Our Winter Painting Subject

I've been asked to paint something with a Christmas Theme for the Heartlands Oil Painting Workshops in December. I thought about a Christmas Pudding, I thought about mince pies, I thought about a beautiful plate of turkey and all the trimmings........but once I got over my distraction with food, I knuckled down and made this vignette painting entitled 'Watching'.

I hope the students will enjoy painting this little fella. I have just one space left on the December 2nd class and 3 spaces left on the December 9th Class. If you'd like to book a space on either of these classes, do drop me a line on info@ayoubart.co.uk or call me on 01473 311938. Heartlands is in the pretty village of Gipping, just outside of Stowmarket, Suffolk. It lays between Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds, just off the A14.

September Painting Subject

With almost a full day in my studio, I've managed to finish off a new class painting subject, I've restored 4 old canvases, half finished another class painting subject and had a big tidy up. The completed subject is called 'Picnic Spot' and we'll be painting this on Sunday September 14th at Capel St Mary Village Hall. The class will start at 12.30pm and will finish around 5.30pm. If you'd like to come along and give this painting a go, do drop me a line at info@ayoubart.co.uk or call me on 01473 311938. At the moment, the Apollo Studio self-catering accommodation is available. You can find details of this cosy little home from home here: http://www.ayoubart.co.uk/38.html

Wildlife Painting Subject for beginners

If you'd like to learn to oil paint a wildlife subject, here's an ideal starter taken from a design by Jack Kolber. 'Swimming Free' shows 2 whales enjoying the depths of the ocean. We'll be painting this in a class on the 17th May in the Green Room, Stowmarket - but if you can't wait till then, the subject is available as a Private Lesson. Don't be put off - this really is a simple and very rewarding oil painting to make. If you'd like to take part in this class, just give me a call on 01473 311938 and I'll book you in. At the moment there's a wide variety of Painting Subjects ,at several different venues, showing on my website here: http://www.ayoubart.co.uk/17.html

Keep an eye on this page - there's some different subjects coming up very soon too........

High Hopes

I've been working on a new painting subject, a mountain scene. It started off in Landscape Format, I've tried several different compositions, respositioning the mountain, changing it's shape and colours. Finally the project came together today and I'm quite happy with the finished result even if I did change to Portrait Format. I'm calling this one 'High Hopes', named after one of my favourite songs. After a few practices to increase my speed, now I can complete this in under 20 minutes it's ready to put into a class. To teach my paintings in a class of up to 15 students I need to be able to paint these subjects in under half an hour - that way I know we can finish in around 5 hours, have time for a mid-class break, without compromising on the standard of work or the quality of tuition. There's 2 things I won't compromise on: One is space and the other is quality. High Hopes will be the painting subject for my class on Saturday 16th February at the Green Room in Stowmarket (details below). If you'd like to attend this class, do call me to book your seat.

Blue Bells

Several of my students have been asking me to have a Blue Bell Wood as a painting class subject. Although I already have a Blue Bell Wood painting I thought I'd make another one. In this new AyoubArt design we give our tree's a much more rugged texture on the bark. We also pay attention to the varients in light and dark in the bushes and the foreground grass. Our Blue Bells too are carpeted in the background, yet much more defined in the foreground. We'll be painting Blue Bell Knoll (shown above) on Saturday 16th February at the Green Room in Stowmarket, IP14 1RA (Just off Aldi Car Park). The class will start at 10am and will run until approx 3 - 3.30pm. If you'd like to come along please call Sue Warne 01473 311938 or e-mail me on info@ayoubart.co.uk to reserve your space. The class costs just £45 per person and all equipment and materials are included plus refreshments. The Green Room is very close to a little Bakery who will make you a lovely fresh roll for your lunch - I make sure we have a break before they close so students can pop over, if they wish. New students will each receive a FREE 2 HOUR DVD on basic techniques of oil painting, worth £11.50. If you bring a friend along to class you can take a 15% discount EACH.

Rosemary, Re-visited.......

I saw Rosemary sooner than I thought. Her excitement got the better of her and she booked for my Painting Class on 1st December, Sandy Walk, (seen here on the right). This time the venue was in The Green Room in Stowmarket. This pretty and relaxing venue is just a very short walk from the train station. Rosemary started her day at about 5am and was home safe and sound, with another oil painting, by 7.30pm. Now THAT's dedication.

I've gotton to know Rosemary quite well throught the classes, her visits and phone calls. I'm pleased to say, it's not going to be long before she meets up again to make painting number 3.