Author: Karen Stone

Teaching outdoors is one of my favourites along with gardens so this workshop only needed the sunshine! 

Although a little chilly at times the spring sun shone for most of the afternoon. Artists began with wandering around the layered and interesting garden at the Dormy House in search of inspiration. The aim was to gather sketches that considered structure, colour and personality of individual plants rather than illustrations of specific areas. 

  

Once the sketches were all gathered the fun began with students, working from their sketches, creating large paintings showing a personal response to the garden and nature. All types of paint, pastel, ink, sticks, brushes etc were used with everyone engaging wholeheartedly with the creative process. Students shared ideas and laughter which was brilliant and I think the results are fabulous!!

Next workshop date is Saturday August 3rd 2019

 

“We so enjoyed the ‘Unframed’ show at the Chapel Gallery so much so that we visited twice!” Jenny & Evan

 

The ‘Unframed’ exhibition showed a large and varied selection of drawings from a number of artists. Some were more finished, as it were, but most were beautiful, raw examples of the artist’s working practice and it is therefore hardly surprising that a considerable number of visitors were indeed artists themselves (we can not resist the opportunity to look at other peoples drawings). There was something here for everyones taste with mark making of every shape size and description from Roger Percival’s bold, abstract charcoals to delicate ‘etchings’ in bees wax by Jane Tudge.

Personally for me, it was a chance to see ‘Welsh Cove’ (above), which measures 1.5M x 2M, hanging in a beautiful space and I did say goodbye to one of my smaller, investigative ink works. It was great to meet and chat with, amongst others,  Jane Tudge and Deb Catesby and massive well done to Vicky and Sheila at The Chapel for putting on a great show.

Many thanks to all my friends who came to view.

“I thoroughly enjoyed it. A bit daunting at first but a great challenge! I am itching to do some more painting………The big board awaits.”

The day started with experiments in mark making. Mark making is a principal part in any drawing process. The marks you make can dramatically alter what you are attempting to convey visually, so a series of short, sharp marks can depict movement or agitation whereas long curving marks can show calm and softness. These marks were initially made as a response to certain words and then progressed into a series of marks made as a response to a short paragraph of creative writing. Just about anything and everything in the studio was employed to make the marks.

In the second half of the workshop students used the results of the mornings work to create a more resolved art piece that brought together many different marks and drawing methods.

The whole process was an exercise in taking new approaches to visual representation whilst removing preconceived ideas of how a drawing should be constructed.

This exhibition brought together artwork from 13 different schools, aged from reception to year 8 and I was given the privileged but difficult task of judging it.

It was brilliant to see so much fabulous work illustrating that the love of creativity and the commitment of our art teachers. It was also a privilege to meet so many wonderful young people. parents and teachers.

Obviously not everyone could be awarded a prize and what I thought would be a relatively straight forward task turned out to be more complex. Each work demanded, and deserved, a thorough inspection and the subject matter ranged from explosions of mark making to complex conceptual ideas that challenged our thoughts on the environment, space and beyond.

When I was at school there was a girl in my year who took the art prizes. I always entered and sometimes achieved a highly commended but never took the main award. My school friend took the prizes and had her work hung in the school hall at regular intervals. Annoyingly she was good and even more annoyingly, I knew she was good!

Then, as now, I never take seeing brilliance in others as being a criticism of my own work. I simply  use it as an acknowledgement that there is still work to do and further ways to develop my practice. Winning an award (and I have won some) is the most fabulous feeling but it is subjective to the aesthetics of who so-ever is judging. The importance of believing in your own art, keeping on the path to improvement and not giving up when times get tough ultimately makes you a better artist.

unframed

drawings and sketches

 

Saturday 6th to Sunday 14th April at

 

The Chapel Gallery, Bromyard, 2 Forbury Chase, Sherford Street, Bromyard, HR7 4DL. 

Open 11am to 5pm with pop-up café.

(Closed Monday and Tuesday)

 

How do artists work and think? Whatever the final medium by which an artist may be known, perhaps as a painter or a sculptor, often their ideas will begin on paper with drawings and sketches. Sometimes the drawing may be the end in itself. In this group exhibition we offer you a rare chance to see their inner thoughts and gain an insight into their working practices with an array of unframed works which will be available for sale.

See  website for more details www.thechapelbromyard.com

Karen will be there on Sunday 7th and Friday 12th April to talk about her drawings and working practice.

 

From Saturday 23 February at Nick Joyce Architects, Barbourne Road, Worcester WR1

The window displays a selection of pieces inspired by the traditional craft of lace making. In the centre lies a copy of the famous Vermeer painting, The Lacemaker, which is flanked be a contemporary pastel work of the same name and an abstract screen print based on the domestic interior. Also displayed is the patchwork Quilt made up of 171 individual mono prints all taken from pieces of old lace or embroidery.

The work celebrates these crafts, traditionally practiced by women at a time when it was often their only form of creative outlet.