Saturday Sketch Club at the Royal Academy of Arts

The Royal Academy of Arts has been running a FREE ONLINE Saturday Sketch Club for a while. I'm not sure how many people know about this (I didn't!) because there's not a lot of visits to their videos.

Below are the LINKS to the YouTube videos of various sessions. Most last an hour or thereabouts.

(NOTE: the links do NOT work on the RA website - you need to go to the links listed below)

 
Saturday Sketch Club: still life (10 May 2021) - still life drawing with Mark Hampson, Head of Fine Art Processes at the Royal Academy Schools.

Saturday Sketch Club: collage (26th May 2021) - Grab any paper you have lying around (newspapers, magazines, leaflets or receipts), a pair of scissors and something sticky (an old glue stick or some tape will do).

Saturday Sketch Club: anatomy drawing (1 June 2021) - Artist Adele Wagstaff leads a session on the anatomy of the human form; from the deep landmarks of the skeletal system, to the musculature which is evident on the surface of the body. Observe the structure and movement of the body as you practice drawing the model in a series of short and long poses.

Saturday Sketch Club: botanical drawing (7 June 2021) a session on botanical drawing with Laxmi Hussain. Laxmi will introduce you to techniques involved in mark making, to discover drawing as an everyday activity. Laxmi explores minimalism in her work through continuous line and will demonstrate how to approach and use these techniques.

( I'm going to jump in here and say if you want to know more about drawing plants do take a look at the Scientific Botanical Illustration on my Botanical Art and Artists website - which also discusses What is Botanical Art?) 

Saturday Sketch Club: drawing as exploration (14 June 2021) - Discover repetition and transformation in this workshop with Elinor Stanley, exploring the power of your drawing through multiple versions. Inspired by Picasso’s cut-outs, this session investigates how simple shapes can be crystallised into expressions and motifs for future

Saturday Sketch Club: experimenting with the figure (21 June 2021) - oin artist Jake Garfield for this fun and informal life drawing session. Working directly from a clothed model, you will break drawing down to its essential ingredients. Expect to explore formal qualities including “line”, “mark-making” and “tone” through a series of short activities, before combining these different aspects over an extended pose. This practical drawing session is perfect for beginners and experienced artists alike.

Saturday Sketch Club: drawing into the abstract (28 June 2021) - Emyr Williams for a workshop which will explore and challenge our perceptions of ‘realistic’ drawing and abstract art. Emyr will introduce us to new ways of seeing, building confidence in our drawing. 

This is the Link to ALL THE VIDEOS

Review: Episode 4 of Landscape Artist of the Year 2021 at Chartwell

Shortlisting line-up after landscape painting is over

Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year 2020 returned to Chartwell in Kent for the fourth episode having kicked off with a view of Chartwell the house in Episode 1 (see my review). 

This review of the fourth episode of Landscape Artist of the Year (Series 6) considers:

• the location and weather
• the artists profiles
• themes arising during the episode
• who was shortlisted and who won.

LAOTY Episode 4 at Chartwell in Kent - the Garden and View

The Location

This second heat at Chartwell saw the pods moved up the steps on to lawn terrace in front of the House - which has the most amazing view of the rest of the Estate and the Weald of Kent.

 

The pods on the Terrace Lawn in front of the House

Below is the view from the Garden terrace below the house. I know that skyline of trees extremely well from sketches. That's one of my favourite places to be sat on a good day! It is however very exposed on very sunny days. I also have many, many photos - and sketches - of the view from that terrace. I've sat there more times than I can remember!

The photo below was taken in the early morning as the lawn (and terrace) are in full sun from late morning to the end of the day.

 

the view from the terrace beneath the house

The Weather

It looks as if it was a scorchingly hot day. There were certainly comments about people having problems with what the heat was doing to their paint.

The Artists

Artists are listed by status and then alphabetically. You can see their profiles on the Sky website . 

Professional Artists

There were four professional artists in this heat.

• Max Denison-Pender Facebook | Instagram | Twitter - He wanted to be a painter age 5. Now aged 22 he is a classically trained painter based in London. I assume he has "connections" as he's certainly got access to locations and jobs which would normally be very surprising for an artist of his age and experience.  He's very clear that 4 hours is an oil sketch for him. 
• Imhonigie Imoesi Facebook | Twitter - Born and raised in Edo State, Nigeria, graduated with a Higher National Diploma in painting and general art, majoring in painting in 1999. Upon graduation, he embarked on a full time career as a studio artist and has exhibited regularly. Had a residency at the National Gallery of Art, Lagos at the 2005 and 2009 . Moved to the UK with his wife and daughters 9 years ago.  He likes using a palette knife and creating texture in his painting to prevent his painting from being static. He had a very impressive submission which you can see on his Facebook Page.
• Rosie Parmley Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Born and grew up in Finchley, London with her Turkish Cypriot parents. Graduated from Bath with a fine art degree. Completed teacher training in 2014. Currently works as a Painter and Teacher at The Colour Factory, Winchester UK and is currently doing live Zoom classes. You can see both her submission and her heat painting on her website.
• Rachel Wright (Instagram) No social media sites for Rachel [UPDATE - oh ye she has - thanks Louise Gillard!). I was very puzzled by somebody who was fairly new to painting in watercolour would choose to continue to paint in watercolour in the heat. I wondered if anybody had explained to her it's not uncommon for artists to switch media between submission and heat - and can still do well of their paintings are good and consistent in style. 

Amateur Artists

The two amateur artists were

• Ben MacGregor (Instagram) Ben would normally be working on a building site - but in what capacity I'm not quite clear.  (Decorator?).  It's such a shame that Ben is not online with his artwork. He prefers to work in an expressionistic abstracted way and his artwork reminded me strongly of some of the works of the painter Paul Nash - not entirely divorced from reality but not realistic either.  He spreads his paint with spatulas [UPDATE: I've been sent his Instagram ID!]
• Zoe Wilkinson (Instagram) Philiosphy student who produced her submission - a painting of her local pond - for her A level course work. 

Wildcard Artists

Wildcard artists arriving

The wildcard artists had absolutely masses of space. They seemed to move down to the lake or stayed near to where they could see a wall (for those who like buildings rather than a lot of green!)

I think I'm right in saying you can see the winner in the above pic!

Themes and Learning Points

Green, green and more green

top down view of the estate

It's pot luck whether as a landscape artist you get an urban or more rural landscape. It seems as if those who like trees sometimes get buildings and those who like buildings sometimes get trees and an awful lot of green.

Lots and lots of green is a big problem for anybody not used to working with greens and how to see, make and vary them.

For me it's very unwise for people participating in this competition not to know how to make effective and interesting greens - mainly by mixing rather than straight from a tube. 

One of the things I was always taught is that you can't make effective greens for transitions unless you also use some red.

This is the wildcard winner showing you just how much red she had on her painting....

working with reds to get solid and interesting darks to show off the lights
in the Wildcard winner's painting

A blue sky with nothing happening

Review: Episode 3 Landscape Artist of the Year at West Reservoir

LAOTY Episode 3 at West Reservoir, Stoke Newington, London

This review of the third episode of Landscape Artist of the Year (Series 6) considers:

• the location and weather
• the artists profiles
• themes arising during the episode
• who was shortlisted and who won

This was actually the last heat to be shot before the Semi -Finals (the following week) - although it's been screened as Episode 3. It's interesting to know this because it gives a better perspective on comments made by the Judges.

Location of the pods - next to the West Reservoir Centre

The location

Episode 3 was held at the West Reservoir in Stoke Newington (LB Hackney) last summer. (It's currently closed due to lockdown). 

• The water has 23 acres of a 30 acre site which is an accredited centre for water activities and water sports - including dinghy sailing and open water swimming.
• The pods were set up next to the edge of the reservoir - next to the West Reservoir Centre building.
• The general public were not allowed at the event
• Participants could only bring one guest.

West Reservoir and Centre plus pods (centre) and wildcard artists (left)

The weather

The weather was sunny but breezy and it looks on screen as if an excellent day was had by all.

The Artists

Links embedded in the artists' names below go to their websites. Their social media accounts are indicated if they exist.  Their 'official' Sky Arts profiles and videos of how they created their landscape can be seen here.

Artists on a break - after they had finished

Professional Artists

There were three professional artists:

• Silviya Georgieva (Instagram) - trained and educated in Sofia, Bulgaria but now living in London. She has a BA in Applied Textiles and a Masters in Graphical and Spatial Design from Bulgaria's most prominent art and design universities. She has a passion for working in passion for making multi-media collages. She also has has extensive experience in ceramics. Her artwork was selected for a Washington Post story The best art created by Washington Post readers during the pandemic, which shows the 20 best art works created during the pandemic. Below is an insight into what happens when the film crew photograph you with your submission

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by S E L L V I D A - S.Georgieva (@sellvida)

• Ophelia Redpath - lives in Royston in Hertfordshire and has had a career as an artist for 30 years. She has exhibited her work in over 100 shows in Britain and overseas, painted several murals and produced two books. She talks about her approach to picture making and her technique using oils on her website

She is currently immersed in work exploring the relationship between the human world and the diminishing natural world, highlighting both the negative dilemmas and the possibilities for change.

• Julian Vilarubbi (Instagram | Twitter) - Lives in Brighton where he has a studio. He studied painting at the Royal Academy Schools where he won the Richard Ford Award for travel in Spain.  He usually creates landscape paintings (in acrylic and oils) based on his travels. He writes about his process for producing his submission painting of Mount Athos in Greece on his website.  Also does life drawing on an iPad and has written a book about this 'Life Drawing on the iPad' (published by Crowood Press in June 2018).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Art (@julianvilarrubi)

Amateur Artists

There were three amateur artists:

• Amanda Barrett (Instagram | Facebook) Switched to a career in graphic design because her art school was only interested in promoting abstract work and wasn't interested in painting from life. Subsequently studied British Institute Florence: Certificate in Renaissance Art, Brighton Art College: Foundation Painting, Chelsea School of Art BA Graphic Design.  She does a lot of plein air painting (and is an active participant in various 'Paint outs') and is currently contemplating becoming a professional artist after deciding to retire from graphic design. Last year she won 3rd prize in Paint Out Norfolk - against 400 paintings by 48 artists!
• Judith McDonagh (Instagram) - an 18 year old student from Oxford.  Tai-Shan - who's a very nice man - voiced the view to camera that she had given up..... However judging by age and her relative lack of presence / paintings online and her process on the day, I suspect it's very likely that she either disliked the experience (i.e. it's certainly not for everybody) or maybe felt way out of her depth and/or both.
• Anil Patel (Instagram) - a graphic designer who lives in Leicester and is a big supporter of the local footie team. Previously appeared in chosen for BBC’s Big Painting Challenge 2018! (I knew his face and painting technique looked familiar!).  He won my "fastest painter of the episode" back in April 2018!

Wildcard Artists

Wildcard artists were limited to just 25 - probably due to the constraints of the site. They set up on mats in the grass around the reservoir.

Wildcard artists on their way to their may on the edge of the reservoir

Episode 2: Themes and Learning Points

As with all my other blog 'Artist of the Year' posts, I tried to detect some learning points within this episode - read on for more of these.

Today, these are:

• How best to combine nature and urban landscapes.
• More of what Tai-Shan does not like
• No scope for walking away
• Young painters
• sometimes the second paintings are better

Commission an artist: 'Home is where the Art Is' (Episodes 11-15)

This post is about 

• my overall conclusions about Home Is Where The Art Is 
• information and links about the artists participating in Episodes 11-15.

If you want to find out the details of artists who participated in the first two weeks see below for the links to previous posts.

In general, the series has been a real education in terms of the client's perspective. 

• Overall some of the artwork during the course of the series has been simply stunning and very professional. By way of contrast, some of it has been distinctly amateurish.  
• I've been amazed to find that both domestic and corporate clients can really like artwork which fails (from my perspective) to demonstrate any real skill or talent.  My view - and I'm entitled to it - is that what is considered to be quality art varies depending on your experience of looking at art and your perspective (likes and dislikes)
• I'm wondering how many other people are like me and ended up, over the series as a whole, quite bemused by some of the choices of both artists and artwork. 
• Notwithstanding commissions are always about personal choice and there is no right or wrong if it makes the client happy.

The process of looking for the links has also clearly demonstrated how vital marketing and social media is for selling art and commissions

• the extent to which some artists fail to design websites with commission clients in mind
• why some people can make an income from commissions. This seems to correlate strongly with being organised and/or better at marketing and/or social media and/or getting the artwork out and shown wherever - including on BBC1!

I also discovered a few things in the final week of Home Is Where The Art Is

• One enterprising artist who participated in the programme has set up a Home Is Where The Art Is Facebook Page to promote the work of those participating. However that's going to be a lot of help to those artists who participated without a website or Facebook Page. One wonders who people are intended to contact them....
• Next - some of the artists produced work for the commissions based on other work they had done previously. Now this is quite a common approach used by some artists - and one which is often used for clients who have a tight budget. However I'd hesitate before calling it "bespoke" unless it was unique in every respect and only available to that client. Of course it's quite different if the client requests "one like that but tailored to our preferences for colours / things which are important to us".

Finally - some other individuals have also documented the details. But my posts remain the most comprehensive! :) 

• below are website and social media links for the artists who participated in Episodes 11-15 in week 3
• contact details are embedded in the artist's name
• commissions details are provided if self evident

Commission an Artist (Episodes 11-15)

This is about the artists with a name in the end credits of Home Is Where the Art Is (Episodes 11-15). 

It follows on from my previous three posts

• Home Is Where the Art Is - needs a makeover! in which I highlighted
• my concern about the absence of any name credit in text in the programme
• explain why it should be mandatory that all participants who are professional artists get a named credit.
• my attempt to redress the balance in 
• Commission an artist: 'Home is where the Art Is' (Episodes 1-5) 
• Commission an artist: 'Home is where the Art Is' (Episodes 6-10)

Episode 11

Location: South Lake District
Commission: up to £500
Budget: a piece of art to celebrate their recent move, and in particular to thank their children
Media represented: metal sculpture; glass or watercolour painting
Outcome: BOTH pieces were bought

Both artists sold their commissioned artworks.

The Artists in Episode 11 were:

How to get | print | use Pascal Anson's lined papers for a still life collage

If you want to download those tonal lined papers used by Pascal Anson for the Big "Cut Out a Still Life" challenge this is the blog post to go to - DRAWING IS DIFFICULT! Perspective, Still Life, Lids and Bananas - they're at the bottom and available to download.

Lined sheets of paper by Pascal Anson - for constructing still life collages

You can then print on plain or coloured paper

RECOMMENDED: Plus he has a video showing you how to use them - definitely worth watching

Tonal paper. Photocopied lines in different density to help you identify light and dark tone. Not colour. Draw with scissors, not with a pencil. Use the direction of the lines to think about paint strokes. See my YouTube for a still life demo. #art #painting #bigpaintingchallenge

A post shared by Pascal Anson (@iampascalanson) on Apr 1, 2018 at 3:17am PDT

You're asking for the tonal paper in the #bigpaintingchallenge masterclass. Tutorial and paper download is here https://t.co/Jw49F0AQ9s pic.twitter.com/PmmhVYYdV2

— Pascal Anson (@iampascalanson) April 3, 2018

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