Landed: Wiltshire

Artists spend a lot of time working alone so it’s always wonderful to get together to talk about process, about shows, about galleries, about life…

It is especially enriching to paint together and last weekend I hosted a group of artists, all alumni of  Newlyn School of Art. We started the weekend plein air, right where Eric Ravilious painted the iconic Westbury White Horse. Afterwards I ran a studio workshop sharing some approaches to using mixed media with cold wax and oils. The mark making techniques were particularly popular as they can help retain the spontaneity of our sketches of the wide-open spaces  of Salisbury Plain

The plain isn’t just about big skies, far reaching views, bluebell woods and wild orchids; parts are used for military training. One of my guests is particularly interested in the colours and textures of old walls, me too, so the two of us went to photograph a building used by the army. The inside is covered in many layers of peeling paint and bits of tilework embellished by soldiers’ graffiti. During the workshop my friend was able to recreate the colours and textures that inspired both of us!

Today I met with a gallery owner who has offered us a group show – look out for details in future news blogs. I’m looking forward to seeing how my visitors use what they learned in the finished pieces we will show.