Steve Hall Demonstration - "Pastels with Watercolour"
Tuesday 12 September 2023, 2.00pm to 4.00pm in the Pavilion
Tuesday 12 September 2023, 2.00pm to 4.00pm in the Pavilion
Steve gave a very professional demonstration to over thirty enthralled members while working very quickly and confidently and explaining his approach, technique and style throughout. He answered member's questions comprehensively and clearly. Steve also related some amusing stories and anecdotes, especially while waiting for watercolour paint to dry. Many members commented that this was one of the best demonstrations they had ever seen. Sales of one of Steve's books (My Way with Watercolour) were brisk and both the pastel painting (trees and river) and watercolour painting (ships on the Clyde in Glasgow) were sleeved/framed ready for sale by the end of the session.
Some photographs taken during the pastels demonstration:
Some photographs taken during the watercolour demonstration followed by some of Steve's unframed pastels paintings which were for sale after the demonstration:
Some background on Steve taken from his website:
I drew from an early age, particularly during the winter months when our isolated farmhouse boasted no electricity but a good set of encyclopaedia from which I could copy endless images. Sadly art became relegated way down the list of priorities as teenage years approached and it was not to be for another forty years that I would seriously take up pencil or paintbrush to once more try my hand at watercolour painting.
In 1994 I was able to take early retirement and escape into the world of watercolour. Like all artists I struggled to find my own style and was always buying the latest book or video, the result being that I was failing to recognise the basics of good watercolour and losing myself in the myriad of gimmicks and gismos that were being offered by the commercial art world.
My efforts took a dramatic turn for the better when I first became aware of the work of Edward Wesson. Here was someone who had managed to put aside all the verbal clutter about the medium of watercolour and put down on paper what he observed in as simple and honest fashion as was possible. Other artists with a similar honest approach to the medium have also influenced my style and approach to painting including Edward Seago, Jack Merriott, James Fletcher-Watson and lately John Yardley, with whom I have had the pleasure to paint at Dedham Hall.
So join with me and explore all that is good about fresh watercolour. It is to embark on a journey that is unending and at times full of frustration and pitfalls yet, for the determined traveller, one that can be so rewarding.
I drew from an early age, particularly during the winter months when our isolated farmhouse boasted no electricity but a good set of encyclopaedia from which I could copy endless images. Sadly art became relegated way down the list of priorities as teenage years approached and it was not to be for another forty years that I would seriously take up pencil or paintbrush to once more try my hand at watercolour painting.
In 1994 I was able to take early retirement and escape into the world of watercolour. Like all artists I struggled to find my own style and was always buying the latest book or video, the result being that I was failing to recognise the basics of good watercolour and losing myself in the myriad of gimmicks and gismos that were being offered by the commercial art world.
My efforts took a dramatic turn for the better when I first became aware of the work of Edward Wesson. Here was someone who had managed to put aside all the verbal clutter about the medium of watercolour and put down on paper what he observed in as simple and honest fashion as was possible. Other artists with a similar honest approach to the medium have also influenced my style and approach to painting including Edward Seago, Jack Merriott, James Fletcher-Watson and lately John Yardley, with whom I have had the pleasure to paint at Dedham Hall.
So join with me and explore all that is good about fresh watercolour. It is to embark on a journey that is unending and at times full of frustration and pitfalls yet, for the determined traveller, one that can be so rewarding.
For more about Steve and his work see his website