Valerie Stewart Seminar in the UK

We've some Valerie Stewart news........ Today I collected the Valerie Stewart portrait paints and brush sets. You'll now find them available on my supplies page and they are ready for immediate despatch from the UK with no additional taxes or duty to pay. I can highly recommend the brushes, I have both sets in my own private brush collection and both types are great work-horses. On another matter, we've had to change the dates of the Valerie Stewart 2010 UK seminar. Valerie was originally scheduled to come here at the end of April, beginning of May. She very recently had some exciting news, delivered in quite an unusual way. Valerie's daughter sent her a photo of little Haydn, her grand-daughter. Nothing unusual about that, except Haydn was wearing a t-shirt which said 'Big Sister......' on the front. It was the back view of the t-shirt that caused uproar as it said '...........coming May 2010' Fortunately Valerie and I have managed to reschedule the classes and they will be going ahead in June 2010 instead. Everyone who has paid their deposits have been contacted already on this matter and full refunds will be given to anyone who cannot make the new dates. The new dates are 3rd June to 6th June 2010 inclusive. If you're interested in learning to oil paint portraits with Valerie, do have a look at the details HERE

Floral DVD - one of the best

There's one thing that my supply list has been missing........and that is a GOOD floral DVD. Finally, I can bring you one of the very best on the market. Not only that, it's available right now from the UK. Lowell Speers is renowned for his beautiful and extremely life like roses. Lowell is one of Alexander Art's Master Artists and when you view his work you'll see why he carries that prestige. The DVD covers over 100 minutes of floral techniques. It weill show you how to apply medium, both white and black. You'll see an extensive range of leaves and stems being created in easy step by step stages. The best comes last.......the flowers. With a very varied selection of blooms you'll fall in love with the attention paid to reality. From this single DVD you'll be set up for some considerable time. I've just opened a shopping basket for this DVD and you can find it by clicking HERE. I don't think anyone will regret adding this to their DVD collection.

Old friends

A couple of weeks ago I had a visit from students who are more like long lost friends than customers. They first started painting with me a few years ago, travelling all the way from York. It was great to catch up with all the news and chat, and of course, it's the first time they've seen me since I lost all the weight too, so they had a very new-style Sue teaching them today. They left with a goodie bag of Victoria Sponge, Cheese Scones and Cinnamon Fruit Loaf, (well it stops me being tempted). I'll be seeing them again in class tomorrow where they will be swapping from the acrylics and Pop Art to more wet on wet traditional oil painting. After this re-union I caught up with another student who I haven't seen since 2007. It was great to catch up on news, but most importantly, we'll went over the ins and outs of becoming an Alexander Instructor. Fingers crossed we'll have another member from Europe enrolling on the course.

Not like yours.......

'Oh Bu**er! My tree is wrong, it's got a bend in it. My hand shook, I've ruined it! What to do? It's not like yours..........' That's the comments from Cynthia, a recent private student. My tree was pole straight, hers had a nifty little kink to it and I actually much preferred hers to mine. See what you think?

Worth a look

I'd like to draw your attention to a chap from Ohio. David Steffy is an oil painting instructor, who, with some encouragement has launched an independant website. David has been sharing his work for some time on my FORUM and his input has been valuable to all. You see, David has developed a new concept with the wet on wet, incorporating biblical characters into his compositions. Recently he completed a rather large composition and showed his half way progress so we could comment. The picture in question is not only magnificent, it is also a fund raising charity painting. I'm sure you will join me in wishing David all the best with this. Do pop over and give him a visit, you won't be disappointed. CLICK HERE and if you have 5 minutes, do give his website some feedback by signing his guestbook.

Facebook

Facebook is really becoming a hugely popular social networking application. I was introduced to it a couple of years ago when Alan's daughter & partner went jet setting for a year. It was a great way of keeping in touch and especially viewing the many photos of their travels. There's many games available, some addictive and some just plain silly. Lots of fun quizzes to try too. It seems Facebook is THE place to be these days. A few weeks ago, thanks to Facebook, I've taken 3 class bookings, booked tickets for a Pink Floyd show, had a real good giggle with some overseas friends and have been communicating with a couple of pals that I'd lost touch with some 15 years ago. Doesn't the internet make the world a much smaller place?

A popular subject

Bamburgh Castle really has been a popular little painting these last 3 months. It's the most demanded 'private' painting subject too. My equipment has been set up for 4 consecutive private lessons - all of them are for Bamburgh Castle. I'm really getting quite a collection of these paintings, creating a new one each time I teach it. I'll have to put them on sale I think. I was delighted to hear that one of my students recently entered her version of Bamburgh Castle in a competition. She came 3rd in the contest with a professional artist taking both 1st and 2nd place. She's thrilled to bits with the result and I am very proud of her. Well done to Maxine, here's her painting.

Joyce Ortner Seascape Lesson for under a tenner - and more!!!

There's a really great Artist's Magazine that I subscribe too. I'd like to draw your attention to it also. It's not the type of monthly glossy mag that will drop through your door. It's a virtual magazine. Now there's pluses and minuses with this type of thing. i.e. You can't settle down on the sofa with a cup of tea and browse through it. BUT you CAN settle in front of your PC screen and watch a tuitional film showing how to paint a seascape!! The name of the Magazine is 'The Interactive Artist' At the moment it costs just $14.99 for a year's subscription (providing you use the promotional code TWITTER09 when you fill in the online application form). This works out at under £10 for the year. There's loads of information and lots of brilliant painting guides from artists like Susan Scheewe, the lovely Joyce Ortner, the very charismatic Wyland to name but a few. For a tenner I don't think you'll go far wrong. Here's Joyces 'Moon Watch' painting project which features on the 'Video Lessons' menu - along with 9 others. If Joyce's seascape gets you excited - don't miss out on her trip to the UK next September where she will be giving a 3 day seascape seminar right here in Capel St Mary. Details can be found HERE and there's still availability.

FREE DVD OFFER !!!!

Just to get the month started and to whet your appetite, why not take advantage of the FREE DVD OFFER? Details can be found HERE. Thanks to Valerie Stewart and our 5am virtual chat whilst both of us were in our pyjamas! Simply place your order and you pay only shipping and handling. GET YOURS TODAY!!!

More Valerie Stewart tuitional DVD's now available direct from the UK

A greater selection of DVD's has been added to the website. You can now purchase all of the Valerie Stewart Pet Portrait DVD's direct from the UK with immediate availability. You can choose your own packages as these exciting and comprehensive pet portraits are available as a 10 DVD starter set OR they can be purchased individually. There are a total of 15 DVDs to choose from. The 10 DVD set alone covers 12 different portraits. You can find the shopping baskets, more information and the relevant images HERE

Website statistics

Some more of the stranger word searches that have landed unsuspecting visitors to my website are: Raku Pottery / Jim Jam Game / Postal Strike Delays / Caravan Kit / Bunches of Mushrooms. No doubt somewhere on my website, even on pages that have been removed from public view, there will be a combination of these words and phrases. Another interesting aspect to my statistics are the locations of visitors. Just yesterday hits were received from Switzerland, Canada, Indonesia, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Japan, Italy, Russia, Poland, South Africa, Uruguay, Sweden and China, to name but a few. Unfortunately when I see the names of some of these countries I know I will also have spam mail offering me anything from cheap frames, reproduction prints, the daily lottery wins and the regular requests to kindly accept millions of dollars into my bank account.

More dates

Just a quicky to let you know the class schedule has been updated with more dates and painting subjects. Private Classes are available inbetween these dates subject to availability. Please call me on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk if you'd like to book tuition or have any enquiries.

Private class chit chatter

With a private class, it's quite a different experience to a group class painting. For a start, it's up close and personal. The students and I get a good chance to chat as we paint. Today's lady, Anne and I certainly had a lot to talk about. Apart from our mutual interest in art, Anne spent several years in the Middle East and is more than familiar with the Emirates. So we covered ex-pat life in sunny Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. My first proper job at the age of 16 was in the Sharjah Carlton Hotel. There were only 2 hotels in Sharjah at that time. My office was opposite the reception, see here, on the top left, just behind that row of plants. Anne is also the mother-in-law of a student of mine who emigrated to Canada several months ago. It was great to go through the photos of Anne's recent visit there to see how the family are getting on and what their new surroundings look like. If you fancy indulging yourself in a private class, at the moment it's only an extra £20 above normal class price and includes a lunch. If you bring a friend you can take advantage of a £5 discount each. I can take up to 4 students in a private group booking too, if you prefer to have an exclusive painting party with friends. Plus YOU get to choose the painting subject from the ever growing gallery. Call me on 01473 311938 for more details/availability.

Valet and Easel

Last week the weather wasn't reliable enough to go for my bike ride. So, I replaced the pedal power with wax-on, wax-off power and gave my car a full valet instead. To be honest a bike ride would have been much quicker but I do feel I've burned off more calories with all the bending and stretching and scrubbing - plus the car looks a lot better for it. My custom-built easel has finally been removed from the boot too - which means I can put the back seats up. This too got a scrub down and I've almost removed most of the oil paint from it (the easel, not the boot). I'll be favouring the stand up easel over the table-top easel for the next few days in my private classes. I should really use this beautiful easel more often when I am at home.

Word Searches

People find my website by a variety of ways. When I view my statistics I'm often smiling at the wierd combination of word searches that seem to pull up my website. Yesterday I had a hit from someone searching 'where to get a tattoo of husband's name'. Another hit came from 'arabic lettering'. A third hit came from 'dip in horizon'. Just a handful of examples for you, and I'll make a point in future to mention further bizarre search words.

Same composition, different method

Sometimes in a class, depending on the type of painting we are doing, I can offer students a variety of colour schemes. Unfortunately, this is not one of those times. I just thought I'd show you 'Serengeti Solitude'. I'm sure you're thinking it's exactly the same as the painting below, only a different colour and a different sized canvas. In part you'd be correct in your assumption, but the two paintings are made in entirely different ways. Which one do you prefer? I think my preference would be the blue.... Aren't those acacia trees just something? They remind me of the Cedar, the emblem on the Lebanese National Flag.

Woops - a - daisy !

I had a bit of an accident when hanging the Serengeti painting up to dry. I have several nails in walls around the house and that's where my wet paintings get sometimes get hung, plus it gives me a chance to live with them for a bit. I gallery wrapped this painting (or, in layman's terms, I painted around the edges). Just as this painting was in position it slipped from my hands it hit the lounge carpet on it's side and then fell face down. A bit like buttered toast really. Did I panic? Nope! Out came Grandma's Secret Spot Remover and within seconds the BLACK oil paint was removed from the carpet. But that wasn't all.......I had a big black smudge across the front of the painting. So out came my trusty wipe out tool. Off came the smudge and it was soon repaired and back to normal again. If this happens to you - for £5.50 the spot remover will take out paint stains from clothes and furnishings and for £5.99 the wipe-out tool will take out any random blobs from your paintings. You can see a little indentation on the bottom picture that was caused by pressure - this will become flat again as the painting dries out.

Class Subjects - new additions

Some new class dates have been added to the Class Timetable, along with some new class subjects. Here's one I have recently finished, entitled 'Serengeti Sunrise'. This painting was very nearly giraffes........in fact, I still might do a giraffe one.

Anniversary September Class

I've had a little change of mind. I've realised next month celebrates the 6th anniversary of the first time I ever seriously dabbled with oil paints. It's the month I created the first ever oil painting I sold at exhibition too. That painting was 'Peach Dawn' and it was my version of a Bob Ross painting project. Earlier this week I just felt like painting it again - for old time's sake. I had a biggy and a little 'un on the go at the same time. Anyway's, I digress, I'm going to make 'Peach Dawn' our Spetember painting subject at Capel St Mary Village Hall on Sunday 13th. If you'd like to coma along and paint this pretty scene, do give me a call on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk This painting was life-changing for me. Who knows, it might just change your life too.......

Lets get Tropical, Tropical

A woman's perogative - I've made a couple of changes to my Class Timetable. I'm changing this month's painting subject at The Green Room (Saturday July 25th) and next month's painting subject at Capel St Mary Village Hall (Sunday August 16th). I've been influenced by a couple of things: 1) The rather hot weather we've been experiencing the last few days and 2) The photos from my daughter's holiday. She spent a couple of weeks in the Caribbean and during that time she took a boat trip to Paradise Island. Fingers crossed the sun will be shining and the windows and doors will be flung open when we paint this. If you'd like to come along do give me a call on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk There's a couple of new techniques involved, just to keep you on your toes. You can see a much larger image of this painting in the Class Subject's Gallery HERE

Another one - I'm enjoying this

Celebrity portrait number 2 - stage 1 - was a little more taxing. I took advantage of the sunny weather and set up outside on the patio. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now I'm not so sure. My fast drying medium became quite thick and sticky in the heat. The sunlight reflected off the pale canvas, which meant I had 2 pairs of glasses on, one's for seeing and sunglasses over the tops of those (!). On top of that, little bugs were sticking to the wet painting too. But I cracked on for a while before giving up. In the evening, I was thrilled when a friend of Steffi's turned up and immediately said 'Hey - that's.....'xxxxx'...' and named the celebrity straight away. Motivated by her comment I carried on working at it until nearly 10pm. A visitor the following day also recognised who it was straight away too.....so that's a good sign. I took a moment today to relax away from the paints and watch Valerie demonstrate the next stages. Her speed is amazing and the effects are achieved so accurately, so quickly. She's been teaching portraiture since 1981 - and if I can have half her speed in the next 20 years I will be well pleased.

A little more progress

If you've been reading my FORUM you would have seen more stages with the portrait. Here's how things looked a day later. I've emailed my progress to Valerie, for her feedback and I was delighted at her response. She writes:
Actually, an excellent job!!! Don't do too well, I'd like to be needed when I get there!!! haha

Keep up the good work! You're definitely on target!!!

Love,

Val

So - totally motivated by her comments I am going to prep another 2 portraits ready to paint outside, in the sun.

Portrait Painting - with Valerie Stewart

Well, it's a long time to wait between now and next May for Valerie Stewart's portrait workshops..........so, with some time on my hands today I decided to have a little go, following her DVD instruction. Firstly, I selected a couple of photos - a celebrity and a family member. Next I prepped 2 canvas, mixing the base colour and giving a good coat on both canvas. As I settled at the table with my brushes, medium, palette, base colour, easel and kitchen towel, I was ready for stage one. I guess, the thing with portraits is........they are supposed to look like someone specific. With landscapes, we can be a lot more forgiving and add extra bushes, trees, fences - anything really..... The first few strokes were applied, following Valerie's guidance. I was a bit wary about making a mistake as I haven't ever made a detailed 'person' portrait in oils before. I'm happy to work with graphite and build up the shading, knowing an eraser will always take out bits I'm not happy with. Not quite sure how that will work with oils though. So, I'm almost at the end of stage one on the celebrity portrait and taking a break before switching to smaller brushes. All that you see so far has been created with a 1 inch brush. If you can guess who it is from this very basic layer, considering there's no eyes yet, I'd be really suprised.

Oil painting equipment

Although I have a variety of supplies on my website, I have quite a few other bits and bobs that are not listed. Often I will have bottles of thinners, cleaning buckets, beater racks, brush holders - all items which are either impossible or uneconomical to post. I have quite a selection of brushes that are suitable for watercolour and acrylics too. Not quite enough stock to put on the website, but plenty good enough to pop into a pot and take along to classes and art group demo's. There's some end of line tuitional DVD's available for various subjects and media. I also now have a range of quite superb oil paint in medium sized tubes at a very competitive rate. I've been trialing this paint for a little while now and it's really passed every test I've put it through, with a superb range of colours too. Most of these extra's are taken along to classes (subject to boot space) and are available for students to purchase at low cost as no postage and packing is involved. The recent addition to the product table are a selection of canvases, from standard rectangle, panoramic and mini size. So.......if you know you're coming along to a class soon and there's something specific you'd like, feel free to drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk so I can be sure to include it in my goody box.

Valerie Stewart Portrait Seminar

The final details of the Valerie Stewart Portrait Workshop have been organised. There's been much interest in Valerie's unique 4 day seminar, due to take place here in the UK next Spring. The details and timetable will show you exactly what's involved. You can see what is and what isn't included in the classes. A friend of mine, Kim, kindly took some photos during a recent seminar she took with Valerie in March 2009. You'll be able to see a portrait Kim made of her daughter and a double portrait of her son and grandson too. You'll also see Valerie working with a student on another double portrait. The places are limited. I'm really looking forward to this workshop and I'll be taking part along with you all. Now.......I need to select who I'm going to paint. Is it going to be a couple of members from Pink Floyd - or will it be some people a little closer to home. Decisions, decision. Still, I have ample time to decide and I'm sure my mind will change several times. Meanwhile, I'd really like to leave you with this portrait made by Valerie. I think you'll agree she's done the most fantastic job in catching Bob Ross is this friendly pose.

Joyce Ortner in the UK

Deposit time........The first deposits for the Joyce Ortner Seascape seminar, scheduled for September 2010 are being received. The only real change to the previous arrangements with Joyce are the price and the venue - and the former is because of the latter. Unfortunately Capel Village Hall has already been booked out and we've had to go for a more expensive venue at The Lambe School in nearby East Bergholt. So - once again, we'll be painting in the birthplace of John Constable, England's romantic painter. Just a short stroll from his studio and home, situated in one of the most pretty ,chocolate box style villlages. You can find more details HERE

Pop Art Portrait

The painting commission I was working on last week, I'm relieved to say, has been very well received. It was a Pop Art commission, it was a large piece, measuring 20 x 20 inches and it's a wedding portrait. Apparently the newlyweds have monochrome decor throughout the house and this black and white painting is just perfect. It's made a very unique gift indeed and I'm delighted my work has been chosen to be a momento for such a special occassion.

Doin' the mess around.......

After a private floral class last week, I didn't clear everything away as I normally do. Instead I left out all the paints and soft floral brushes so I could have a mess about with different brushes and various flower types. I also had some sample canvas to try out and it was the ideal time, on Sunday afternoon, to have a play around. The canvas was good, and the thin layer of medium sat nicely on the surface, which means the priming layer was more than adequate. I experimented with the different Alexander floral brushes, the floral brushes I stock and some brushes from another Company. You just never know when you are going to find a new gem of a brush and whether it would be worth stocking or not. I then filled a canvas with daisies, poppies, geraniums, hydrangeas, leaves and a chrysanthemum bloom. This gave me a chance to play around with the brushes and also try different mediums, comparing shop brought mediums to home made medium mixes. So all in all a great afternoon. I'm really loving the daisies, poppies and chrysanthemum blooms and they would be ideal little flowers for a beginner to do. I'll have to see if there's a way I can put them together to make an interesting and pretty painting composition.

Revive your brushes

As I was setting up for today's class, I found 3 x 1 inch landscape brushes that hadn't been properly cleaned. The bristles had gone a little hard, too hard to apply medium with, that's for sure. I decided to use those brushes anyway and very easily rejuventated them to their former glory within minutes. Out came the brush cleaning bar and within seconds they were clean, soft, supple and fragrant. Although I don't recommend using the soap bar with your large (1 inch and 2.5 inch) landscape brushes, it is possible to clean them if you are very, very careful. The secret is NOT to have your brushes in contact with water for a length of time. Just dip your brush into luke warm water, wiggle it over the cleaning bar and work up a lather into the bristles with your fingers. This will loosen any residue medium and paint. Quickly dip your brush into clean lukewarm water to rinse and remove all traces of water immediately, using an old towel or kitchen roll. After this, tightly bind your bristles with clean kitchen roll, which will ensure all traces of water are absorbed away. If you stick to this method your landscape brushes will survive the cleaning process. I showed today's students just what the cleaning bar was capable of as I handed them a very old, stiff 1 inch wide filbert brush. They could barely bend the bristles over. Within minutes, after working it over the cleaning soap bar a couple of times it was as soft as new. At just £3.50 a bar, delivered to your door, if it saves just one brush it would have paid for itself. If you'd like some, you can find the shopping basket for it HERE

Bamburgh Castle - now available to all levels

My Bamburgh Castle painting is probably one of the most popular choices for private classes. However, as it stands it's only open to intermediate students (students who have attended 4 painting workshops). There is a way this painting can be taught to beginners and we'll make this the subject for Sunday July 5th 12.30 - 5.30 at Capel Village Hall. If you'd like to paint this scene, do drop me a line or give me a call. If you're a complete beginner, why not give this pretty castle composition a go and impress you're friends and family. I'll take the class through the method step by step from start to finish, no rush, no pressure and a lot of fun. We'll be painting this on a panoramic canvas as it works well with the composition.

One for the kids (and the grown ups) this summer holiday

Swimming Free - that lovely whale scene which was designed by Jack Kolber, a fellow ACI in the States, is a painting that is absolutely ideal for children. Its always nice to have children along in a class and us adults learn a lot from their sheer bravado. I think it's time to make this a painting subject for the school summer holidays so any children who are budding artists can come along. For those of you with children, it's the ideal painting subject for mum/dad and son/daughter to paint along together (plus you'll receive a £5 discount each on your class fee too.) I'll be having 2 'Swimming Free' workshops in August. One in Capel (in Suffolk near Ipswich) at a weekend and another one in East Bergholt (in Essex near Colchester) on a week day. This link will take you to the CLASS TIMETABLE so you can check on the dates and other painting subjects currently available. If you're interested in these classes, just give me a call on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk to book your seat. Everything is supplied for you - all you need to do is turn up with a smile and a desire to learn something new.

Dingly Dell

I've been wanting to make a new bluebell wood scene suitable for a painting class. Finally, I have one that I think will be suitable for our 7th June class in Capel St Mary. If you'd like to have a go at 'Dingly Dell' do give me a call on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk We'll start at 12.30pm and we'll finish around 5.30pm. As always, I try to introduce new things to the regular students and in this class you'll discover a natty way to highlight your trees and add detail into your foliage highlights. We'll also be introducing a new couple of new colours to the palette.

A quiz while we paint

Neville, a regular student of mine, often poses a thought provoking question during painting workshops, (remember several weeks ago, whilst painting the stars into the Northern Lights painting, he wondered who sang the original version of 'Swinging on a Star'?). Neville keeps us entertained with his quizzes and today none of us had the answer to his question. Our little church is painted in using a sable brush. 'Where does sable come from?', asked Neville. He had us foxed until we could get home and google it............. Would any readers have been able to answer him on the spot? Incidentally, we'll be painting the Northern Lights again on Saturday 25th April from 10am till 3pm at the Green Room in Stowmarket. If you'd like to attend this class, do give me a call on 01473 311938 or drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk

Versions of 'The Country Church'

The 'Country Church' painting subject is evolving in many lovely ways. Students are making this particular painting subject their very own work. For instance.....a couple of weeks ago one lady painted in a character laying with his back against the tree, knees bent, relaxing, possibly even asleep. Another lady decided she didn't want to put in the foreground tree - instead she went for pretty highlighted bushes and soft grass. It seems once we get to that foreground area - that's when the composition is really open to change. We've had paths, fences and one clever chap even painted in a path leading to a jetty projecting into the water. We've had spires, lightning poles, windows, doors, extensions added to the little background church too. I'm absolutely delighted that students are having so much fun with their paintings and it shows me their confidence levels and their imagination. Well done.

An Unusual Lesson

I conducted a rather unusual lesson the other week..........my students had supplied me with a swatch of curtain material and a photo of their new settee. They wanted nothing more than to paint their own contemporary or abstract artwork to hang in their soon-to-be decorated lounge. I'd explained that this would not be a follow my lead/step by step workshop. Instead, I would give them a wide selection of brushes, a few pointers, illustrate some special effects and be on hand if they needed any assistance. The palette had already been selected, so pretty much anything they made would have gone with the decor. We started off by putting masking tape over some areas and blocking of sections of canvas and blending various tones. As the day progressed some rather pretty effects materialised. Here's one lady's almost completed piece and she's absolutely delighted with it - a pretty oriental cherry blossom theme that will compliment her home beautifully. She may be back to paint some more on different sized canvas to hang on opposite and adjacent walls. I bet that will look really nice, and will make for quite a talking point too.

A suprise at the WI

The ladies of the Stowmarket WI had a little suprise at last night's oil painting demonstration - so did Alan and I - and so did a lady called Colleen. As my sister and mother live close to the venue and as neither of them had ever seen me give a 'talk' I asked them along as guests. The WI welcomed them into their group and they were already sat down and settled before Alan and I even arrived. I recognised several familiar faces within the audience and was delighted to re-unite with a workmate, Colleen, from my office days, going back a good 10 years or more. Colleen knows me only as a Credit Manager, totally unaware of my artist alter ego. So, Colleen's suprise was to see the new me enjoying a very, very different career. Our suprise was the fact that it was the Stowmarket WI's 25th Anniversary. Instead of the usual tea and cakes we had champagne and celebration cake (much to the delight of Alan who somehow managed to find himself with 2 glasses of champers.) But I think the best suprise of all was the one I gave the ladies, and hopefully my family too. During the talk I referred to several of my paintings which were on display. I explained how they had come about, the inspiration behind some of them, the simple technique behind others. I was explaining how we would make falling snow and asked the audience if they would like to see a painting with this effect. 'Yes', they enthused......and as I pulled out a painting from behind the table there was a loud 'Ahhhhhhhh'. 'What do you think of this?', I asked. 'Lovely, beautiful....' and several other very positive comments were passed. 'Well', I said, 'This painting isn't mine. This painting is from one of my students. This painting is from someone who defied me to get a decent picture out of her, determined to be my first failure and she's sitting right among you all - my mum!'. I hope the audience reaction confirmed to mum just how far she'd travelled and how well she had done on her art journey.

Valerie Stewart Workshop in the UK - May 2010

The Valerie Stewart demo DVD at just £16 (including p&p) is proving to be a very popular item and a great introduction into oil painting portraits. Valerie and I are currently discussing a portrait workshop here in the UK - a first for both of us. We had hoped to organise a seminar for this year, but alas, our schedules are just too busy to slot this in with ample time for promotion and proper organisation. So, dates have been confirmed for 2010. The 4 day seminar will take place on 30th April, 1st, 2nd and 3rd May. We will complete 2 oil painting portraits of your choice. Further details will be released as soon as they are available and long distance students will have more than enough time to organise accommodation and travel/flights. This opportunity to paint along with Valerie will be extremely exciting and places will be limited to just 26 students. The workshops will take place in Capel St Mary and students will need to commit to the full 4 days. I'm thrilled this extremely popular and talented instructor is willing to teach here in the UK - this will be one memorable class, guaranteed.

New Oil painting Tool & cleaning bar

My tube-squeezer tool, for extracting the last little drop of oil paint from the tubes, really attracts students' attention. I'm often being asked where they can be purchased. Unfortunately, the tool I own comes from overseas and costs around £35 to be delivered to the UK. But, I can now supply a very similar piece of equipment to you. This tube squeezer will soon pay for itself, that's for certain. It's the same size as the one I use in classes, measuring 4 inches wide (not including the key) and 5 inches deep. I've also added a brush cleaner to my supplies page. This soap bar is made specifically for cleaning your softer and smaller brushes. It lasts an absolute age and really does condition and clean your script liners, flats, fans, rounds - just about every brush, with the exception of your large 1 inch and 2.5 inch landscape brushes. You can find both items HERE.

All stocked up.......

I've just updated some of my online shopping baskets. I had a few brushes that were temporarily out of stock but am pleased to say we're firing on all cylinders again. The soft floral brushes, in particular, are hugely popular tools at such an affordable price, enabling students to buy in 2's or 3's. I'm pleased to say the grey graphite paper, (which I'm lead to believe just can't be found in art stores at the moment), is back in stock also at just £2.25 a sheet (includes delivery). We've stocked up on the wipe out tools, which are being used more and more for putting in signatures with precision and also for scratching in delicate little details to the foliage areas. And of course, there's the infamous 'Grandma's Spot Remover', a brilliant little bottle of heaven-knows-what that's guaranteed to remove all manner of stains from your clothes - so if you have some oil paint spots on your favourite pair of jeans - this little beauty at just £5.50 will rescue them for you.

The Good Life?

This morning I had some running around to do, delivering art supplies to some more local customers. My last stop was Peggy, and I enjoyed having a leisurely cup of tea with her and her husband John. I took them along a selection of my free range eggs as I know Peggy used to keep chickens when she was younger. I enjoyed swapping gardening tips with John too. I'm getting quite a reputation, not to mention a few nicknames. From Sue 'Have A Cake' Warne to Felicity (as in The Good Life), to name but a couple. This year I hope to grow my own vegetables and this afternoon I shall start propogating my first batches of seeds. Lucky I chatted to John about this, as he has a few of his own beans andseeds to give me - much more personal this way as opposed to buying the seeds over the counter. He did advise me not to bother with the rhubard seeds though - much better to buy a crown apparently. I'll give them a go anyway, but I understand it could well be a couple of years before we enjoy a rhubarb crumble of our own. Hopefully we'll have better and quicker luck with the fruit. With 2 new trees to add to the garden we'll look forward to some Cox's eating apples and some cooking apples.

Some rather beautiful pieces of artwork

For those readers who are also members of the SAA (Society for All Artists),you will have no doubt received your latest magazine. Featured on the front cover is a rather stunning piece by fellow Artist, Peter Williams. Peter is a highly respected Suffolk Artist who specialises in Western Art. We met just over a year ago as we were doing the change over for an exhibition in the White Horse at Capel St Mary. As my show was coming to an end, Peter's was just beginning. We had time to have a drink and a chat at the bar together too. Peter has been working hard on his own website and his varied work is displayed there so well. If you fancy feasting your eyes on some fine watercolours (and other media) then do click on his link HERE. My favourite piece by Peter is 'Still Life'. You can find it by clicking on the left hand menu tab 'Galleries' then select 'Open Editions' from the drop down menu. I can remember having a tasty Sunday lunch at the White Horse, right opposite the original of this pretty painting and I simply fell in love with it. It's certainly a 'Still Life' with a difference. Do give him a look, you will be in for a treat.

A new type of painting class?

This morning's demo was a lively event. I demo'ed this particular Art Group a couple of years ago and I've been a member ever since. Now, the first time I gave a talk I was fine, I didn't really know a soul. This time though was a little different as I'm really familiar now with all the other members. And this time.........I was a little nervous. I really wanted to give my friends a good talk, a good show, something a little different. The way to present a very different and new slant on the wet on wet technique came to me in an inspired early morning flash. I woke up at around 5.30am with a great little idea - and I put that idea into practice for the first half of the demo. I was thrilled at the end of the talk to be asked back AGAIN! So, with our diaries at the ready we've scheduled in a painting workshop. Once again, my supplies were popular as there's equipment and DVD's on offer to suit watercolour, acrylic, pastels and other. My main painting was raffled off, to raise funds for the group and it's gone to a really good home too. One lady was telling me that her nephew would love to learn to oil paint and would more than likely be interested in painting exactly the way I did during the first half......... 'It would suit him perfectly'. Now I'm wondering if I just might have struck upon a new-style oil painting class.......I'm not giving too much away at the moment, but I'll run the ideas by some of my regulars and see if they would be up for it. Isn't it great how one thing often leads to another.

The Yin and The Yan

My weekend students had the will-power to paint facing each other and resisting the temptation to peek at each other's work. As I was trotting from one to the other I could see the 2 very different versions of 'Fat Old Sun'. I guess you could describe them as the Yin and the Yan as they were completely opposite. Sam's version was powerful and strong in colour. Stacey's version was gentle and softly blended, a very pastel version indeed. It just goes to show, you can have the same brushes, the same paints and be shown the same technique, but your personality and mood will expose itself in your painting style

Money Saving Art Supplies

As I pulled off the dual carriageway this morning, heading towards Stowmarket, I was delighted to see the Tesco's roundabout filled with pretty yellow daffodils. In the brilliant sunshine they were a treat and a sure sign that Spring is only just around the corner. The warm sun stayed with us for the best part of the day, and it allowed my students to take their paintings into the courtyard at The Green Room so their black acrylic base coats could dry off rapidly. I had a huge amount of questions at the end of class regarding wet-on-wet oil painting supplies. I'm lucky in that I am not tied in with any particular Company and can pass on details of the many various brands that I personally recommend for this particular technique - all tried and tested and guaranteed to do the job and give brilliant value for money. I was delighted with one particular comment I received from Rob; 'You've saved me £15 already on the thinners alone!'. It's no secret in saying it's my mission to get as many people oil painting as possible - plus - I can show you how you can set yourself up without having to spend a small fortune. In this current economic crisis, the £15 that Rob has saved will easily buy him a couple of brushes, a tube or two of paint and a canvas.

News Travels Fast

News travels quick......thankfully. Yesterday I received an e-mail from the secretary of another Art Group located just a couple of miles from Holland-On-Sea. I'd been recommended as a guest speaker/demonstrator. Within seconds we'd arranged a demo evening. So, big thanks to John for the mention. I'll be seeing you again sooner than we thought. These Art Group demo's are quite interesting as I always ask if anyone has ever heard of Bob Ross. Of course, a few hands go up. When I ask if anyone has ever heard of Bill Alexander, the show of hands is even less. I enjoy letting people know how Bob's painting adventure started and where he learned his craft. Now, thanks to my website, I'm lucky enough to have some really lovely readers. One regular reader sent me quite a birthday package last year. Among the much treasured goodies was the Bill Alexander biography, signed by Bill himself. At these talks and demos I display this book right beside my framed certificate. I leave the page wide open showing a classic shot of Bill Alexander with his better known student.......Bob Ross.

Live Demonstrations

It was lovely to meet with the Holland-On-Sea Art Group last night. They had booked an oil painting demonstration and talk. When I arrived, they had set out about 8 large tables. Me, being a bit of a 'spreader' used each and every one of them. Alan even managed to set up an art store in the corner of the room which proved really popular before, after and during the tea break. Several members of the group are already active oil painters, probably the highest percentage that I have come across in an art group to date. This group are really lucky to have a facility where they can run an ongoing exhibition along the sea front from March right through to September, being manned by volunteers from within the group. The group are always looking for new members and to be honest, with this exhibition facility on a plate for you, I'd highly recommend anyone within the area to consider joining up. E-mail me for contact details if you're interested. If you'd like me to come along to give your group a demo, you can find the details HERE At the end of the evening, just as I was putting the final brush strokes on the mountain and lake painting, I told the audience 'If anyone can read this next bit, you can have the painting'. I started to put in my Arabic signature, pausing between letters. One cheeky lady asked 'Is it the Loch Ness Monster?' So I explained about my Sue's News page and told her 'you're gonna be on it...........' (The painting was given to the Chairman of the group, who very kindly helped us to set up and clear away).

Learn to paint Portraits in Oils - Step by Step

AyoubArt is proud to become a distributor for Valerie Stewart Studios. Both Valerie's 'Portrait Painting Technique DVD' and 6 DVD Portrait series are now available to buy direct from the UK. I've just added a new DVD to the Valerie Stewart collection: The one hour demo DVD, 'Painting The Face' (Revised Second Edition) is designed to teach you how the Valerie Stewart Portrait Painting Technique works. It will take you through each step of painting a portrait, from beginning to end. You will learn everything - from one colour under painting to the final touches necessary to paint a quality portrait. For your viewing convenience, you may skip this DVD to various sections of information. There are 8 chapters: 1) Colour mixing 2) One colour underpainting 3) Colour application 4) Painting the lips 5) Painting eyes 6) Painting Hair 7) Clothing. At just £16, which includes postage and packing to any European address - I have immediate availability on this item. The shopping cart can be found HERE - or, if you prefer, payment can be made by cheque - payable to Sue Warne and sent to Apollo House, 10 Windmill Hill, Capel St Mary, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP9 2JF.

Landscape, foliage and blending Oil Painting Brushes

The 1 inch and 2.5 inch Bill Alexander landscape brushes are proving a very popular tool. Most students who use them in class have purchased their own for home use. My class brushes have really been put through their paces since I introduced them into classes nearly 6 months ago. They clean up well and are as soft today as they were on day one. We've all found that we are using my soft goat hair blender brush less and the large Alexander landscape brush more as it really does a good job of removing those brush marks. It's a 'mighty' tool, as Bill would say, much too big to dip into tins of white medium. I find it easier to tip out the medium into plastic trays and pass around the class. It actually ensures you don't load too much into your brush in the first place. At just £20 (which includes postage and packing) for the two brushes, these will last you quite some time. If you look closely, you'll see Bob Ross using these exact same brushes in his first recordings of 'The Joy of Painting' programmes.

New Class Subjects.

For the last few classes, I've been taking along paintings of mine and letting the students select the subjects for future painting classes. Their input has been great and it helps me to make a decision too.

A couple of the paintings they have selected can be completed in just 4 hours, instead of the usual 5 hour session. So......we'll put these into my Saturday Classes at the Green Room in Stowmarket and we'll have a discounted rate for these shorter lessons. One of the most popular paintings 'The Lightning Tree' will be taught to complete beginners on Saturday, February 29th. The cost for the class is just £40 per person and if you book with a friend, you can take advantage of a £5 discount EACH. You can find the details, location etc here: http://www.ayoubart.co.uk/17.html

The first result

I've just received the first photo of a painting made by following my DVD. THis is Lee's picture, you can see he's changed the canvas around to portrait instead of landscape and it alters the composition in a really lovely way too. The picture was taken on his mobile phone and sent by text to me. I think you'll agree, he's done a marvellous job. In his text message to me he says 'Now THIS one I like....' And for anyone who knows Lee, they will know he is his own worst critic. If anyone else wants to text in a photo - you can do so on 079500 32557Look forward to seeing some more.... and well done Lee

The First 'Learn to Paint' DVD

Last week, AyoubArt went into the DVD business. Orders from all over the world have been flying in and the first copies have been well received. 'Golden Lake' © has finally been launched. It's a 100 minute step by step oil painting DVD and will take you through an oil painting project from blank canvas to finished result. If you've painted with me before, you'll be taken on a very familiar journey. If you have never been able to attend one of my classes, this DVD will give you a chance to paint along with me and is probably the next best thing to a live class. With immediate availability I guarantee you'll receive your DVD's without delay. This has been a very exciting project for us to produce. It's been fun (and frustrating) at times, especially mastering the new equipment and programmes, but we are confident you will enjoy this first release. We are double confident you will learn some oil painting techniques, refine your skills and produce a marvellous (and saleable) work of art. So.......an exciting time all round for us here today. I'll be taking along the original painting along with a box of DVD's to my classes class, so students will have a chance to buy direct from the product table.

The reviews received so far, from beginner painters to fellow oil painting instructors, has been hugely positive. You can read the customer comments made so far on my main website here: http://www.ayoubart.co.uk/page_139.html
'Golden Lake' is just the first of several DVD's in the pipeline. The second movie has already been filmed and is currently undergoing editing. If you'd like to see what all the excitement is about the link you need is here: http://www.ayoubart.co.uk/page_136.html

Temptation

I chose to lay in this morning and didn't manage to get my walk in before today's workshop, nor did I have time to do it before it got dark after the class. So, out of interest, I decided to wear my pedometer for today's class. As we stopped for lunch I took a raeding and was amazed to see my steps converted to 1.4 miles! At the end of the class I had notched up another 1.4 miles. Considering I didn't leave the house, that's quite a lot of mileage. But, I may well have undone any good. Sally & Josie always bring goodies with them and today was no exception. They broke the seal on a rather sumptious box of Thornton's chocolates which I managed to resist all day long. But.......they left some remaining chocolates behind and the temptation was too much. Coffee, my favourite flavour, sat there staring at me so I popped it in my mouth without a second thought. Naughty - but nice.

Student input

When today's ladies (Sally & Josie) arrived, they commented on how lovely the countryside looked, all frosted up. I showed them the painting I made yesterday, also insipred by this current cold weather. They both gave me a bit of inspirational art advice actually. They reckoned the addition of some glitter would make the painting look frosty - and I have to agree with them. We've added glitter to our paintings before, about a year ago, giving some stars a little extra embellishment. I'm pleased they remembered this as I had completely forgotton. I shall have to finish this painting off, let it dry out and get the fine glitter dust out. Josie went on to say what a pretty Christmas card it would make too. Imagine a similar scene on a really small canvas, spots of glitter catching the light...........

What a grey day

Are you all experiencing this horrible fog we are having at the moment? It's dense and it's freezing cold and I can't see to the bottom of my garden. Despite having a warm car sat at the top of the path, I decided to carry on with my daily 4 mile walk to the village post office. I put on an extra couple of jumpers and two pairs of gloves as well. The post office is only a mile down the road and once the internet orders were posted I walked on for another mile, studying the frosty cobwebs and the frost patterns on the foliage along my way. This time I took my camera with me. You can see here, (top photo), how this heavy fog has made everything appear a dull grey and blue/white. I guess the scenes from my walk strongly influenced today's painting exercise, as you can see from the bottom photo. My painting isn't finished yet as I had to stop work to make some fresh home made soup for tomorrow's art group. I'll go back to it on Sunday and see what develops. One thing I will say, it's great painting in my new (very warm and cosy) workspace. I can just leave everything as it is and pick up/drop off whenever I choose. I also get to keep an eye on the washing, as the tumble dryer is in the same room - it doubles up as a nice big worktop area for my bits too.