A playful approach to painting a portrait

On occasions it is just fun to cast caution to the wind and just go for it. Such a thing occurred when I came to paint "Robert". Born and raised in this country, his parents came from the West Indies. My normal palette of flesh tones went straight out the window. No more muted, insipid, Caucasian flesh tones. He seemed to be all purples and blues and greens depending on how the light struck him. No careful preparatory drawing. Straight in with bold colour. Very exciting. Below shows how the portrait evolved out of the apparent initial chaos.

Strethall Church Art Fair

This weekend I took part in an exhibition held in Strethall Church, near Saffron Walden in Cambridgeshire. The setting is idyllic with the church nestling in a small wood amidst rolling cornfields.


It is believed that it was originally built in 1010 by the local Lord of the Manor to appease the marauding Danes who had been forcibly converting the locals to Christianity.

The weekend, however, was a far cry from such bloodthirsty times. A marquee was placed midst the tombstones. All around there were people sitting sipping tea and munching on cake, chatting, gossiping, putting the world to rights . Children played , dogs frolicked, the Autumn leaves rustled in the trees. All was well in this part of rural England.
Inside the church the exhibition consisted of paintings, drawings, pottery, sculpture and examples of wood turning. All of this was the subject of much "learned" discussion both from the experts and those for whom a little knowledge is clearly a dangerous thing!



Outside in the graveyard, on the reverse of one stone, I came across the following amusing quotation



Ended up feeling sorry for the poor old jellyfish. Funny what people want to be remembered by.

Forthcoming Portrait and Life workshops

Over the next few months I will be running the following workshops in Barrow near Bury St. Edmunds.

Saturday, 9th October Portrait Workshop
Sunday, 7th November Life Drawing and Painting Workshop
Sunday, 5th December Portrait Workshop

All workshops will run from 10am-4pm


The charge for each of these workshops will be £35 or £30 per session if two or more are booked. This includes model fees , tea , coffee, biscuits. Bring your own packed lunch.

It is an ideal opportunity to meet and work alongside different artists and to experience the benefits of having a more extended period of time in which to develop your drawing or painting.

Anyone wishing more information on any of these day schools should either e-mail me or call on 01284 810 460