Angela drew Bob Geldof’s portrait for the recent Live Aid 1985 session and completed it at home. Beautifully drawn it captures Bob and his intense stare at the viewer. Good work, Angela!
Angela’s drawing
chalk-art-group
Live Aid 1985 – July 2025 – Wednesday
Thirteen members attended the session on a muggy summer’s evening, but the aircon kept us cool. Some artists painted the theme of Live Aid, the dual concerts held in London and Philadelphia in July 1985. Freddie Mercury and Bob Geldof were the most popular subjects to draw and paint.
Chris W’s painting of an animal carcass in a barren landscape and an RAF C-130 aeroplane carrying food and supplies is a sombre reminder of the concerts’ aim to raise money for the 1983-5 famine in Ethiopia. £40 million was raised on the day, equivalent to £100 million today.
Most pictures are works in progress to be finished at home or another session.
Other artists drew and painted to their own theme, including a finished picture from Peta of the Angelina Tea Room in Paris which she visited last year.
Lovely work everyone, well done!
Our next session will be on Saturday 26th July at St.Mary’s Church in Chalk, from 10am to just before 3pm, not at the Parish Hall.
Dot’s portrait
Dot’s portrait of Tina Turner for the different ethnicity theme is ‘Simply the Best’. In soft pastels the portrait captures Tina in full singing mode, vibrant and full of character. Well done, Dot!
Chris W’s portrait
Chris W has finished an amazing portrait of Sir Winston Churchill. It’s in pastels and she has captured his skin colour tones in such a beautiful way. Well done, Chris, super artwork!
Lesley’s painting
Lesley has called this painting ‘Sheila’s Hounds’ as they are her friends two greyhounds painted for her birthday in July. The background on the original photo is of a radiator but Lesley has changed this to the Scottish Highlands instead. What a great idea!
Lesley has not been able to attend sessions for a while but hopes to be well enough to return in the Autumn. We look forward to your return :o)
Portraits by Angela and Tracy
Angela started drawing Sepoy Namdeo Jadhao VC at the last session and finished it at home. He won a VC in 1945 at the age of only 23, details of which are from the National Army Museum… https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=1966-04-5-1
Lovely work, Angela, with good use of pencil in many tones on Namdeo’s face.
Tracy enjoyed drawing and painting a face she saw online during the recent VE Day commemorations. Dorothea ‘Pixie’ Barron is 100 years old and gave an interview with The Big Issue about her life and joining the Women’s Royal Naval Service after she left school and serving as a Wren during WWII. Last year she celebrated her 100th birthday with a Spitfire flight! Read the interview here… https://www.bigissue.com/life/ve-day-second-world-war-dorothea-barron-interview/
After an accurate drawing was made Tracy used watercolours to capture Dorothea’s beautiful face.
Julia’s painting
Julia started her painting at the session on Art Deco, with colourful, geometric circles her main focus. She spent a long time drawing the circles then hours painting each one in acrylics. Many of the circles have more circles on them.
Well done, Julia, what a fabulous painting!
Portraits – May 2025 – Wednesday
Fourteen members enjoyed two hours together being creative by drawing and painting portraits. After our recent soft pastel workshop it was good to see several artists using pastels for their portraits and pictures.
Some drew their grandchildren whilst others used images available online. There are a couple of finished portraits and the others will be completed at home or at the next Saturday session.
Some members drew and painted their own subjects.
Lovely to see so many at the session to have a good natter with! Please send any finished pastel animals or portraits to Tracy for putting on the blog. Thank you :o)
Our next session is on Saturday 24th May from 10am to 3pm with the subject being ‘The Diversity of Humanity’.
Susan’s finished pastel picture
Susan started her soft pastel picture of a lynx at the recent workshop and completed it at home. There’s amazing detail of the lynx’s fur, especially his ears. Good work, Susan!
May 2025
Hope you’re enjoying the warmer weather but not getting too hot. Lovely to set up your drawing and painting equipment in the garden to enjoy the fine weather.
If you didn’t pay your yearly subs all in one go at the beginning of the year the next payment of £28 is due at the beginning of this month, which cover the next four months. Please see previous emails from Steve of how to pay this amount. Thank you :o)
This month the suggested subject is for both the Wednesday and the Saturday sessions, but with a slight difference. But if you prefer your own subject that’s absolutely fine.
Wednesday 14th – 7-9pm – Portraits
Many of you love drawing and painting portraits but lots of us find portraits very challenging! Choose any person, male or female, child or adult and create your picture in any medium. Don’t do the whole figure but head and shoulders or just the head.
VE Day 80th anniversary commemorations are on next week so maybe draw or paint a portrait of military personnel, men or women from that time, or their portrait when older.
Info about next week from the VE80 website… www.ve80.com
Saturday 24th – 10am to 3pm – Portraits – the Diversity of Humanity
Using any medium draw or paint any man, woman or child who is not of your ethnicity.
The United Nations had an exhibition in 2019 called ‘The World in Faces – One People. One World. One Love’ with 30 photographs by artist photographer Alexander Khimushin and it’s now available to view online… www.un.org/en/exhibits/exhibit/world-in-faces
Further photos have been released by the photographer (some are duplicates)… www.boredpanda.com/the-world-in-faces-project-diversity-of-the-world-through-the-portraits-of-its-people/fbclid=IwY2xjawKAht9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFDaUR3REtMRURXaFpXcnEyAR5k7hAnY3_nciwzfFwGSW_LgzyszKfwOtWswTviSFqCz5qD_JUGqO37qxTjAg_aem_R2FkZVAoRtWERVULE-3ypQ
Alexander Khimushin’s website… www.khimushin.com
They’re amazing photos but bring your own reference photos along if you prefer.
If you can’t come to the sessions but want to try the subjects at home, please send photos of your pictures to Tracy or Steve for putting on this blog.
Chalk Art Group 