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Newgale was wonderfully atmospheric this morning. My students spread out across the beach reminded me of Antony Gormley’s “Another Place” sculptures at Crosby Sands!

The textures of the rocks looked amazing in the low winter morning sun, and inspired some of the later experimentation with plaster that took place in the studio.

It was all credit to my students that they engaged fully with the idea of absorbing the feeling of the landscape, the experience of the sound and sensation of the place, and working from that feeling rather than taking a more formal structured approach. These are a just a few of the paintings they produced over the weekend:

 

“Do nothing and all will be achieved”…

Oh how we teach that which we most need to learn!

Newgale Beach gave us bags of inspiration and lungs full of air this morning on the first day of my residential painting weekend. The theme of the weekend is experimentation and finding ways to get to the feeling of the landscape through paint. All my students have engaged with the spirit of the idea and it is a privilege to see them blossoming into new ways of working.

Maggie and Andrew at Indigo Brown are our hosts and we all feel so well looked after, fed and watered. It is always a pleasure to teach in this place where I know my students will have a warm welcome, comfy beds and wholesome and delicious food. Maggie and Andrew excel at providing all the home comforts in their spacious and tasteful house, purpose-built for running art courses – perfect! Thanks to Ruth Sargeant (one of the most talented (and modest!) artists I know) for helping out and being my glamourous assistant!

Painting Course

 

It was wonderful to get back to paint at the weekend when I ran a residential mixed media painting weekend here in Pembrokeshire. We started the weekend with a visit to my studio and gallery in the Preseli Hills followed by a delicious meal at Swmbarch House.

The next day we went to Newgale Beach to soak up the atmosphere, blow away the cobwebs and get the inspirational juices flowing. The sand running in the the brisk westerly breeze and the ever changing light of Newgale offers inspiration enough for a lifetime, so my students were raring to go when we got back to the studio. They set to work with gust and in the cause of “loosening up” they lapped up all the sand and plaster and wax I could provide. Thanks to my students for joining in so wholeheartedly and to Maggie and Andrew for the wonderful hospitality which made this weekend one to remember.

My next painting weekend is 24-28 November and I have one space left on that. I am currently planning dates for next year, so let me know if you would like to be kept up to date about that email me linda@linda-norris.com