January was a good start to the art group’s year with many members attending the two sessions. There is always a buzz when more artists come along as it’s great to catch up with friends and see what each other is painting.
Tracy’s been asked why there are suggested ideas each session. The session ideas are not compulsory at all, you don’t have to paint the idea if you don’t want to, you can come along to draw and paint whatever you want to. The suggested ideas are simply to give you inspiration of what to paint and draw if you’re stuck for ideas.
Some subjects are to do with current or historic events in a certain month, or when an artist was born or died. Some ideas are to promote learning by including depth of field, perspective or colour exploration. Other ideas are to gain experience of human portraits, animals, texture, or certain media. The ideas are to help not hinder you, so if you don’t want to paint the suggested subject then come along and DYOT – Do Your Own Thing!
Wednesday 14th February 7-9pm – Chinese New Year of the Dragon
Chinese New Year in 2024 falls on Saturday 10th February and will be the year of the Dragon. The Lunar New Year, as it is called in other countries, is celebrated by over 2 billion people and is a national holiday in Indonesia, Vietnam, South Korea, Malaysia, North Korea and Taiwan.
Draw or paint any New Year celebration including a dragon, real or imaginary. Just paint a dragon or include the traditional red lanterns and people enjoying the celebrations. Use any media but use bright bold colours.
Saturday 24th February 10am-3pm - William Morris
British textile designer, writer, poet, artist and social activist associated with the Arts and Crafts movement, William Morris is one of Britain’s greatest designers. His original wallpaper and textile designs are still in print today and are also on everyday items like mugs and bags.
Draw or paint a portrait of William Morris, along with his wife Jane, who was a model in many Pre-Raphaelite paintings. Or create an image of one of the thousands of designs in the original colour way or tweak the design to your own image and colours.
If you’d rather paint a house exterior or interior, William Morris had Red House designed and built in Bexleyheath and it’s been open for years by the National Trust. Another Arts and Crafts house looked after by the National Trust is Standen House in East Grinstead, West Sussex. Morris didn’t live there but the whole house is decorated with original items produced by Morris & Co. Morris also lived in Kelmscott Manor in Oxfordshire and his childhood home, Water House in Walthamstow, is now home to the William Morris Society.
Lots of ideas, the choice of subject and medium is all yours.
More info online…
www.morrisandco.sandersondesigngroup.com
www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arts_and_Crafts_movement
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/london/red-house
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/standen-house-and-garden
Chalk Art Group 