Binham Art Group

Ian McManus wows the group ....

21/10/2019

An audience of 25, including fellow artists from Kelling Art Group, enjoyed Ian’s Watercolour Masterclass. These are some of Ian’s tips and comments that he shared with us during his demonstration:

Ian emphasises tones, he says he’s not a colourist, the tone values is what really works. He prefers street scenes to trees and fields type landscapes and this is evident in his body of work. Using a scene from Venice, Ian started his demonstration by quickly drawing the skyline and a few key details. When drawing he focuses on shapes and overall composition using a 2B propelling pencil With 2mm thick graphite.

His materials were Arches Rough 12 x 16 inch cotton paper, which Ian always uses, having it bone dry and taped to a backing board. His paints were Winsor & Newton professional tubes, which provide the richness of pigment to help make the colours bolder. His brushes were 2 x squirrel mops and an Escoda perla synthetic brush for detail.

In terms of technique, Ian’s main approach was leave touches of bare paper otherwise the picture looks flat. At times Ian scalped of paint to reveal clear paper using his finger nail. Paint just using one coat not paint on paint - its all about application says Ian. In terms of colours Ian used Neutral Tint mixed with Windsor Blue and Alizarin Crimson. Neutral Tint was new to many of us and it looks like black out the tube and is ideal for sky washes. Ian hardly ever changes the water. Some very useful pointers.

The afternoon workshop was attended by 12 budding artists. A different street scene was the subject and Ian’s approach was to paint the picture in steps which the ‘students’ copied before moving onto the next step. The results and interpretation are always interesting to see.

A great day with lots of learning and tips, the Group were really grateful to Ian for sharing his skills and we all really enjoyed the day.

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Autumn Collection launched at The Chequers

6/10/2019

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Regarded by many as our best selection yet the Art Group have launched their Autumn collection in The Gallery @ The Chequers. A wide selection of work on a variety of subjects including, landscapes, seascapes, portraits, animals and wildlife, botanical studies and art deco, so a broad range of subjects. As always very many thanks to Simon and Sarah for hosting us on the opening night with scrumptious sausage rolls and cider and apple juice to get us into the Autumn mood. Here's a sample of the works which includes Pauline Taylors oil on board striking portrait called Carnegie (which is featured on our home page as Picture of the Month). enjoy