welcome

TO PAINT A PINEAPPLE... The world is a beautiful place, filled with artistic possibilities. I say this now because it is easy to lose track of such optimistic thoughts sometimes, particularly during this most difficult of years. Lockdown has rightly restricted our movements as we attempt to contain this terrible pandemic, yet artists are, as I've mentioned here before, better placed than most to contend with the restrictions involved. Our imaginations provide necessary escapism when we are otherwise confined. Nevertheless, we all need a little encouragement in this respect and I hope this issue provides that for you in abundance. Hashim Akib has set a brilliant project this month, challenging you to paint a pineapple in five very different styles. While you could follow each juicy project in turn, the overarching message…

letters

A WORTHY CAUSE I am a keen reader of your magazine and always look forward to it coming through the letterbox. I am sending you a photograph of a painting done in watercolour and pen by a friend of mine, Jane Foote, who lives in Port Alfred in South Africa. She usually creates beautiful pictures using watercolour along with objects found on the beach. However, during lockdown she had an inspirational moment caused by the wonderful array of butterflies around her in the garden, and the problems caused by Covid-19. She is a wonderful, caring person and decided to use the resulting painting to raise money for the local soup kitchen. I feel Jane’s work is quite inspirational and it is wonderful to see art being used in this way. Jackie Taylor, via…

brighten the walls

During this difficult time, I was invited to do some paintings to brighten our local senior centre in Carshalton for re-opening in September. From early April to late August, I painted murals on all the walls of two very large rooms. Due to time constraints and the number of walls to be painted, perspective went slightly out of the window, but the staff were over the moon with my efforts. I used emulsion paints, 4” brushes and a very small sea sponge for the trees. It’s not every day an opportunity like this comes up and I was so glad I stepped up to the challenge. It was an absolute labour of love and I would do it all over again if I could. Fran Cambettie-Davies, via email…

exhibitions

1 ART & ACTION: MAKING CHANGE IN VICTORIAN BRITAIN 17 November to 21 March 2021 When it comes to art activism, the Victorians are probably not the first to spring to mind. But as this exhibition sets out to prove, art was increasingly used throughout the era as a tool for social change, addressing issues such as hunger, poverty and disease. Harrowing scenes of deprivation or sympathy-inducing images of suffering painted by GF Watts (1847's Found Drowned, above), Sir Luke Fildes and Thomas Kennington will demonstrate how they hoped to trigger a direct emotional response from their viewers – and ultimately brought about policy change and reform. Watts Gallery, Surrey. www.wattsgallery.org.uk 2 TRACEY EMIN AND EDVARD MUNCH: THE LONELINESS OF THE SOUL 15 November to 28 February 2021 Two artists born 100 years apart; one considered the…

november

AUTUMN LANDSCAPES Careful comparison is the key to capturing seasonal colour, says DAVID BELLAMY Critical observation and careful analysis of a scene are vital to create an authentic looking result; try to develop these methods until they become second nature. Whether you are working from life or from a photograph, constantly compare the heights, sizes, tones and colour temperature of each feature. Compare the brightness of adjacent colours and how they react with each other. Consider how you can emphasise the strength of colour or create strong contrasts to ensure a focal point stands out. NOVEMBER COLOURS Sketching colours and their interaction is especially important with autumn colouring. As well as providing a record, sketching in colour shows you which colours work together. When you create a finished painting, you may wish to make changes…

fresh paint

Nicki Heenan While some paintings impress for their simplicity and directness of execution, a work such as Nicki Heenan’s Autumn Apple Tree captivates thanks to the rich variety of marks and substances used in the densely-worked surface. It is perhaps surprising then that a painting of such depth began life during a demonstration at a workshop the artist hosted in New York last year. “The subject is one I thought would connect with the audience, so its construction, composition and colours were thought out before I painted it,” explains Nicki. In fact, the tree was one that the artist knows well as it resides in her Wiltshire garden. Nicki has painted it on numerous occasions in the past, watching as it cycles through the seasons from bare branches to blossom, fresh leaves to…