Table of contents for July 2017 in Paint & Draw

QUENTIN BLAKE: THE ONLY WAY TO TRAVEL Jerwood Gallery , Hastings, 14 June – 15 October ‘The Only Way to Travel’ is the biggest-ever exhibition of Sir Quentin Blake’s work, revealing his thoughts on topics that concern him – including mental health, the squeezing of creativity and the refugee crisis – in his trademark style. Through extraordinary beasts, machines and bizarre scenes, the 84-year-old artist tackles loneliness, depression, energy and enthusiasm. www.jerwoodgallery.org TURNER AND THE SUN The Gallery , Winchester Discovery Centre, 5 August – 15 October 2017 Any fan of JMW Turner’s work will know his obsession with sunlight. Shortly before his death, the artist declared that “the Sun is God”. Based on 12 loans from Tate Britain, this exhibition is the first to be dedicated entirely…

Use paper collage for fresh ideas as you work CREATING a painting without a plan can be scary at first but it can completely transform your art. Combining paper collage with acrylic and working without a plan is exciting, fun and very creative. I have a vast collection of different papers, whether it’s old magazines or beautiful handmade Japanese papers, and the papers often give me ideas as I work. About SYLVIA PAUL Dovercourt, Harwich, Essex Sylvia’s work has featured in many shows including at the RA Summer Exhibition. She has also exhibited in Japan. www.sylviapaul.com Make a personal paper collection When on holiday, collect tickets, maps, newspapers and anything unusual. Charity shops are great for old maps, books and stamps. Ask family and friends to donate any treasures that…

dot-art Liverpool gallery and arts organisation dot-art runs a busy program of art classes and courses across a wide range of subjects in venues across the city. http://dot-art.co.uk/art-classes info@dot-art.com The Liver Sketching Club Established 1872, this is the oldest continuously active amateur art club in England. Members and nonmembers meet over 30 times each month, with classes from £6-£10. www.liversketchingclub.com liversketchingclub@yahoo.co.uk Kirkby Gallery Kirkby Gallery holds drawing (Saturdays) and watercolour painting (Wednesdays) classes for all abilities. They cost £4 and you need to bring your own equipment. http://bit.ly/pad10_kirkby_gallerytina.ball@knowsley.gov.uk Life Drawing Paul Gatenby delivers weekly classes and one-off special classes throughout the year. Topics range from beginner’s painting to portrait drawing, and cost from £8-£10. https://theartroomliverpool.com pg.sculpture@yahoo.co.uk…

Ever since moving to Berlin, I’ve wanted to paint the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. After being bombed in WWII, it remained untouched as a testimony to the barbarism and sacrifice of war. It has always managed to catch my eye and soul. When painting from life, it is important to find a comfortable spot from which to paint. In the case of this church that proved to be a difficult task, because it is in a part of the city popular with tourists, and at the time of painting, it was the freezing Berlin winter. I actually prefer to paint it in winter, because the weather and light conditions are more dramatic and gloomy. However, it does pose challenges, namely the changing weather and light conditions, and the shortness of…

“He can’t always explain what he’s doing in detail, because it’s more about trying things out and seeing if they work” Publisher : APV Films Price : £28.55 (DVD); £25 (streamed on-demand) Web : www.apvfilms.com Most artists dream of visiting France, setting up an easel in a backstreet, and spending an afternoon painting a pretty scene. And that’s exactly what Bath-based plein-air artist Peter Brown does in this video, in four of the narrow streets and squares that surround the ampitheatre in the city of Arles. There’s little in the way of preamble: he just dives in and starts painting, with no explanation of the paints he’s using or the surface he’s applying them to. And that basically sets the tone for the whole video. Because although he does chat…

DEAR EDITOR, I find Paint & Draw inspirational. I look forward to reading it, so much so that I have decided to subscribe. I’m not an artist as such, I do embroidery, but first I paint my picture on fabric and then highlight it with embroidery and embellish it with beads, shells or whatever it seems to need. In your April issue I was inspired to follow your pastel artist’s tips, Rebecca de Mendonça, and enjoyed the project. I didn’t use pastels, I used fabric paints, and now have what I consider a beautiful picture to highlight with embroidery. Thank you Rebecca and Paint & Draw for helping me along the artistic path. Best wishes, Carol (Arnall), via email Beren replies: Hello Carol, thank you for getting in touch with…

Pastels are the perfect medium for drawing and painting animals, with so many different marks available, many of which I looked at in last month’s article. As a tactile medium that we hold in our hand, it is easy to convey what an animal would feel like to touch. We can work quickly with pastels, which is a great help when capturing character and personality, and fantastic for movement. A smudge here and a swish of the hand there can bring a painting to life. However, knowing when to smudge and when to leave a sharp mark untouched can make a huge difference to your work. Don’t underestimate the importance of some structural knowledge where animals are concerned. It is a good idea to do some homework, looking at bone…

Bluecoat Gallery At 300 years old, the Grade 1 listed building that houses the Bluecoat Gallery is Liverpool’s oldest. Boasting four galleries, the creative hub showcases talent across visual art, music, dance, live art and literature. www.thebluecoat.org.uk The Royal Standard An artist-led gallery, The Royal Standard operates a dynamic and challenging gallery programme that brings together local, national and international artists. https://the-royal-standard.com Editions Ltd Gallery This stylish gallery showcases work by established artists and original pieces by new artists working in the north west. As well as regular exhibitions, Editions also offers a framing service. www.editionsltd.net Lady Lever Art Gallery Based in the beautiful model village of Port Sunlight, the Lady Lever Art Gallery has one of the UK’s most impressive collections of fine and decorative art, as well as…

Shading and rendering is my favourite part of a 10- or 20-minute pose. Here, I’ll introduce some of the basic principles, tools and techniques that I use to shade or render in a short amount of time. Before I begin, I first analyse and limit the values I use. For life drawing, I use a three-value palette of light, dark and midtone. This helps me control values as I shade and render forms. To define forms, I use a combination of soft or hard edges. Soft edges do the majority of the work and create the most natural look. Hard edges are great for accents or sculpting forms. There are many shading and blending techniques, but they can simplified into either line or tonal drawing. Line is great for details…

Creating interest in a still life is about engaging the viewer with a variety of flavours. Colourful sprinkles will certainly catch the eye, but what makes someone stop and continue engaging with the piece? If you’re working realistically as I am, research and the process of acquiring the objects is a vital first step. In this case that meant a visit to the best doughnut shop in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Huron Bakery. Looking at the contrasts between props guides the still life set-up for me. If something is dark, put it against something light, and vice versa. Play pattern against solid areas and look for repetitions to move the eye across the composition. Once the objects are organised, I pick up a camera and look at viewpoint and…

Drawing and Painting: Animals with Expressions Author : Marjolein Kruijt Publisher : Search Press Price : £15.99 Web : www.searchpress.com WE’VE ALL HEARD that old showbiz saying, ‘Never work with children or animals’. But Marjolein Kruijt owes her livelihood to the latter, and begins her book with a tribute to the “inspiring beauty” of creatures great and small. Split into easy-to-use chapters, she includes a list of useful materials, as well as a comparison of sources of inspiration: ranging from the excitement of location-based sketching, to using photography for reference. The text is punchy, with each spread dominated by photography, sketches and artwork relating to different aspects of animal portraiture. Much of the focus is on personality, with whole chapters dedicated to cats and dogs, as well as a more…

Many artists dislike painting foliage, probably because dealing with so many subtle nuances of green can be overwhelming. My advice is to simplify. View the scene as colour ‘blocks’, and don’t be afraid to push the difference between them further than reality. It can always be toned down later. Valérie Pirlot, page 40 Oils just bored me. But watercolour – that was more intriguing. Painting in oils is like training a dog, while painting in watercolours is like training your cat. Stan Miller, page 46…

Take a trip to the Bluecoat Gallery “The official must-see is the Bluecoat Gallery in the city centre, which has a diverse programme of temporary exhibits,” says Roland Keogh. “I visited it recently while it was exhibiting artists who had some connection to Liverpool. Many were quite brilliant.” Catch the ferry to the Wirral “Take a trip on the famous Mersey Ferry to Birkenhead and look back at the iconic Liverpool waterfront, a subject for many local artists,” advises Dennis Spicer. “Then visit the Williamson Art Gallery in Birkenhead, which has an eclectic collection of 19th century and contemporary art. Then head for West Kirby to catch a spectacular sunset over the Dee Estuary and Hilbre Island, before heading back for a night out in Liverpool.” Or take the train…

Having started as a series of occasional creative meet-ups, Sketchmeet proved so popular that it evolved into a bi-monthly event at London’s House of Illustration, and it’s packed out every time. “Each event has different themes, often linked to our exhibitions,” explains Michael Czerwinski, curator of public programmes and host of Sketchmeet at House of Illustration. Although places are limited to 80, the reach of the event goes far beyond the four walls of the gallery thanks to the #Sketchmeet hashtag on Twitter, as Michael explains: “We are really interested in growing the number of people who participate digitally,” he says. “We post the themes online beforehand, and you can draw along at home and share your work, wherever you are in the world.” Event partner Winsor & Newton helps…