Sommaire pour May 2023 de Leisure Painter

March painting challenge Snow was the theme of our March painting challenge and we’ve enjoyed seeing your snowy images. Jackie’s watercolour of a scene inspired by the local woodland in her area is reproduced here (left). Jackie is relatively new to watercolour and only started painting during lockdown. She says her favourite subjects are snow scenes and seascapes. We’re looking forward to seeing the results of the April interiors challenge next month. Exhibitions ■ Arnold Art Society Spring exhibition at Pond Hills Community Centre, Arnold, Nottinghamshire NG5 8DR, on 15 and 16 April, 10am to 5pm each day. Free admission and parking. Visit www.art4arnold.com or email gwenda.reavley@sky.com ■ Bedford Art Society Spring exhibition at The Basement @ Bunyan, Mill Street, Bedford MK40 3EU, from 25 to 29 April, 11am to…

Learning objectives ■ View your subject in close-up ■ How to transfer the image from a photograph to a drawing then onto the canvas You will need • Loew-Cornell transfer paper • Black or Saral wax-free transfer paper • Masking tape • Canvas or panel • Sketch paper • HB pencil • Kneaded eraser I found this reference (above) on Pixabay when I was searching for a fun still life that had good colour and composition. I also wanted it to be fairly easy to complete, with a simple background and limited colour range. A big problem with images that have been edited in Photoshop is the lack of play between warm and cool tones. This reference does have a fair variety of tones we need to observe and copy…

Learning objectives ■ How to create recession in a simple landscape ■ Practise mark making with soft pastels ■ Create differences in tone and colour by overlaying the pastel TONY'S TOP TIPS FOR PASTELS • Avoid catching your work with your sleeve or loose garment whilst working. • Avoid resting your hand on the painting when in progress. The natural oil in your skin in contact with the support will cause the pastel to vary. Use glassine paper as mentioned in previous articles. • Keep the area well ventilated as soft pastels create dust particles which can be dangerous to your health. • If working vertically, you can form a catchment area for loose dust by folding a newspaper and trapping it below the drawing. You will need ■ Surface…

Learning objectives ■ Where to sketch your subjects ■ Draw animals on the move ■ Which sketchbook to choose? Drawing an object of any kind, whether a quick sketch or a more detailed finished work, needs close and careful observation - the ability to really see a subject. Using a sketchbook to make drawings of animals first-hand is an invaluable way of developing these observational skills, as well as your visual memory. And it is often surprising how much more is discovered about an animal when it is analysed with the attention needed to start describing it on paper with pencil, pen or brush. To make the quick rhinoceros sketches (Figure 1, left) I had to look, look and look again at the animals before I even put pencil to…

Beginners’ watercolour Learning objectives ■ Use two yellows and two blues to mix a range of spring greens ■ Paint a simple landscape You will need • Pink Pig sketchbook 140lb NOT surface, A4 • Winsor & Newton Professional Water Colour (tubes): cadmium lemon, Winsor yellow, Winsor blue (green shade) & cobalt blue • Tin mixing palette • Rosemary & Co Series 401 Round No. 6 brush • Pro Arte Series 100 Round No. 8 brush • 2B pencil & putty rubber Spring is a lovely season for the artist. The days become longer and warmer, the bluebells and daffodils compete for attention and, because the sun is higher in the sky, the shadows tend to reflect more colour than during the winter months. What really takes my eye, however,…

Learning objectives ■ Develop the entire painting at the same time ■ Explore a loose and lively watercolour technique ■ How to create the effect of white petals on a dark background This is a painting where background and subject are painted at more-or-less the same time. It also involves white petals so you will find it better to begin with a drawing. Although I used a half-Imperial sized sheet of paper, you could work smaller if you prefer. Our aim is to produce a painting that is a bit loose and splashy, so it is a good idea not to finish off the drawing perfectly. Losing and finding some of the lines will allow you to work more loosely without the temptation to paint in too rigid a way.…

WWW.PAINTERS-ONLINE.CO.UK Maritime artist, Vic Court, is inspired by the coastal scenes around his home in Dorset and further afield. He is self-taught, gaining advice and inspiration from tutors through magazines, books and online. Here he tells us more about himself and the subject of this summer painting. To see more of Vic’s work, post a comment or upload your own images, visit www.painters-online.co.uk ‘I am a maritime artist in acrylics and oils and have worked for many years in that environment. Currently I’m painting subjects from around the south-western UK and European coasts. I grew up in High Halstow on the Isle of Grain peninsular and my first oil paintings as a teenager were of the Kent marshes. Military service took me around the world from my bases in Cornwall,…

Learning objectives ■ Use the opacity of gouache, working from dark to light ■ Paint sunlit foliage, dappled light and the suggestion of detail ■ Techniques for painting successfully with gouache TIPS • Make some thumbnail sketches to help you decide on your final composition. • When removing masking tape from your work, always pull it away from the painted area to avoid damaging your painting should the surface of the paper start to tear. • A putty or kneadable eraser is best for making corrections on watercolour paper, as they aren’t so aggressive as harder erasers and so are less likely to damage the surface of the paper. • Only wet gouache enough to allow it to leave the brush in the way you want it to. I have…

Acrylics Learning objectives ■ How to paint waves successfully from a photograph ■ Use several techniques including glazing and splatter Like most people, I have a fascination and love of the sea and water in general. The beauty of the water is that it s continually changing in light and mood, from the gentlest of ripples to the most powerful crashing waves. It has the power to soothe, to be a source of fun, and food, yet it can have such awesome life-changing power. Remember as you paint that water not only has mood but shape, form and direction. It will reflect colours of the sky and take on colours of whatever lies beneath, whether it be pebbles, sand or seaweed. There will be shadows and highlights that shape waves…

Learning objectives ■ Create an underwater effect background ■ Practise dry-brush blending and ‘ghosting’ ■ Follow an acrylic painting process Demonstration Royal Angel Fish You will need ■ Surfaces • Canvas 16×20in. (40×50cm) • A3 paper Acrylic • Titanium white • Phthalo turquoise • Phthalo green • Cadmium yellow light • Phthalo blue • Black • Magenta Brushes • Large flat brush • Filbert No. 4 • Liner No. 2 Miscellaneous • Graphite pencil • Eraser • Masking tape • White transfer paper • Pen In this article we will create an underwater background using a wet-in-wet blending technique then paint a royal angel fish with dry-brush blending and a ‘ghosting’ method for shadows. We will again practise using transfer paper to trace a drawing, as well as stipple dots and…