Drawing on Monday morning



Lucia Gualtieri's Pebbles - breathtaking (despite the fact that I threw tea over the drawing)



It was Monday morning and it rained and the plan to go outside to the Notre Dame de Vie didn't work, but three die hards, the hard core drawing enthusiasts still came and had a wonderful morning... We set up 2 still lives, one 'breakfast' and one 'pebbles'. Lucia chose pebbles, Corinne and Brigitte breakfast, and yours truly started with breakfast and the ambition to do the pebbles as well - but that was a bit optimistic. The goal was simple: Realistic Drawing... And we did, have a look, the fun clearly shows! We agreed that this kind of drawing really adds something to the live model drawing - it tends much more towards construction and forces you to 'close one eye', 'squint', and measure. So for all of those who are hesitating if they need to go to the regular drawing class: Go! Try it! It's great fun and totally improves your technique! OK☺so much for the advertorial☺and here are the 3 'breakfasts':

Corinne's free hand version (unfinished)

Brigitte's supersmooth teapot with wonderful highlights

Marina's breakfast

Aquarelle Tuesday from 2 - 4.30pm

Colourful Parasols

Last week Tuesday it was a glorious day and despite the 'changing light' (because the sun moves) Georgie, Liz and Agnes did their painting outside (and thoroughly enjoyed it).

The theme du jour was 'parasols' once more and Georgie worked hard on hers:

Georgina Hole's finished parasols

a transparent aquarelle with lots of permanent rose and 'homemade' violet...

Mieke van Papen worked on these beauties,

the green parasol is finished and like Georgie's it is a true aquarelle, poetic and light. 

This complicated inside of a parasol by Lesley Bufton isn't finished

but already interesting, graphic and super well done!

The other parasols will be shown next week - there was also a lot of activity on our calendar - the months April, May and December are finished, and July, August and October are halfway - looking great!!

And there is another project we are slowly and surely progressing with: our cookbook...

Lesley tweaked her tomato sauce recipe and created this perfect picture

Cathie van der Stel has experimented with gorgeous colour combinations and salt

and she ended up with truffles!

Abstract Class May 14th

Pim came across an article in a magazine about an art exhibition in the US. He was very inspired by 2 of the paintings which he took along to show us. The idea was for the group to seek inspiration in what he showed and produce something original. For some the assignment was easy - others struggled - and some gave up. The paintings he showed are very constructional and have lot of lines. Here is the result of the evenings work:

Merete's interpretation

Michele worked super fast (as usual)

Celina was one of the strugglers

Karin has restarted a coupleof times and is not finished yet.

Off to America!

A private collector has bought Neville Moray's painting 'Flowering Yucca' so a picture created by a member of the Hangar will soon be hanging alongside pictures by Lichtenstein, Albers and contemporary American painters in San Francisco.

Aquarelle Tuesday

Colourful Creations

In our aquarelle session of last week we worked around two themes (parasols and recipes for our Aquerellista cookbook), we finished ongoing projects, proceeded with the calendar and we welcomed two new girls, Gaby and Rose-Marie! A busy and productive afternoon - and everything was about 'colour'! The theme du jour was 'Parasols'. I brought colourful pictures (and real ones - but forgot to show them) and the results were in one word great!

Agnes McLaughlin -original as always- used her own input, one picture for the colours and one for the subject, and painted these lovely little girls with parasols. (Love their little feet!!)

 Georgie Hole hasn't finished hers but it is already so good!!

Lesley started a very difficult construction of a beautiful parasol, more about that next time and Cathie worked on these lovely old fashioned ones:

...and finished this STUNNING basket with pinecones.

Edith Alborni finished her  'mysterious girl with peacock feather'. Isn't is gorgeous?!

In the meantime, work on our recipes goes on. Lesley Bufton works on her tomato sauce ingredients. She experimented with salt on the orange worktop but washed it out again as she wasn't happy with the result. Looks like it might be finished this week!

Lesley Bufton's tomato sauce ingredients. Just some very small adjustments needed and then it's good to go (into our cookbook). The golden bottletop is very well done by the way!

Agnes McLaughlin made the first breakfast illustration for the cookbook. Lots of fun in this as usual. The pinapple originally was a cookie, also note the Porridge bowl and all the handy signs ... The tablecloth with distorted perspective contrasts so nicely with the elegant china! And the silver is very well done...

Model drawing by candle light...

Last Monday we had an extra Model Drawing session because Pim, though on the mend, is not yet working 100%. We used the time to do an experiment that actually worked out so well that we are going to repeat it coming Monday - drawing by candle light... The challenge is that not only you see less of what you are doing, you see also much less of the model. But what you see is touched by a warm and soft light... And everyone was much more able to concentrate and see and draw 'the light'. The results? Poetic! and very good:

Aquarelle Tuesday from 2 - 4.30

The Aquarellistas - hard at work

Last Tuesday our group took a day off, due to the 'Fête du Travail', but the week before we had a great afternoon with several highlights!

One of them our Aquarellista pal Bibbi Isaksson who has moved to Sweden but visits France from time to time - so she could join us last session!! Everybody was delighted to see that she hadn't changed one bit (well, she was less tanned than we are of course) and that she didn't loose her talent...

Roly and Lesley were back too, and Lesley worked very hard on her Carnival de Venice Picture - with a remarkable and super detailed result!

Impressive - and expressive Carnival picture by Lesley Bufton... What a patience that girl has!!

Beverley is back from the US - and with an amazing speed and accuracy produced the painting that Cathie, Anna-Karin, Sandra and myself had created for the Café Culture Expo... OK, slightly smaller, but still...

Bev's version of the Carnival's parade

A great bridge to the other work is Edith Alborni's feather girl. This painting is not yet quite finished but it has the mysteriousness of the masks. It is very well done, although there was a little worry with the masking fluid that she used on the plumes, that was very hard to remove. But with an eraser and a lot of perseverance (read very hot fingers of the continued rubbing) it worked out well and as you can see it is sensational!

Feather Girl by Edith Alborni...Look at that eye!

Brigitte Jansen is working on an image of a crocodile for two weeks now, she's been researching the effects of the background by using another medium - pastel crayons...

Both pastel and aquarelle version look pretty cool!!

Roly is the proud painter of this beautiful aquarelle of the yacht 'Sea breeze'. 

And we close today's post with the work-in-progress by Cathie van der Stel.

THis beautiful still life (that will no doubt be finished soon) is just an exercise for things to come... The aquarellista cookbook for instance...

Poetic Pine Cones by Cathie van der Stel

Nelly's Oil Class

Eugene and Vanessa Rea and Chris Herlicq all completed paintings in Nelly's class today.
Eugene reminds us that it will stop raining here soon and we will all enjoy the summer as much as his subjects leaping into the sea from the boat.  His treatment of the water  in this super painting is particularly effective.

Eugene continues to explore the sights of southern France in this study of papery garlic and beautiful green melons in their boxes, waiting to be sold.  You can almost smell and taste them.

Vanessa Rea had forgotten she had painted this peaceful scene of people seated on a bench by the water that had been left in the storeroom to dry so it was a lovely suprise to come across it today. 

Chris Herlicq continues her series of portraits of the men in her life with this eye-catching, expressive, oversize painting of her son.  Only her husband remains to be put on canvas to complete the family. 

Pim is back

Tonight was a very special abstract day ! Pim is back. What a difference it makes. Through his inspiration - everyone uses their creativity to the maximum. Today we started on a new project, which we will report on next week.

Pim took the opportunity to review some of the work that had been going on while he was away. Sue finally managed to finish her project "series of 4". While Pim was away - we all tried to give Sue feedback and come up with ideas. It was probably terribly confusing for her - but the result was really good.  See for yourself.

Sue Ellis: Series of four

Pim loved her work - and came up with some exciting ideas for the final framing.