Hellebores workshop success

March 3, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

We had a really enjoyable three- day botanical art workshop from Friday until Sunday. There may have been periods of dark clouds and rain outside, but inside we had plenty of colourful Hellebores and a lot of laughter. You will see shortly if the laughter was of detriment to the painting.

These are a couple of comments I have had already:

“Thank you a three lovely days, I had a great time and managed to paint something, progress indeed”

“Such a lovely 3 days ”

Hellebores are really beautiful flowers. A gardener once told me that they are very promiscuous. Often different coloured Hellebores are planted next to each other in a flower bed and are readily fertilised by each other. However, we still have a variety of different colours from white to very dark red/blue/black.

In the garden, Hellebores are often only seen standing statuesquely but with their heads hanging. In the workshop we had them floating in bowls of water with their lovely centres smiling up at us.

This is some of the work created at the workshop. Would you have liked to join us? The next workshop is at the end of this month. Either check it out on my website http://www.gaynorsflora.com, or wait for the next blog.

Next Botanical Art workshop – Hellebores

February 6, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

The next workshop is February 28th – March 2nd. That is Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The topic suggestion is Hellebores.

Many will have seen Hellebores and snowdrops
poking their heads up in the garden already – as long as their gardens are not underwater.

I feel so sorry for all those people who are struggling in the UK, because of the wind and rain. I am so grateful to have been spared and can only imagine what they are going through.

Back to Hellebores and the botanical art workshop. I have one or two places available on the workshop and it is suitable for those who want to start painting botanically, to those who are already fairly well accomplished. You can use watercolour, coloured pencil or graphite and as the class is kept deliberately small I will be able to give individual attention to everyone.

The workshop is held in the beautiful village of Bosham, near Chichester on the South coast of England. Beautiful even now!

Can I tempt you with one or two pictures from my garden this week?

Do get in touch via this blog or my website http://www.gaynorsflora.com if you want to take part in the workshop or make any comments.

Botanical Art holiday in Norway

January 31, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

The Botanical Art holiday workshop in Norway 29 June to 6 July will take place.

The holiday is booked with Thon Hotell, Åsgårdstrand. The studio overlooks the Oslo fjord and plants that are typical for Norway will be the topic.

Already I have bookings from students from different countries, all wanting to experience Norway in the middle of the summer when the weather is usually at its best.

The hotel has been really helpful so far with suggestions and support. The Norwegian Botany Organisation too has been supportive and want to help get the plants for us to draw or paint.

The only two uncertain things at this time are the names of the people who will be attending ( there are still some places available) and the weather. But apart from super accommodation and opportunities to enjoy the best of Norway, there will definitely be good botanical art teaching and good company.

There will be no more than 12 students so that each person gets individual attention at their own level. Although the workshop is still several months away, it is worth booking it as soon as possible to ensure a place.

Look on www.gaynorsflora.com for more details, links to ‘what to see’ and your booking form.

Thank you to the Thon Hotell, Åsgårdstrand for the picture of their view of the Oslo Fjord.

First botanical art workshop in 2014, 16-17 January

January 6, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Happy New year and plenty of botanical art.

I have two workshops in January, in Bosham Nr. Chichester. The first is ‘Colour mixing in Botanical art with Coloured pencil’ and the second is the same theme only using watercolour.

The first workshop is for anyone interested in working with coloured pencil if they already do so, or they would like to learn. Therefore it will be a good one both for new beginners and experienced.

We have all had the same problem now and again haven’t we, that we just can’t mix the right colour ? Well this workshop will be focusing on how to get it right. Getting the right depth of colour with coloured pencil is a matter of mixing the colours optically on the paper. We don’t always have the right colour to hand and, if we did, it is likely to be flat and boring without depth to it. Come and learn how to do it.

Thursday and Friday 16-17 January between 10:00-16:00. Get in touch via my website gaynorsflora.com. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

This is a snippet from that on which I am working towards the RHS exhibition in April. It is in coloured pencil:

How did the Pen & Ink workshop go?

December 1, 2013April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

‘Thanks so much for a brilliant 2 days. I thoroughly enjoyed it all!’

I got this email as soon as the student had returned home after the Pen & ink workshop. Is it any wonder that I enjoy teaching when I get a response like this?

I had a full workshop and you have already seen the step by step series I had prepared. If you want to know what each of the steps entails, you will need to sign up for one of the workshops next year.

Each of those taking part worked really hard, expressed their pleasure in having done the workshop and several want to practice the technique more. Most of the students hadn’t intended drawing a Hydrangea as they thought it too difficult. But, after showing them the technique all but one attempted it. These are some of the results:

They are good aren’t they?

A botanical art workshop in Norway is coming

November 26, 2013April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Would you like to do a botanical art workshop in Norway? Would you like to do this in Edvard Munch’s home town of Åsgårdstrand near Tønsberg in South Eastern Norway? Now is your chance.

Recently some of my students asked me to organise a summer painting holiday in Norway. I have been making enquires and this is very likely to happen from 29th June next year for one week.

The hotel in which we will stay lies on the coast along the Oslo fjord and the room in which we will be painting looks directly out onto the sea with east facing natural light. This is a fantastic time of year with long hours of daylight for us to enjoy.

Obviously, the intention is have a botanical art workshop, but I also want you to have time to relax and to look around the area. I have yet to arrange all the details, but I plan an afternoon tour of Edvard Munch’s home and studio where ‘The Scream’ was born.

Please let me know if you would like to join us as soon as possible as I keep my classes small so that I can give everyone the individual attention they need.

Hear are a few pictures from the beautiful area around Tønsberg, Nøtterøy and the islands in the area. Are they tempting you? Do the brilliant colours make you want to paint?

Teaching at West Dean

November 16, 2013April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Thus last week has been incredibly unexpected – and busy.

Last week my husband and daughter made quick decisions about moving her goods and chattels from Amsterdam to her new lovely home in Tønsberg, Norway. I was not too happy as this meant I wouldn’t see her new home -yet. But as I had classes, these were my primary responsibility and I couldn’t let my students down.

I remained at home licking my wounds, but consoling myself that I would have plenty of time to paint.

After a few days, I got a call from West Dean. They said it was a mercy call, asking me to step in for one of the teachers; a colleague whose work and techniques I know well. I made a few calls to re-arrange my own plans, and stepped in!

Obviously, before I arrived at West Dean I did worry a little about what I was letting myself into, but trusted that my friend had made notes of what she had planned. When I arrived, I met a really lovely, welcoming group of people and a programme.

Because the morning had been wasted, I worked with the group unto 21:15 to catch up so that they wouldn’t lose out on too much. They weren’t going to get the tutor they signed up for, but it was important not to lose out on more than this. By the way, the topic was about mixing colour in watercolour.

During the remaining days, I got to know the group fairly well and an extremely good time was had by all – at least as far as I could see. I enjoyed myself and as usual learnt a lot from them too. I stuck to the programme already laid out, giving the students the information and showing the technique that my colleague used. As can be expected I was able to make additional suggestions from my own techniques which they found useful.

All very quick demos on the course.

Starting last picture again!

March 18, 2013April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Well. I guess that any artist feels in a quandary when they feel a picture isn’t going as well as they want it to. But, starting a botanical art picture again, and at that, one in coloured pencil, needs some determination.

After starting the most recent Crab apple picture, nothing seemed straight forward with it. Each leaf was an effort and heavy going and I felt that its expression of lightness was compromised. Each one seemed to take forever and didn’t seem quite right. After I took breaks, going back with fresh eyes helped, but I still had the overall feeling that it wasn’t the best picture I had done to date.

Unfortunately I am a perfectionist and if what I am doing isn’t the best I can do, I’m not happy!

Anyway, I made the decision to start it again. This time the leaves seem to be developing much better and I am happy with the result so far. I just have to make sure I don’t mess it up over the rest of the picture. I have a long way to go, so anything can happen.

By the way, I have decided to say which crab apple I am doing at the moment. It is Malus Evereste. A beautiful stripy little apple. Some of them have double ‘bums’ underneath!

I decided on this one a couple of years ago as someone brought some branches to one of my workshops. I ended up doing sketches from the ones left behind after the workshop. Since then I have also found a source for a tree to paint in the village. But, as with the other five pictures in the series, I can only include the information I have already received.

Attached is the part of the painting completed before I ditched it!

Why would someone go into my garden and strip a rose tree?

June 29, 2012June 29, 2012 | Gaynor's Flora

Today I started a three-day botanical art workshop on Roses. My garden has a lot of roses as we have planted quite a few, mostly with a beautiful scent.

When we originally moved into our home five years ago there were no roses in our front garden which is south facing. We changed that and in the evening the smell is very powerful and heady.

One of the most impressive looking roses is a standard called ‘Deep Secret’. It is a rich velvety red rose with a particularly rich scent that suits its appearance.

This summer it was covered in juicy buds which have only just started opening. It was an ideal subject for my students this weekend. I say was because……..

…….This morning when taking my students out to cut a rose each as a subject, EVERY SINGLE ROSE AND BUD HAD BEEN CUT OFF. Not only that, the flowers had been picked to pieces and had been dropped in a trail along and out of our drive into the lane. Why would anyone do this? Why would someone be so destructive?

Luckily I had other roses and all were able to choose one they liked. Day one of the first day of the workshop has gone off without further complications. By the way the students are a lovely group of people.

GAYNOR'S FLORA

Botanical art, illustration, artist, illustrator, teacher, workshops, classes

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