successful career in a variety of artistic disciplines and works in a variety of media. For several years he was a portrait sketch artist on the Greek island of Corfu before becoming a signwriter and developing a reputation as a pictorial, fairground and mural artist.

In 2000 he moved to Sydney for 10 years and earned a living as a full-time artist concentrating on his own work. He is a member of the Australian Society of Marine Artists and was a finalist and highly commended at various art shows and competitions in Australia. He also illustrated books, one of which was shortlisted for an award.

As well as exhibiting and selling original paintings, David publishes his own art prints and greetings cards and is regularly asked to do commissions. He also does painting demonstrations and workshops for art groups.

He has been selected for various exhibitions including: South West Academy (SWAC), Royal Institute of Oil Painters (ROI), Royal Society of British Artists (RBA) and the Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA)

5. For the demo:

I’ll be doing a complete painting of flowers from preparing the canvas through to the finished painting. I will be painting in acrylics in a classic, slightly impressionistic style and I will put the painting in a frame to complete the demo. I will introduce myself and give a little of my background, explain what materials I like to use, the process I go through when painting and encourage people to ask questions as I’m painting.

NIC GEORGE -

PROFESSIONAL ART EDUCATION CONSULTANT AND ARTIST

Talk and Demonstration


Nic originally hails from the village of Cil-ffriw near Neath, in the South Wales cvalleys and comes from a family of artists, inventors and stone masons. He moved to Exmouth in 1987 to study Primary Art Education at Rolle College and quickly fell in love with the sea and surrounding areas.

On the most dramatic of days, Nic can be found windsurfing off Exmouth or exploring the coast around Exmouth or the Devon hills with his lurcher Betty. These are the times that inspire him the most and provide the influence for his dramatic work which captures the relationship and movement between the land, sea and sky.  

Nic’s work is predominantly in acrylic and he uses a process of layering to create paintings with atmosphere and emotion. The titles of his paintings are linked to the poems of Dylan Thomas who is one his personal heroes and inspirations.

In 2021, Nic set up his art education consultancy which has gone from strength to strength. He trains both qualifying and experienced teachers in primary art education primary, regularly works as an artist in residence and leads a variety of art workshops both in schools and community settings.

Nic is also the Art Education Officer for the South West Academy of Fine and Applied Arts (SWAc) which is dedicated to advancing the creation and appreciation of art in the South West of Britain.

Nic’s talk and demo will give a fascinating and lively insight into his professional work as an art consultant as the various elements he incorporates that form art education. After our break, Nic will give us an insight and practical demonstration into the process of how he creates his latest seascapes painting which incorporate bold colours and exaggerated form.

Instagram – nicgeorgeart

www.nicgeorgeart.com

Workshop

Make a floral corsage , bowl or bag using a calico resist and a scarf felted onto cotton cheesecloth.

Maximum 12 people . We will need to spread out and use quite a lot of equipment.

Cost £28 inc. materials- wool, calico resist, fabric for scarf.

All other equipment will be provided apart from an old towel and rubber gloves should you wish to protect your hands- and an apron if you wish to avoid getting splashed with soapy water.

Please note, felt making is very physical and full on- it may not be suitable for people with arthritis in hands . A certain amount of stamina is required to get to the end. Some processes can be finished off at home in a washing machine !

1. Make a corsage.
2. Make a bowl or bag using a calico resist.

Break.

1. Make more beads/balls as desired for decoration.
2. Make a nuno felted scarf.

I followed a foundation course at Bourneville School of Arts and Crafts then took a degree in Landscape and Literature at Birmingham University before becoming a teacher. My own time was full of sewing and drawing and I earned a living from dressmaking skills- bridal gowns, re-upholstery, ball gowns-anything and everything before my 32 years teaching textiles up to A level and adult education. As soon as I retired I reached for the art materials to catch up on my journey. I always work from something I have seen, creating a felt background then stitching back into it with a great variety of other materials- textiles and other. I also paint, print and make papier mache items large and small. Attached a textiles picture "The One That Got Away"

Brief intro , explaining different materials that can be used, wool, silk and other fibres.

Quick look at needle felting equipment and methods.

Wet felting:

Demonstrations

1)Making a floral corsage- with a central ball. This is a bit girly but is a very good way to show basic techniques. An alternative is to make a larger piece of flat felt for a mat or spectacles case. Slippers and boots can be made from flat felt, stitched together, stuffed with bubble wrap and finished in the washing machine.

2)Making the ball or bead. Perfect cat toy ! Or key fob.

3)Making a piece of nuno felt for a scarf or other item.

Probably time for a tea break then people can have a go at making a ball or buy wool fleece and felting needles from me if they wish to.

The workshop:   We will mindfully explore the techniques to create some beautiful pieces that will be worth framing or repeating as cards.

Watercolours, black Sharpie markers, black fine liners, and white ink pens will be used. If you have any or all, please bring them.  I will also have some that can be used.  In the workshop you will all be given various sizes of plain paper to practise the techniques, once those techniques feel comfortable, the same processes can be repeated on watercolour paper that I will have already painted for use. Everyone will be given examples of typical doodling styles that can be added into the art pieces.

Stamping With A Difference:

In the demo I will show examples of the uses of stamping and pattern creation.

The workshop:  My fascination with using unusual and unexpected objects to create pattern in combination with colour will be in full flow in this workshop.  There will be an opportunity to test out some unique objects as well as to make stamps to take home for further use. The patterned papers that are created can be used to create collages or enhance other art pieces.

We will use acrylic paints which I will bring.  If you have a brayer or brushes that you are happy to use for acrylics, please bring them.  I will also have some that can be used. There will be an opportunity to carve small stamps.

Bio:

Tricia describes herself as an artist/maker.  She is passionate about creating, whether it is with recycled materials to build garden sculptures, upcycling otherwise redundant pieces of metal to produce something beautiful, or using brand new paint and paper to produce something for the indoors.  Tricia currently runs workshops to teach how to make art journals, sketchbooks, etc, from materials in our recycling boxes, stamp making from unusual sources, making Christmas decorations using Mexican tin art technique, and she hosts the monthly Mixed Media Art Club at the Cuppa Cabin where she encourages others to try out new techniques and to discover more of their own potential. In her professional life as a psychotherapist, Tricia is very keen to encourage the same with her clients:  for them to discover their potential and if that can include a creative life, all the better.

Neurographic Art:  I like to think about neurographic art as Simple, Mindful, Elegant Doodling.

In the demo, I will discuss the positive impact on the brain that comes from using a mindful practise, especially one that includes art.  We will look at how artists going back in history have used doodling to enhance their work. Time allowing, I will begin the process of showing the techniques and, for any who wish to, members of the group can follow along with me.

Workshop

In the longer session I will help the attendees:

• Explain why using Aps can speed up your ability to create a more accurate portrait whilst still allowing you to be creative
• Understand the use of value and lighting
• Create your very own Zorn palette
• Establish the structure of your portrait
• Explain blocking-in
• Explain underpainting
• Add crucial details to bring your portrait to life

I will demonstrate how to create a portrait from life using some tools such as:

• A model from the audience
• Your fingers and thumbs
• Proportional dividers
• Zorn palette - only 4 colours
• Plus how I use:
• Chroma Magic Ap
• Grid painter Ap
• Value Ap

The result should be a quick but recognisable portrait.

Although I was born in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in 1955 I have both a rich Celtic heritage, through my Irish and Scottish roots, and a strong independent streak that I take from my Yorkshire ancestors. I had the pleasure of living in Canada and all over the UK before finally settling next to the sea in Paignton, Devon.

I originally had a forty-year corporate career as a Chartered Accountant and Business Psychologist (working mainly in the creative sectors) before I gave it all up to pursue my dream of being a full-time artist in 2020.

I have been lucky enough to have travelled to some remote parts of the world to have experienced other cultures, artistic styles and visited amazing art galleries and many museums. My paintings incorporate some of the colours and designs that I have encountered on those travels.

My creative journey began with watercolours and dry mediums before transitioning to oils in 2020. I’ve since studied under some incredibly talented international artists such as Martin Kinnear RCA, David Grey, Cesar Santos, Danny Ferland, Louis Smith, Tina Garrett and Teresa Oaxaca.

I have been lucky to have lived in beautiful countryside all my life from the coastlines of Count Antrim, the hills of the Cotswolds and finally the dramatic countryside of Devon. These natural landscapes have allowed me to commune with nature, to feel at one with the land and the skies, to see how people interact with the land, to find peace and listen to the mood music that nature creates. My paintings try to capture the music and beauty of the landscapes and of the people I live amongst. Devon, and especially Teignmouth, has provided me with friendships which I have reflected in paintings of people from the area and allows me to suggest the powerful emotions that these people, landscapes and local scenes evoke in me.

I recently completed an 18 month Diploma in Oil Painting with the amazing contemporary artist Martin Kinnear RCA. Martin taught me studio craft and encouraged me to look at the many different genres of paintings. The course allowed me to develop my artistic practice, to use my imagination and be braver with my paintings both in colour, composition and in all technical aspects. This exhibition effective reflects learnings from my course.

My favourite artists include Bouguereau,  Sargent, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Degas, Sorolla, Van Gogh, Klimt, Schiele and Monet yet, as each month goes by I discover another!

All these influences have encouraged me to paint in a contemporary style with an emphasis on modern realism with supporting abstraction. I like bold, colourful compositions and where applicable I try to link them to how we as humans interact with others and nature.

You can see some of my latest work and some work in progress shots on Instagram IG:mcsparron_artist.

Woodland Painting with Palette Knives and Scrapers -

For the workshop we’ll be looking at working on woodlands on paper. I’ll use water mixable oils to demo. The materials list is as follows:

Water mixable oils or acrylics or traditional oils. Favourite colours I use are titanium white, Prussian blue, burnt Sienna, cadmium yellow, yellow ochre, crimson alizarin, burnt umber. Cotton rags (lots) palette knives, metal scrapers (used for plastering at diy shops) I’ll bring some of these in case you can’t get them, a couple of brushes, heavyweight paper, (or canvas if you like) low tack tape, quick drying medium for water mixable oils if you have it but not essential, palette, jar of water, board to work on if using paper.  I’ll bring lots of photo reference, but if you have personal woodland photos you’d like to bring that’s great.