truro art society and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. her equipment was...

9
1 TRURO ART SOCIETY NEWSLETTER AUTUMN / WINTER 2016 CHRISTMAS PARTY This is the one meeting of the year that we hold on a Saturday (before the end of term, so that we can still get into the school). So it will be on December 10 th . All are welcome. Bring along your family and friends. The more the merrier, and no admission charge for guests. All we request is that you bring along a seasonal winter picture, or Christmas card design, a plate of festive food (not too much, we don‟t want lots left over), some change for the raffle, etc. plus your artistic talent and knowledge. If you happen to have any unwanted gifts from last year, any unwanted books, etc. to add to the raffle prizes, they would be gratefully received. We will supply drinks and entertainment. INNER TIDE WORKSHOP In September Tony Hogan, a nationally renowned artist, now living in Wadebridge, tutored a watercolour workshop upstairs in the Inner Tide Café. Nine ladies attended and painted a seascape in the morning, using a sideways draining technique for the sky and credit cards to remove heavily applied paint to depict the rocks. Some very colourful and subtle works were created; all different. A delicious lunch was provided by the very helpful Inner Tide cafe staff. The afternoon saw us painting a perspective picture of receding trees and again there were some delightful works produced. Tony Hogan will be joining us next season to introduce us to Atelier Interactive Acrylic paints - anticipated to be a lively session. Also in the Inner Tide Cafe, TAS member Pat Cunningham organised a successful little exhibition for the Thursday painting group and Kea art group. CATHEDRAL EXHIBITION This was a smaller exhibition space than we had at Chacewater Garden Centre but the membership rose splendidly to the challenge of producing suitably sized pictures. The new hanging chains and clips proved easy and effective to use. The result was a very attractive and well-received exhibition. We would be tempted to use the venue again next year sometime (perhaps for a third exhibition).

Upload: others

Post on 03-Aug-2020

1 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

1

TRURO ART SOCIETY

NEWSLETTER

AUTUMN / WINTER 2016

CHRISTMAS PARTY

This is the one meeting of the year that we

hold on a Saturday (before the end of term,

so that we can still get into the school). So it

will be on December 10th. All are welcome.

Bring along your family and friends. The

more the merrier, and no admission charge for

guests. All we request is that you bring along a

seasonal winter picture, or Christmas card

design, a plate of festive food (not too much,

we don‟t want lots left over), some change for

the raffle, etc. plus your artistic talent and

knowledge. If you happen to have any

unwanted gifts from last year, any unwanted

books, etc. to add to the raffle prizes, they

would be gratefully received. We will supply

drinks and entertainment.

INNER TIDE WORKSHOP

In September Tony Hogan, a nationally

renowned artist, now living in Wadebridge,

tutored a watercolour workshop upstairs in the

Inner Tide Café.

Nine ladies attended and painted a seascape

in the morning, using a sideways draining

technique for the sky and credit cards to

remove heavily applied paint to depict the

rocks. Some very colourful and subtle works

were created; all different. A delicious lunch

was provided by the very helpful Inner Tide

cafe staff. The afternoon saw us painting a

perspective picture of receding trees and again

there were some delightful works produced.

Tony Hogan will be joining us next season to

introduce us to Atelier Interactive Acrylic paints

- anticipated to be a lively session.

Also in the Inner Tide Cafe, TAS member Pat

Cunningham organised a successful little

exhibition for the Thursday painting group and

Kea art group.

CATHEDRAL EXHIBITION

This was a smaller exhibition space than we

had at Chacewater Garden Centre but the

membership rose splendidly to the challenge of

producing suitably sized pictures. The new

hanging chains and clips proved easy and

effective to use. The result was a very

attractive and well-received exhibition. We

would be tempted to use the venue again next

year sometime (perhaps for a third exhibition).

Page 2: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

2

The pictures sat very well within the

background of the Cathedral‟s stained glass

windows - and even the reflections of the

windows in the picture glass added a certain

something. The venue was also pleasant to

steward and we did sell several pictures.

You covered the whole range of materials

between you; oil, watercolour, pastel, textile,

pen and ink, even gold. Style and subject

matter were equally varied; realism and

abstract, serious and humorous, architecture,

flora and fauna, portraits, landscapes and

seascapes.

Page 3: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

3

SEPTEMBER MEETING

We were lucky that there were no problems

with Judi Trevorrow‟s flight from Spain

because she came to us almost straight from

Newquay airport for her watercolour still-life

demonstration.

Rather than using “fresh” mushrooms that

would have progressively shrivelled during the

course of the evening, she had photographed

and printed out some rather beautiful

Portobello mushrooms.

And rather than copying the arrangement in

the photo, Judi selected which mushroom to

draw and where to put it, and progressively

built up her composition. Before painting, she

put masking tape around the edge of her

design.

Judi gave a running commentary as she

“played” with her paints. It all looked so easy!

She paused from time to time so that we could

go away and repeat what she had just done.

Not quite so easy!

The limited palette gave Judi a chance to talk

about various colours, brands; their

advantages and problems. The brown burnt

sienna she had chosen was transparent,

whereas the blue ultramarine was granulating.

When used together in a wash, particularly on

wet paper, they behaved differently and gave

some beautifully textured effects. It was

impressive how many shades of fawny greys

could be achieved just by different proportions

of the same colours and varying amounts of

water.

A good tip was to have two pots of water:

clean water for wetting the paper and adding to

the washes, the other for washing her brush.

Wetting the paper and tilting it allowed the

water and paint to run in the desired direction

without having to brush it.

Judi produced her light areas on the

mushrooms by dabbing away the water and

paint with some kitchen towel. And the

mushrooms were made to look more three-

dimensional by putting in the dark shadows.

Page 4: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

4

Judi waxed lyrical about her (rather

expensive) paintbrush. It was large enough to

be loaded up with a lot of paint to lay down

large marks but at the same time it came to a

good point for putting on fine lines. The final

definition was produced by picking out the

ends of the stalks and the fine lines of the

radiating gills.

OCTOBER MEETING

This month‟s demonstration by Wendy

Parkyn, gave us some idea of how she

produces her wonderful moody, atmospheric

seascapes, such as the following one.

Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison

and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard

ones), set out in a handy sewing box (you can

store pastels in ground rice to keep them

clean), and creamy coloured Ken Bromley

Fisher 400 Art Pastel paper (advertised to hold

“twice as much pastel as pastel card”) which

she was trying out. (She has usually been

using grey pastel card, which is slightly rough,

though not as rough as sandpaper.)

This time her subject was Polzeath, using a

photo she had taken herself from the top of a

cliff. It had interesting perspective to deal with

– looking down towards the rocks below the

cliff and outwards towards the horizon. It was

towards the sun, which threw the far cliffs into

shadow. If you work from a photo you do not

have to copy it slavishly. You can alter the

state of the tide if you want more or less

beach. You can alter the sun‟s intensity by

varying the shadows. You can reflect the

Page 5: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

5

colour of the sky from wet rock. You can leave

bits of rock out if they are confusing. It is your

composition!

Before starting she selected the colours she

thought she‟d need and tried them out on a

scrap of card. (If the correct colour is not

available you can get the colour you want by

layering and rubbing two colours together. Use

a rolled paper “torchon” to blend You can get

blenders or shapers with rubber ends, but they

may be too drastic. If you use your fingers, as

Wendy demonstrated – and she did a lot of

rubbing to soften the colours, they can become

extremely raw and sore.) Normally Wendy

works flat, but for the demonstration she had to

use an easel.

She drew the picture out first, so that

everything was in the right place, using a

pastel pencil of an appropriate colour. (These

are also useful for details.) Then she worked

dark to light and background to foreground,

making marks to help with angles and

perspective. (It is important not to put the

highlights in too soon as they can get messy.)

Initially Wendy used cobalt blue for the sky,

making it paler down towards the horizon, and

Prussian blue for the sea, with some dark

green. Dull background green, blended with

black, was used for the cliffs and rocks.

(Remember that whites and brights look better

if there is enough dark contrast.) Rocks are

darker where they are wet underwater,

irrespective of shadows (push colour up to

avoid lines) and the sea is slightly darker under

the headland where the rocks continue down

under water (cliffs don‟t float). She put some

warmer greens in the foreground plus a bit of

orange.

The beach is grey-brown. However, the main

interest is the sea. This was layered; dark first,

then medium, then lighter blue. (Try to make

marks the way the water moves.) Then to put

on the surf! To get the perspective right, check

the angles relative to the horizon and the

foreground and the foam should not be a

straight line – so lots of scribbling needed. The

crest of a wave has a darker shadow

underneath the foam. The white goes on last –

a soft pastel gives a brighter white than a hard

one does – but don‟t overdo the highlights –

don‟t put them everywhere!

NOVEMBER MEETING

We are grateful to Gordon Hunt for

stepping in to fill the gap when Sally MacCabe

was unable to come. He gave a fascinating

demonstration of his unusual contre-jour

technique. A return visit, this time he showed

us how he puts figures into his tonal

landscapes. He used to paint empty

landscapes, now he thinks figures draw the

eye in.

Known as an artist who “paints the light”,

some of you may have seen him as one of the

contestants on Sky Arts Landscape Artist of

Page 6: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

6

the Year, painting the beautiful Scotney Castle

in Kent, in purple tones.

Gordon started off with a “mood board”, a

selection of his own photos of backlit figures,

with plenty of reflections and shadows, some

with sections enlarged. The figures were in a

variety of wet locations, including the beach,

although he was painting a rather rainy Truro

street scene. (Note, it is easier to take photos

of people when they are walking away from

you!)

The starting point was a completely black

canvas, with outline buildings and the first

figures sketched in with watercolour pencils

(easy to erase or cover). Gordon showed us

how extra figures could be traced onto the

canvas using homemade “carbon paper” (light

pastel rubbed on the back of ordinary paper),

again easy to eradicate.

It normally takes him 5-6 hours to do this size

of painting, even using acrylics rather than oils,

so demonstrating in less than 2 hours required

some shortcuts and the occasional use of the

hair dryer. Gordon finds that cheaper Reeves

paints work just as well as more expensive

brands. Having a pre-mixed selection of tones of grey

saved time. He reminded us that acrylics

always dry darker than they look when wet.

Starting with the darkest, he painted the

negative spaces around the figures and

buildings, leaving the main figures standing out

in black.

Using progressively lighter tones of grey and

adding extra figures as he went, always

painting the negative space, Gordon built up

the picture. Shadows, rather than being added,

were areas left unpainted when the next layer

went on. Perspective was achieved with the

further figures being progressively smaller and

lighter grey, always with the background being

lighter than the figures.

Colour was finally added for sunshine and

sunny reflections on wet cobbles. Gordon also

likes to put random dots, sparkles, in

complementary colours, to give the effect you

get when you squint in bright sunlight. It helps

to bring the picture to life and move the eye

around. Finally, when the paint is dry, any

watercolour pencil or pastel still visible can be

wiped off gently with a damp cloth. We went

away fired with enthusiasm to try the technique

ourselves.

Page 7: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

7

MEMBERS’ NEWS Gordon Hunt was not the only familiar figure

at Scotney Castle. TAS member Joanne

McGee was lucky enough to be able to enter

as a “wild card”. Although she generally paints

at home, as it is not always easy for her to get

out and about, she was inspired by the idea of

painting in a beautiful location to apply after

watching and enjoying last year‟s competition.

Here are some of her comments to give us a

flavour of what it was like to be in a big

competition.

Entrants were required to send digital images

of paintings done within the last five years.

One of those had to be a main entry. It was

hard choosing which ones to send, and it took

me a few days to complete the application

process and write a few things about myself.

Time went on, and I put it out of my mind.

For a while, I had been attending a wellbeing

art group near Mylor. This was the reason I'd

started to paint again; after losing all

enthusiasm due to some very dramatic life

changes. I'd just been to my wellbeing art

group and decided to drive a bit further down

the estuary and have a go at a live painting. It

started to rain, and a few walkers approached

me to ask about my work, when my phone

rang. It was Sky Arts inviting me for the 14th

June at Scotney Castle (the nearest location).

There were strict conditions, and I wasn't

allowed to tell anyone, other than my nearest

and dearest, until it was to be broadcast.

My daughter and I drove up to Kent in my

campervan the night before, complete with my

mobility scooter, canvas and paints. All

contestants had to be at the castle for 07.30

sign in, though no painting was allowed until a

horn sounded at 09.00. All the crew were

helpful and kind, and we were shown the area

from which the wild cards were to paint. Being

one of the first down there, we had a beautiful

view of the castle.

We had 4 hours in which to complete the

artwork, spread over a total of 6 hours to allow

for breaks.

During a break, the film crew came over to

take some close up shots of my painting and

an hour later judge, Kathleen Soriano, came

over with the film crew and asked if I would

give an interview. They went on to interview a

couple of others throughout the day. Sadly, my

interview wasn't in the final broadcast edit, but

my daughter and I were featured a lot in the

group shots.

Everyone had to stop when the horn

sounded again. Kathleen announced that a

wildcard had been chosen, and we went over

to take a look. It was easy to stand around and

Page 8: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

8

applaud as the wildcard was beautiful, and

very deserving to have been chosen! I wasn't

at all disappointed, as just taking part had been

the biggest opportunity I could ever have

imagined.

We went to the main contestants‟ area to see

the paintings there! It was all surreal, it was like

a dream. The weather for the day had been

kind to us and the location perfect. I thought

that the area for the wild cards had been a

much better spot than that given to the main

contestants. The whole day was one I will

never forget, and given the chance, I would

apply again.

A BLAST FROM THE PAST Looking through the archives I uncovered

“Outline”, a magazine produced by TAS for a

few years, starting in March 1988. Long before

the electronic age, it was produced using typed

stencils and duplication. Pam Entwistle (for

many years our highly respected President)

invited members‟ contributions on any topic

involving the visual arts. The first report about

a meeting was on an oil painting portrait

demonstration by Nicholas St. John Rosse at

Archbishop Benson School (our venue before

we moved to Truro High School). Here‟s one of

his pictures, though not the one done in the

demonstration. Wouldn‟t it be nice to get him

back – though he‟s probably far too grand and

expensive now!

Rita Glover summarised: “Look hard, be

definite. Although Nicholas carefully, but firmly,

lays the small patches of paint on (various

sized patches) he uses his brush at all angles

continually.” Other meetings had hosted Clive

Williams (art master at Penryn comprehensive)

on art in the 50s and 60s, and Roy Walker,

painter and printmaker, (who sadly died in

2001). TAS had a December exhibition at The

Art Centre Trust, Lemon Street and sold two

paintings. Some works had been rejected

because of unsuitable framing. It seems that

some problems are perennial!

COMPETITION NEWS

These are paintings selected for exhibition in

previous years of the Lynn Painter-Stainers

Prize. The call is out again for entries for

2017. Visit the website for more information:

http://www.lynnpainterstainersprize.org.uk/

You can apply directly through the website via

the „Info for Artists' page which will redirect you

to the ArtOpps website where you can set up

an account and upload your work:

https://lps.artopps.co.uk/

The deadline for entry is 5pm on 19

December.

Page 9: TRURO ART SOCIETY and painted a seascape · seascapes, such as the following one. Her equipment was pastels (she likes Unison and Sennelier soft pastels but also uses hard ones),

9

COMING IN THE NEW YEAR

On January 18th we look forward to a return

visit from Ann Bennett-Lofthouse who will

demonstrate a number of figure drawings

using charcoal and pastels. This will be

another great opportunity to join in and draw at

the same time, so bring along drawing pads

and some materials and have a go. A good

little fore-taste of figure drawing is available on

YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpzDHQqc

Kd4

I don‟t think our efforts will be quite as

ambitious as Ann‟s picture above, but you get

a good idea of possibilities for colours, etc.

Charcoal and pastels provide a great range of

darks and lights, particularly with a mid-tone

paper.

On February 15th, Sue Lewington will also

pay us a return visit. This will be a

demonstration of watercolour techniques

together with a chance for us to ask questions

and sort out individual problems. Coupled with

this we are bringing the Critique forward, so

please bring along your own work of art

and Sue can give advice and comments. (It

doesn‟t have to be watercolour.)

Sue‟s own watercolour works are

enormously varied, in techniques, styles and

subject matter.