Portrait Workshops, Models & Artists Wanted

On Fridays at  Beach Creative, Beach House, Beach Street, Herne Bay, CT 5 PT

Looking  for another model. The system is simple. We ask a model to sit for two, three hour, sessions on a Friday from 10.00 to 13.00,  of course with breaks and we have between four to eight artists who  attend. In return the model receives a finished portrait for sitting .  The portraits in this blog are from workshops earlier in the year.

 Bi - George

As I am responsible for the completed portraits I have to ensure that the quality of the portraits is of an acceptable level which of course is debatable. So far the models that we have used I have known previously for some time and I am familiar to an extent with their characters. I feel it is important to work from life and photographic reference  as I try to combine the two approaches. The ideal would be to only work from life but my working methods would require the model to spend an unacceptable amount of time sitting so I compromise. This process still takes time and the sitter may have to wait for the portrait to be completed for several weeks.

Katrina

I like to explore how I can incorporate some of the traits I see in the sitter in to the portrait but I do not have a particular idea in mind when I start. I like ideas to creep up on me while I am painting or considering the sitter. I  would say my style is contemporary realism as I wish to a have recognizable portrait that is clearly painted. My aim is to get the sitters to enjoy the process, as it is not a normal activity for most of us to be painted, and hopefully, happy  to hang  the finished portrait on their wall.

The main reason for the workshop is to encourage artists new or old to take a look at portraiture and to be able to try it.The method we use allows for about six hours of painting from life and the addition of  a photograph to use between sittings.  All at an affordable cost. I hope that you might like to join us either painting or modeling.  If you live near or can get to Herne Bay during the day, why not consider having your portrait painted by myself and the other Artists who attend the workshop.

Our next  portrait session take place on 8th - 15th November and another to follow  29th November - 6th December 

If you wish to see more work why not look at my Facebook page;- Peter Green  (PEG)

   

Madrid

Looking forward to my Trip to Madrid to see my friend Luis Kerch, a painter of landscapes or as he would say a painter of light! This is a sample of his work that I find very ethereal and mystic.  It has a touch of fantasy about it, yet it was painted in Sandwich,Kent.  This part of the world is renowned for its light and Turner loved to come to Kent for its dramatic sunsets. The colours are so saturated, almost unreal in their variation. If you captured  them on a canvas people would call it a fantasy just like Luis's painting .

I am new to this.

     

As a newbie  I thought I would explain who I am and what I do.The aim of this blog is, hopefully, to get my work seen by more  people. So here goes.

 Art has been a part of my life since childhood; at the heart of everything from illustrations for my children’s bedtime stories to using my drawing skills throughout my career. Now art is my love and my profession.

I have been painting and drawing since I was a young boy. Initially, my interest lay with nature - animals, birds and landscapes. I suppose I had an idyllic childhood, free to roam the fields with my friends and enjoy many sports. Through it all however, drawing was always very close by and has been the one thing that has been a constant in my life. I find I can express myself and explain things much better through art than with language. 

I’ve always been very practical, making things – always using my hands. I became an electrician, engineer and manager and used my drawing skills to convey understanding as part of my daily working life. And when I had time I would escape to sketch and draw for fun – with a pocket sketchbook and pencil always to hand.

As a father of nine it was only natural that the subject of my passion for art would come out through my life with my family. As my family grew I dabbled in pictures to entertain the children, bringing characters and stories to life. As both my passions in life merged I had the desire to capture my children and memories of them with drawings and my art. So in time the subject matter for my pieces evolved.

Most of my work has been of subjects that are close to me; my family and friends - with portraits as the main theme, often as gifts with requests for the occasional commission

The question is though - did I consider myself to be an artist? I think not. I have always seen myself as more of a student. I love art and am continuously learning and growing each day. I’ve spent decades visiting and appreciating art galleries and exhibitions – always seeking out art wherever I happen to be. I regularly visit the National Gallery and the Portrait Gallery, and like to go to special exhibitions. But still, to this day, my favourite gallery of all time is the Mall Gallery in London as it captures the essence of the English art scene, which is close to my heart.

In 2011, I entered my first competition, The Lancelot Andrewes Awards at Southwark Cathedral London (19^th to 30^th September 2011). With the theme of ‘Alienation’ I entered a piece called “El Rio” and was awarded a High Commendation and my artwork was exhibited. This had a profound effect on me as I realised that I might just be a ‘real’ Artist!  

Since then, I have regularly exhibited my work locally and entered national competitions. This year I was pre-selected for the Royal Portrait Exhibition and the Threadneedle Prize at the Mall Galleries. I feel it is only a matter of time and hard work before I fulfill my lifelong dream and ambition to see my own work exhibited in the Mall.

Sharing my love for art with others and continuing to better myself and my understanding of how art can help others is a new passion for me too. I run Portrait workshops at Beach Creative in Herne Bay with my wife and support vulnerable adults with art sessions at the Umbrella group.

Whether that makes me an artist or not is for others to decide, but art is now my life, my passion and my profession and - my business card says I am, so I must be!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Peter-Green-PEG/170048073069663