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April 2021 Newsletter

Post Category: Uncategorized
Post date: 22 March 2021

Dear Member

Keith Hornblower prepared a video of ‘An Icelandic Scene’ for us to watch last month. Most people thought it was brilliant. Video versus Zoom comments: Video can be watched when you like. Zoom is a more social event, which is important and the artist usually makes it available to watch again later on, so giving us the best of both worlds. Some members have been good enough to send us their thoughts:

‘I thoroughly enjoyed Keith’s watercolour demo and loved the way he layered the paint and was not afraid to be bold. Just the tonic I needed in the lockdown’. Ann.

‘I watched Keith Hornblower’s video and was slightly surprised that there was no snow or ice. He said Iceland is quite green in the Summer time.

I was a little alarmed when he scratched and scraped the 140lb “NOT” paper while it was wet, to create texture using a credit card and various blades. I think if I tried that I would end up with lace!

I liked the way he changed the plain monotone light sky to create areas of “light against dark”, and “dark against light”’. Beryl.

If you would still like to watch it, look for the link in last month’s Newsletter.

An on-line demonstration has been planned for April 15th, from 2 to 4pm. 

We hoped to have a meeting at the Parish Centre but it is not possible, so in a change to the programme a Zoom demonstration with Valérie Pirlot has been planned. She will paint a landscape in oils. (The first live demo at the Parish Centre should be July 15th, fingers crossed.)

To quote her website (www.valeriepirlot.com); ‘I’m Valérie Pirlot, a Belgian artist based in Bath, UK, specialised in oil painting and mainly painting en plein air, in the great outdoors. I’m passionate about painting and try to capture the essence of a subject in a few brushstrokes, but with maximum impact. I think beauty is all around us and I’m always eager to capture it on the canvas.

Sunday painting for April 18th has been cancelled. Perhaps we will be able to hold the June or, more likely, August gatherings – we will let you know.

Sunday April 25th, ZOOM WORKSHOP, 10am – 3pm (with a break for lunch),

Mark Warnercoastal seascape, in acrylics. This is the meeting we had planned for last April but had to cancel.

This is going to be held using Zoom. Mark has a lot of experience giving Zoom workshops and he suggests we restrict the number of participants to between 16 and 20, then he will be able to give plenty of personal attention to each painter. We will get a materials list from Mark, nearer to the time – just think acrylic paint and a fairly large canvas!

This whole day workshop will be just £25. 

HOW TO BOOK:  Please email Sue Sepehri at smsforcac@gmail.com by Thursday 8th April to request a place. If a place is available, she will let you know how and when to pay.

‘Tuesday Paintings’ A NEW IDEA. Getting together in Cookham Dean Village Hall has not been possible for a long time now. So, we are going to try to establish an on-line group, for Tuesday Painters to meet on Zoom and paint and chat together. John Eckhart has very kindly volunteered to organise this, and you will have received an email to explain our plans. John will be receiving and organising a critique of the Tuesday Painters’ paintings, as explained in that email.

Looking at the calendar and ‘lockdown’ plans, we are hoping that perhaps we can meet at CDVH by June (perhaps even tea and cake – fingers crossed!) But until then do join the Zoom group and let John have pictures of the paintings you would like to share. You can email John on jbeckhartforcac@gmail.com to join the group.

If you cannot join the Zoom group, we would still love to see what you have been creating and will be happy to include a few paintings in the Newsletter if you send them to me (rdjforcac@gmail.com).

Tuesday Painting: Suggested TOPICS
March 30th: Cats, large or smallApril 20th: Paint what you like
April 6th: Paint what you likeApril 27th: Hats – your own, or design one
April 13th: Pointillism – George Seurat – study of optical colour mixingMay 4th be with you! (as you paint what you like)

JUST 40.

No, not my age, but an idea to try, to really stop yourself overworking the painting!

Here’s the challenge:

Complete a painting in just 40 brush strokes and send in a photo of it for the next Newsletter.

Sue Sepehri, one of our committee, has given me a copy of her painting using 40 brush strokes and I think you will agree it is a superb picture. How could it be done with so few touches to the canvas?

This is how Sue describes it:

Just as some background I started off with a light ultramarine on the whole board and then took a large brush and went right across the board from left to right, first with a dark and then a dry brush for the burnt sienna and again for the green to create the trees. I finished the trees off with a few odd brush marks to create the tops of the trees at the end. Then I worked up the water with a couple more, large brush marks before putting in the white of the snow. It was finished off with some odd marks here and there for the small shrubs and the variation in the sky colours. It’s a great project ……. but some planning as to how to tackle it is better than none at all!

The bigger the canvas the bigger the brushes needed. The painting here is 10 x 8 inches. It’s definitely a good idea to keep track of number of brush strokes as you go on a separate piece of paper!

SO, INSPIRED BY SUE, WILL YOU HAVE A GO? I AM SURE MEMBERS WILL LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE RESULTS IN THE NEXT NEWSLETTER. Pick any subject, your big brushes, and see what can be done!

Yours sincerely

Robert Jones email rdjforcac@gmail.com

Newsletter Editor

Some ‘Tuesday Paintings’ sent in for this month.

Carol Baughan: Fox.  Jean Smithson: Study in blue.  Joanne Nicholl: Collapsed!  John Eckhart: Snowdrops.       Aiko Hester: Greetings card design.  Pete Cain: Be my Valentine and Hi there, Valentine. 

Kay Lamb: Imaginary landscape.  Pam Hammond: Sad homeless guy.