Summer workshops - the tutors
April 26 Mary-Clare Cornwallis - Botanical watercolour. Mary-Clare's website says her love of nature - plants, birds, animals, etc - stems from her childhood growing up in Kent, ‘the garden of England’. She works mainly in water colour and her flower paintings "are vibrant and sensual. She has moved away from precise botanical accuracy to produce images which catch the eye and spur the imagination. As a result her loose flowing style gives each picture the opportunity to be revisited and re-interpreted."
May 17 John Threlfall - Painting with pastels. John is an award winning member of the Society of Wildlife Artists and is an experienced and enthusiastic teacher, as well as being the author of two books illustrating the diversity of wildlife around the UK coastline. His work has appeared in numerous other publications and he has exhibited widely, Commissions have included murals for the RSPB at Mersehead, and murals and illustrations for National Trust for Scotland at Threave and Rockcliffe. John's website
June 7 Victor Henderson - Exploring water-based media. As those who have taken part in Victor's previous workshops can testify, almost anything goes when it comes to watercolour painting. Victor paints spontaneously without preparatory drawing, using what comes to hand to make a mark, and likes to surprise himself with an unexpected result. His colourful and vibrant paintings have been shown widely and can be seen at various sites online.
July 5 Bea Last - Alternatives in mark-making. Bea has been a professional artist for 20 years and says her practice is "very much process-led, open to exploration and the experimental." She is known for large-scale contemporary paintings and is "currently pursuing drawing in its broadest sense, experimenting off canvas and looking at materials that can be recycled." Her work has been shown and commissioned both nationally and abroad, and she is an Open Studio Tutor for Glasgow School of Art. See Bea's profile online here
Workshops take place at Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries, and run from 10am to 4pm.