Abrasive papers Historically abrasives were made from natural materials such as sand, shark skin and shells. These might be applied directly to a surface or bonded to a cloth or paper backing before use. These materials were superseded by glass paper in the 19th century. Glass paper has itself been Read more…
After decades of painting, Henri Matisse found himself unable to continue due to ill health. But from his wheelchair and his bed he continued to make work with the help of assistants. Large scale collage became his medium of choice. Matisse called this work “painting with scissors”. His work focussed Read more…
An analogous colour scheme uses colours which are next to each other on the colour wheel. For example, blues and greens, or oranges and yellows. These colours have a close relationship with each other. There is not that much hue contrast between analogous colours, so you need to make sure you are Read more…
Screenprinting is a great simple process which will enable you to print your own bag, t-shirt or other fabric item. Screenprinting kits start at around £30 with everything you need to get started, or you could have a go at making a screen yourself. The following tutorial is a good Read more…
Pottery Tutor Sally demonstrates modelling animals in clay, with a short video of her sheep to give you some pointers. You could use the same techniques to model in plasticine or playdough if you don’t have clay. View the video on our Facebook page.
If you have a look out of your window, or go onto your balcony or into your garden, you can hopefully see some signs of spring in the unfurling foliage. There are all kinds of greens out there right now and your task is to notice all the wonderful variations and Read more…
Try mixing a grey to learn about colour and to make subtle colours. Colour doesn’t shine without grey! Using colours straight from the tube in a painting doesn’t usually result in a successful piece of work. Mixing colour is something to practice and gives you the opportunity to find what Read more…
Look at these sketches made by Van Gogh, and see if you can follow some of the methods shown in his work. Notice how the foreground has more detail and things become less defined in the distance. This is one way to achieve a sense of perspective or distance in Read more…
Here’s some photos of the little figure I finished this morning. He’s a bit of a cross between da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man and Angel of the North. It’s really tricky to get a figure in clay to stand so I built this in stages starting with the feet and building Read more…
We have recently been asked about removing an ink stain from a piece of furniture. Here are a couple of methods to try. One is to apply alcohol, either isopropyl or methylated spirits. The other is a solution of bicarbonate of soda. The effectiveness depends on the type of ink, Read more…