Amazing art at Artwaves 2017

Having recently led and completed two really successful art workshops in Bridlington  on the wonderful East Yorkshire coast at 'The SPA' as part of the highly successful annual Artwaves Art Festival, I can honestly say it's been the best year ever!

Due to the popularity of last year's Artwaves festival organised by Director Lauren Frost at Bridlington SPA, the expansion of this year's 2017 art event included lots of 'fringe' events during the week leading up to the two day weekend festivities on Saturday and Sunday.

Proud to be part of the exciting art event and provides me with a great opportunity to share my art skills with lots of different artists of different levels of ability demonstrating and teaching lots of art skills so many students benefit from.

All are encouraged to find new, exciting and rewarding ways of painting in my popular workshops. It's great to know artists are really tuning into more freer expressive ways of painting these days and Artwaves provides the perfect venue for such fun and rewarding ways of creativity learning.

The modern, spacious sun filled 'The Harbour Suite' room within The SPA with fabulous views overlooking the sea, provided us all with a perfect studio to really explore lots of rewarding techniques in our seascape themed workshops.

With students traveling far and wide to come and join me at the event in my sell out workshops (some coming as far as Kent, Essex and Scotland to be with me) painting alongside lots of local artists too, it is fabulous to know my mixed media and pastel workshops were, once again, a real hit with so many different artists who gained so much from their time with me at Artwaves. The results and smiles really speak for themselves!

Next year I'll be back with yet more rewarding art workshops for you all at the fabulous Bridlington Spa which will, once again, be amazing.

For your next chance to join me painting on the East Coast of Yorkshire, join me at Cober Hill near Scarborough at the beginning of October for more creative adventures with a seascape theme...all week!

For more information about this great art week visit http://rdcreative.co.uk/art-holidays/october-2017-mixed-media-east-coast-art-holiday

Canson and Derwent - perfect in combination!

Thanks to the support of Derwent art materials (UK) and Canson papers (from France) a full class of 18 students combined the brand new Derwent XL Blocks with the top class Canson Moulin du Roy beautifully responsive watercolour paper in a really exciting workshop in Bardsey village, North Leeds earlier in March.

With the theme of 'Mountains and moorland' students quickly and effectively put into practice easy to follow techniques in their own exciting paintings following an energetic demonstration for all using both Derwent XL Graphite and Charcoal blocks in the same painting.

The amazing chunky yet easy to use Derwent XL Blocks inspired all sorts of creative techniques by everyone throughout the day using XL Blocks to both draw and paint with in the same work building rich layers of muted colours in their work.

Using the robust yet responsive Canson 'Moulin du Roy' 300gsm (140lb) 'not' 100% rag content watercolour paper, the unique surface quality of this top quality support worked in perfect harmony to explore everyone's creative ideas. 

With 6 colours available in the graphite range and a further 6 specialist colours available in the charcoal set of Derwent XL Blocks which can be combined together in all sorts of combinations, lots of creative options are available at your finger tips.

The strength of the Canson 'Moulin du Roy' watercolour paper allowed lots and lots of workability with a lovely interplay with the blocks on the unique surface texture of the paper creating really exciting painterly effects in everyone's paintings.

Some students chose to bring different brands of hard and soft pastel and used many with Derwent XL Blocks too (as I frequently do myself with other media also), demonstrating yet still further the versatility and creative expression of what's is possible with Derwent's amazing drawing and painting tools.

Thanks again to Derwent and Canson for their support for exceptional art materials for us to use and creatively explore is this fabulous workshop. A really rewarding and creative day which everyone thoroughly enjoyed and gave everyone the perfect insight and rewarding practical experience into just what's possible when combining the affordable 

 

To find out more about the full and versatile range of Canson papers ( to include pastel papers and mixed media papers) visit http://en.canson.com/

To discover more about  the versatility of Derwent XL Blocks visit https://www.derwentart.com/en/gb/home

To have an opportunity to try Derwent XL Blocks which I will bring on several select future UK art holidays please visit http://rdcreative.co.uk/art-holidays

Mixed media in March at Higham Hall

Caught on camera - art in action on our brilliant mixed media art holiday at Higham Hall!

As one season rolls into the next, especially when Winter changes into Spring,  this is a great time to paint in the landscape. There is no place better to see this emerging, transforming and dramatic 'fresh' landscape than in The Lake district.  

Cumbria has the lot, especially in the unspoilt Western Fells close to Higham Hall  - there is so much to choose from to paint! One of the new and carefully chosen locations for students to paint this year was the stunning views along the shoreline at 'Friars Crag' just a stones skim and short walk from the Keswick landing stage and boat moorings on the shore of Derwentwater lake.

Fabulous mixed media studio painting by Colin Bryce from location studies and reference gathered on location at Friars Crag - so important to being there, it really makes all the difference. A great painting result!

The weather could not have been better - glorious sun, a calm lake and a total inspiration for a full class of 14 students who just loved the location. To help strengthen students confidence with drawing everyone created great sketches and colourful studies on our  wonderful painting day at Friars Crag which impressed all the walkers who came to see what we were doing. 

The black and white mixed media theme continued back in the studio with a further evening demonstration showing how to capitalise on studies made in the field which gave a greater insight into creative techniques combining different media together on a series of paintings at different points throughout the remains of the afternoon.

Afternoon expressive drawing demonstration at Higham Hall using Canson Moulin du Roy 300gsm (140lb) 100% rag content watercolour paper ('not' surface) - Pip Seymour liquid graphite, graphite sticks, graphite powder, Royal Talens fixative, Derwent graphite sticks. Here I'm using an eraser to show how to draw with that too - on the floor of course!

Adding Royal Talens black Ecoline ink and Quink Ink in layers. The graphite resists the ink beautifully!

Second demonstration - making wholesale changes with dense Royal Talens acrylic ink using a wide Badger Fan brush (Rosmary's brushes - Skipton, North Yorkshire).

Working Royal Talens Rembrandt pastels into the ink and graphite expressive drawing of Buttermere.

Bringing it all together - evening demonstration (open to all guests at Higham Hall) showing how to complete a mixed media painting full of drama and expression for Kirkstone Pass - Winter view.  Materials used, Canson Moulin du Roy 100% rag content watercolour paper (300gsm, 140lb 'not' surface), Royal Talens Black and white Van Gogh Gouache, Parker Quink Ink, Royal Talens Ecoline Black and White Ink, Royal Talens Pastels, Nitram Charcoal, Pan Pastels.

The following day in the studio the outdoor sketching at Friars Crag and studio demos helped everyone confidently paint some really stunning tonal paintings with great depth, drama and really interesting compositions with lots and lots of interesting and expressive art techniques in everyones work.

Superb black and white (with some added hints of colour) by Jenny Gatley. A lovely painting using a variety of black and white media with added Derwent XL Charcoal Blocks too.

Wonderfully carefully controlled black and white mixed media painting by Penny Price - great depth of tones and detail

Later in the week I showed how to use pastels expressively and also combine creatively pastel, watercolour and gouache in the same study to create paintings with lots of depth! 

Evening demo - expressive pastel of honister Pass on Canson Mi-Tientes 'Touch 350gsm pastel paper (black). 20 x 22 inches 51 x 56cm 

The painting results in the studio everyone created were once again really impressive. Here are just a few of them...

Glowing results - mixed media on Canson Moulin du Roy 300gsm 140lb ('rough' surface) 100% rag content paper. A two in one paper - this great mixed media painting (shown here in the beginning stages) is painted on the revers of the paper utilising the gentler surface quality.

Mixed media painting on Canson Moulin du Roy (not 300gsm, 140lb) 100% rag content watercolour paper from students own photo reference and sketches. Great painting that shows the principal how 'less is more' and the photo is there just to 'get you going', not to slavishly copy!

Mixed media painting on Canson Moulin du Roy (not 300gsm, 140lb) 100% rag content watercolour paper All those wonderful greens explored. Great focus on the contrast  of tones and colours of the flowing water under the foot bridge. Great dynamic lines and a well executed composition with interest throughout. Great control of tones, colour mixing and expression.

A totally fabulous creative week had by all at Higham Hall. 

A big thanks to the full class of students - all of you really made the week very special indeed for me from your tutors perspective. Thank you all for your wonderful comments and I'm delighted you all enjoyed the art holiday which was the perfect balance between relaxation, creative learning, great painting days and above all fun and confidence building for all of you.

The next very special expressive painting mixed media art holidays at Higham Hall for 2017 are:
http://rdcreative.co.uk/art-holidays/july-2017-mixed-media-expressive-painting-holiday
http://rdcreative.co.uk/art-holidays/sept-2017-watercolour-pastel-charcoal-mixed-media-painting-holiday

Final places now remaining!

Dewent Inktense 'little blocks of colour' create a big impact

Derwent Inktense water soluble pastels with Canson watercolour paper prove to be a real hit with art students at East Keswick near Leeds recently.

With the theme of 'flowing waters' for the full day workshop, to everyone's delight students soon found out how versatile and easy to work with Derwent Inktense pastels were to expressively paint and draw with. 

The unique texture of Canson Moulin du Roy (not) 300gsm (140lb) watercolour paper worked wonders for lots of different expressive mark making techniques for everyone's paintings.

Being such a strong paper with a unique surface (not too textured but with enough subtlety to allow detail and expression), helped inspire a confident approach to explore Derwent Inktense pastels to the full.

With 72 blocks of colour in the full Inktense range with the same number of colours available for their water soluble pencils too (great for all those special details),  all the students discovered for themselves how amazing and easy to use the Derwent Inktense range was to work with.

The finished expressive paintings in the workshop revealed techniques such as wet in wet, dry drawing with multiple layering combined with colourful premixed washes (similar to watercolour) and furthermore helped students once more to advance with their own creative art techniques. 

A big thanks to sponsors Derwent and Canson for their superb and professional top class art products provided for us all to use on the day and an big thanks to Keswick Art Society for the invite for the workshop too. 

It was a pleasure to come and teach you all lots of great art techniques with versatile Inktense pastels on just one of the great papers created by Canson - the superb results created on the day just speak for themselves!

For further creative and unique workshops throughout 2017 visit http://rdcreative.co.uk/art-workshops

Create the Rembrandt way!

14 lucky artists who secured themselves a place on a recent workshop with me got the opportunity to create some really stunning pastel paintings using the fabulous Rembrandt pastels made by Royal Talens in a wonderful 'Dales with a difference' workshop held recently in North Leeds.

The workshop was supported by Royal Talens (from Holland) who kindly gave each student who came on the workshop a lovely wooden box of beautifully presented pastels to take home and keep and try out during the day. 

The workshop was also also supported by Canson Paper (from France) who generously supplied every student with a good sized sheet of their top class Canson Mi-Tientes 'Touch' 350gsm pastel paper on which they all created their amazing pastel paintings. 

No wonder the workshop was so popular with both these amazing art materials included within the exciting workshop!

The unique tooth of this sanded pastel paper surface worked brilliantly with Rembrandt pastels in particular (as I knew it would) and everyone discovered for themselves  throughout the day time and time again just how good both the select choice of paper and pastels colours worked in harmony to create some amazing pastel paintings. 

Everyone loved how easy Rembrandt pastels are to use and how they inspire so much confidence to work with. 'You just don't want to put them down' as one student said to me. That's so true!

The high quality 'starter' wooden box set containing15 carefully selected colours (from the 525 full range of Rembrandt pastels) given to each student on the day, worked brilliantly with other makes of pastels too. 

Several students brought other brands to mix with Rembrandt but soon found themselves using the Rembrandt pastels more and more - quality being recognised by all levels of students there!

Throughout the days teaching helping everyone equally to create 14 really great pastel paintings everyone was proud of, every painting showed a great use of colour and atmospheric light, great expression and sense of place and above all personal style.



The quality, versatility, colour strength, ease of application with no dusting and overall top quality of the paintings created in such a short time realistically, speak for themselves. 

Here are just a few of all the great pastel paintings created on the day and some of the comments received:

"Fabulous day, really great pastels and paper. I'm really delighted with my pastel painting and cannot wait to paint another".

"Once again, thank you Robert for such a great pastel workshop. Loved the paper, loved the pastels and loved my pastel painting too - I'll just have to get it framed!"

"I've never really painted with pastels before but after this workshop I'm hooked. I loved how easy the pastels are to work with on the Canson paper. I'll be back!

To find out more about Royal Talens Rembrandt pastels and other professional art materials visit https://www.royaltalens.com/en-gb/

To find out more about Canson Mi-Tientes 'Touch' pastel paper and all their other fine art papers visit http://en.canson.com/