Past courses/workshops-

Saturday 11th February 2023

Oil & Acrylics

'Joy of Colour'

In a guided way we will experiment with colour seeking out surprising combinations and delights, the joys of limited palettes, harmony, use of coloured grounds, mid-tones, hot and cold colours, optical mixing and juxtapositions and become more aware of how it effects emotion, mood and the optic nerves!

The day will be interspersed with short projected presentations for discussion, looking at the subject of colour and how other artists have used this aspect of vision. Artists will be encouraged to move towards semi-abstraction if they wish.

To apply it where you might not immediately ‘see’ it.

You can work with acrylics or oils and is suitable for both beginners and experienced. Mixing a palette will be demonstrated and the use of palette knife, rags, large brushes and catalyst silicon wedge (if you have one) will be introduced.

'The Concerns of Artists'

weekly 1 hour sessions

4 week February zoom course looking as artists, at art works

week one - what makes art 'contemporary'

week two - mark making & materials

week three - line & composition

week four - colour and absence of colour

These sessions are designed to give a chance to simply look at work and connect with other artists on a weekly basis. It will give us time to investigate how artists through history have explored aspects of the above in their work. The series is intended to inspire and enrich us in what can feel like a bit of a fallow month. It will be held on zoom in the comfort of our homes and it will be in the format of slides and discussion.

WATER-BASED MEDIUMS ON PAPER

28th January 2023

'In the Bleak Mid Winter'

Frosty wind made moan

Earth stood hard as iron

Water like a stone......

Using the landscape around us as inspiration and the words from 'In the bleak mid winter', we will investigate a variety of water based medium (acrylic paint and inks, charcoal, gesso etc) mark-making using different tools (brushes, rags, silicon wedge, sticks, sand paper, putty rubber etc) and limited muted palette to explore and evoke the special qualities of the landscape of winter. 

Also 

Sea Painting One day workshops ( zoom and irl)

Rock n'roll Painting workshop ( half day)

Awakening of the Garden

21st March 2021 4 week art course

This course is a chance to gently reconnect through nature, explore it as an artist alongside other creatively minded people in a supportive environment. The equinox is an exciting time of year to start our journey outside in our gardens and the natural world.

We will create an ongoing sketchbook/journal/scrapbook for the four weeks where the changes in our gardens can be explored, whether in words, images, colours, seed packets, photos, drawings, doodles, lists etc. Different techniques will be experimented with and we will get our sketchbook up and running for the summer months ahead. The freshness of a sketchbook can be a wonderful thing to have and look back through as a capsule in a moment of time.

Each session will start with looking and discussing images around our theme of gardens. For example we will look at spontaneous pen and wash (Durer to Dufy) or how artists as diverse as Manet, Anne Redpath and Kurt Jackson have felt drawn to the simple arrangement of flowers in a vase in another. We will keep it simple and relevant to our own direct observations, whilst also discussing different creative approaches and explore different techniques and media for stimulus and inspiration. Hopefully participants will feed in their discoveries from the week. The rest of the session we will be painting/creating alongside each other using the sketchbook, views from windows, things brought in and if the weather and technology permits, outside. Feedback and technical advice supplied.

Material list - click here

The Joy of Colour

4 week ‘get us thro’ February’ course 2021

Let’s escape our prisons to create and love colour together.

This course has now run.

These are some of the bursts of colour created through the month of February by the participants . Brilliant!

Zoom Demos for Art Societies/Clubs

’Many thanks for the Zoom demo last night (12/11/2020) for the Ongar Art Society. I thoroughly enjoyed it, loved your work and felt that you kept it very much a ‘live’ event.’ Chair of Ongar Art Society

'Firstly, thank you for booking Melissa Wishart to demo to Ongar Art Society. She is absolutely delightful. Her painting in oils is lovely, and our members also liked her talking about her techniques, equipment and palette. It was especially helpful that she started the Zoom session explaining to our members about using the Chat Box for questions, Reactions button etc. A really good demo.'. Letter to Art Profile from Secretary Ongar Art Society

Wildflower Gelli Printing

Source, identify & learn about plants and nature, then have fun making prints - play with colour with easy to use gelli printing. It's good fun!

£25 all materials provided

This can be made into an exclusive session for you and family or friends.

Maximum at present 3 people

Please contact with dates that suit you.