2016
DECEMBER 2016
Santa
Santa took time out to come to portrait and have his picture painted by the group.
Tania
Glynis Barnes Mellish doing watercolours
Our last meeting was a demonstration by Glynis Barnes Mellish, who gave us a demonstration of watercolour techniques to achieve a lively picture of a wolf. She began with loose colour to give an idea of outline and depth, which she built on over further layers to reach a highly realistic picture of the animal. She also gave us a detailed list of her colour palette, which members could use to try their hand at a similar picture at home.
A most enjoyable evening.
Diane Bell
NOVEMBER 2016
PAUL NICOLSON Statues of Bedford
At our October meeting at Putnoe Heights Church, we were treated to an illustrated talk about the statues and sculptures of Bedford by Paul Nicholson, a local guide who has become intrigued with his research into this topic.
Our members were treated to some very interesting information about these artists, who are mostly neglected when we look at the statues. Also it made us think about the placement of such works of art, which we take for granted as we walk around the town and which have become so familiar to us.
He also gave us insights into the other works of the sculptors, which spread across the globe and which connects Bedford to many places across the world. He told us of the modern sculpture which was in Bedford Park but which had to be removed because youngsters used it as a skate park. Another one is hidden from public gaze as it is in the University grounds. Yet another had to be removed from its original placement as it was discovered to be made of chicken wire and covered with light materials enabling it to be 'attacked'' by all and sundry, so it is now on a traffic island near the Police Station.
Some statues have caused controversy and heated debate as to appropriate siting or relevance and expense, while others have been praised for their design and sympathy.
It proved to be a most entertaining and informative evening.
Diane Bell
Jean Picton with five art classes continues
Week three we painted a flower stall, not very specific flowers or people or buildings...atmospheric.
Week four we moved into acrylics. Three colours only. Cadmium red, lemon yellow and ultramarine blue. First we made a brown base and let it dry after scratching in the objects. Then, when it was dry, we painted in the darkest areas and moved gradually to very light, even white. Keeping the light source constant and the shadows, too. The results were, we thought, rather good.
On the fifth week we used Golden Fluid Acrylics and we painted flowers. The acrylics - which we hadn't touched before - were very richly pigmented and needed just a little to produce vibrant colours. Again we used lemon yellow, ultramarine blue and cadmium red, together with purple. We painted with brushes and twigs and produced lively pictures. We were all chuffed.
We enjoyed Jean's classes and her enthusiasm. We all felt we'd learned a lot, not a minute wasted!
Pauline Brown
OCTOBER 2016
Jean Picton with five art classes 2016
Jean Picton's first of five classes started last Saturday. Twelve students enjoyed Jean's informative tuition followed by individual attention. Check in Our Photos - Jean Picton with five art classes 2016. We will be adding photos as the class goes along.
Now we delved into colour. Using only three (red, yellow and blue) we created a picture of poppies. The 2 1/2 hours flew by. We practiced shades and depths of colour. Each painting was different but lovely and we went home feeling rather elated|
Pauline Brown
Workshop by Peter Keegan
Peter Keegan gave an excellent oil portrait painting workshop on 1 October to Bedford Art Society members at Renhold Village Hall. We were all very tired at the end of the day but the finished product was a reflection of how much we had learned. Dark-to-light, facial proportions, simple colour palette. Many tips and suggestions. A most worthwhile day!
Pauline Brown
AGM 7 October 2016
Our chairman, Andy Graham, thanked present committee members for their work. Committee members were re-elected where appropriate. Andy pointed out that we need someone to organise our future exhibitions as Kathy is no longer handling them. (Gill is handling our November exhibition.) Gill has taken over as Treasurer from Chris and our finances are in good shape. Our membership has remained constant over the year with more than 100 members.
There were many entries for the Christmas Card Competition and three worthy winners selected by a simple majority vote: Celia Maddison’s Christmas tree, Mark Radford’s cheeky robins and Chris Meek's angular bird received the same number of votes.
After the AGM cakes and savories were served. Jean had provided quizzes for people to try and many members had brought paintings they had done over the summer period which were of a high standard. Our outdoor summer painting sessions had been lucky with the weather and were well attended and very much enjoyed. Members liked particularly The Panacea Society’s beautiful garden, Jordan’s Mill, Priory Marina – in fact the entire summer programme. Jean had organised both the summer painting programme and Portrait Painting which is very popular.
Pauline Brown
SEPTEMBER 2016
Bedford Art Society September meeting.
At our September meeting at Putnoe Heights Church, we were treated to a demonstration of portraiture by Peter Keegan.
He chose one of our members to draw and photographed her on his ipad. Armed with this picture, he showed us how he began to plot out his drawing with thin oils, stressing the proportions and direction of head, which gave us an insight into his work practice.. He talked us though all his techniques and by the time he had plotted out the main features of the face - the eyes – we could see the person begin to emerge from the paper. Already we could tell who it was.
As he built up the picture layering the paints and blending the colours to achieve his end, we marvelled at his talent, and vowed to try some of his ideas for ourselves. We also enjoyed looking at some other examples of his work during our tea-break.
We are very excited as he is coming to give us a workshop in October and where we hope to learn more to improve our own efforts.
Diane Bell
JULY 2016
CLIFFORD KNIGHT, Founder Member of Bedford Art Society, Dies.
Clifford Knight has passed away quietly at home whilst asleep. He was a founder member of BAS when it was then called Bedford Art Circle in 1954. He has been a stalwart member of the society ever since, even rising to be Chairman 1987 / 1989, until he moved away from the area about eight or possibly ten years ago. Even there Clifford soon joined in with the local art scene with the FPAA with Mr John Frederick Black as its President and founder member.
Whilst with the BAS Clifford always exhibited his works at every exhibition arranged by the society. I believe there was a retrospective exhibition of Clifford’s works in Wellingborough. Clifford’s works, although colourful, always managed to create an atmosphere that some described as melancholic. They could be of a building in a state of disrepair or a piece of neglected farm equipment or other machinery. His attention to detail was meticulous, and one could feel drawn into his work with an overcast sky threatening to downpour at any moment. Ask Clifford who his favourite artist was and he would fire back with John Piper followed closely by Edward Burrows. Whenever committee discussion came around to someone opening an exhibition of members’ works, Clifford always wanted a big name (as he put it). It was tried once, but when the ‘big name’ came back with a request for an appearance fee of some £3000 the committee returned to a local name but that never stopped Clifford from trying again and again for several years. I will miss seeing Clifford, although we only met at quarterly meetings in Wellingborough but am grateful that I knew him and being part of his art world.
Andy Graham
Bedford Art Society June meeting
At out last meeting at Putnoe Church we met an artist, Marilyn Ellis, who has been on the television programme 'Watercolour Challenge, has published books and lectured on cruises.
She planned to show her work through two paintings, which were of a loose and free style. It is amazing what can be done with three brushes, some colour and a bowl of water.
The first picture was taken from a photograph of cyclists on the Tour de France, demonstrating movement and speed. Marilyn had drawn the outline first and explained how she chose the colours to use, which would complement each other and enhance the action. The cycles were amazing and made you want to cheer the riders on.
The second picture, completed after our tea break, was a beach scene with people leading donkeys along the sand on a sunny summer's day.
The finely pointed brushes gave a detailed finish to the paintings, which used loose colour to pick out the characters and their clothing. An initial wash gave the sky and the ground for each picture, followed by the finer points of the colours and shadows of the main characters, plus a few extra pointers and tips which would add to the scenery to make it more realistic.
A most informative evening with something to practice at home.
Diane Bell
JUNE 2016
David Fletcher His talk was entitled ‘Behind the Scenes in the Saleroom’
At our most recent meeting we were entertained by David Fletcher, a local auctioneer and TV valuer, who told us something about his working life and how he had become an auctioneer.
His anectdotes were very amusing and gave us an insight into art from a different perspective. As he spoke, he sent some artifacts round for us to handle and assess, and later he gave us the chance to share our 'knowledge' of the objects and their values. Some of us were good at this and others not so good.
He then moved us on to an auction setting where he showed us how an auction sale was conducted, thus gaving an interesting insight into this world, and telling us of some of the amusing things which he has experienced during his career in this field.
An interesting, entertaining and different evening for us.
Diane Bell
MAY 2016
Linda Travers Smith
We were given an entertaining demonstration by Linda Travers Smith a tutor from Heath and Reach, who showed us her work using pen and watercolour.
Her style is very free as she sprays her paper with water then applies the paint – seemingly randomly – to produce a shape with which she can work. The first time it was to be flowers. She had roughly drawn the shapes in pencil on the watercolour paper to give her an idea of where to put the paint and the colour which was needed for best effect.
While this dried, we were shown more a structured approach to produce a picture of chickens. The ink had been used to draw their outlines, before filling colour to give the effect of feathers, light and shade. The background was then done afterwards.
Going back to the first painting – now dry – ink was applied with a variety of sticks and pens to give a textured affect of petal, sepals and stalks, which produced a lovely final picture.
She also showed us how black Quink ink separates into a variety of colours as it dries, which gives a delicate, shading effect.
By the end of the evening we were all full of questions which were answered clearly and concisely.
Diane Bell
JANUARY 2016
Artist Tony Mackay
2016 began at Bedford Art Society with a most interesting talk from the artist Tony Mackay. Although he has demonstrated to us before, we were treated to an insight into his new direction in painting. He showed us some of his earlier, more traditional paintings and then went on to explain why he decided to try something new. He told us his thoughts on his use of colours that he had not used before in his work and how we could 'read' his pictures, which were more geometric than before. It was a thoroughly informative and enjoyable evening, which may result in us trying something new as well.
Diane Bell
Santa
Santa took time out to come to portrait and have his picture painted by the group.
Tania
Glynis Barnes Mellish doing watercolours
Our last meeting was a demonstration by Glynis Barnes Mellish, who gave us a demonstration of watercolour techniques to achieve a lively picture of a wolf. She began with loose colour to give an idea of outline and depth, which she built on over further layers to reach a highly realistic picture of the animal. She also gave us a detailed list of her colour palette, which members could use to try their hand at a similar picture at home.
A most enjoyable evening.
Diane Bell
NOVEMBER 2016
PAUL NICOLSON Statues of Bedford
At our October meeting at Putnoe Heights Church, we were treated to an illustrated talk about the statues and sculptures of Bedford by Paul Nicholson, a local guide who has become intrigued with his research into this topic.
Our members were treated to some very interesting information about these artists, who are mostly neglected when we look at the statues. Also it made us think about the placement of such works of art, which we take for granted as we walk around the town and which have become so familiar to us.
He also gave us insights into the other works of the sculptors, which spread across the globe and which connects Bedford to many places across the world. He told us of the modern sculpture which was in Bedford Park but which had to be removed because youngsters used it as a skate park. Another one is hidden from public gaze as it is in the University grounds. Yet another had to be removed from its original placement as it was discovered to be made of chicken wire and covered with light materials enabling it to be 'attacked'' by all and sundry, so it is now on a traffic island near the Police Station.
Some statues have caused controversy and heated debate as to appropriate siting or relevance and expense, while others have been praised for their design and sympathy.
It proved to be a most entertaining and informative evening.
Diane Bell
Jean Picton with five art classes continues
Week three we painted a flower stall, not very specific flowers or people or buildings...atmospheric.
Week four we moved into acrylics. Three colours only. Cadmium red, lemon yellow and ultramarine blue. First we made a brown base and let it dry after scratching in the objects. Then, when it was dry, we painted in the darkest areas and moved gradually to very light, even white. Keeping the light source constant and the shadows, too. The results were, we thought, rather good.
On the fifth week we used Golden Fluid Acrylics and we painted flowers. The acrylics - which we hadn't touched before - were very richly pigmented and needed just a little to produce vibrant colours. Again we used lemon yellow, ultramarine blue and cadmium red, together with purple. We painted with brushes and twigs and produced lively pictures. We were all chuffed.
We enjoyed Jean's classes and her enthusiasm. We all felt we'd learned a lot, not a minute wasted!
Pauline Brown
OCTOBER 2016
Jean Picton with five art classes 2016
Jean Picton's first of five classes started last Saturday. Twelve students enjoyed Jean's informative tuition followed by individual attention. Check in Our Photos - Jean Picton with five art classes 2016. We will be adding photos as the class goes along.
Now we delved into colour. Using only three (red, yellow and blue) we created a picture of poppies. The 2 1/2 hours flew by. We practiced shades and depths of colour. Each painting was different but lovely and we went home feeling rather elated|
Pauline Brown
Workshop by Peter Keegan
Peter Keegan gave an excellent oil portrait painting workshop on 1 October to Bedford Art Society members at Renhold Village Hall. We were all very tired at the end of the day but the finished product was a reflection of how much we had learned. Dark-to-light, facial proportions, simple colour palette. Many tips and suggestions. A most worthwhile day!
Pauline Brown
AGM 7 October 2016
Our chairman, Andy Graham, thanked present committee members for their work. Committee members were re-elected where appropriate. Andy pointed out that we need someone to organise our future exhibitions as Kathy is no longer handling them. (Gill is handling our November exhibition.) Gill has taken over as Treasurer from Chris and our finances are in good shape. Our membership has remained constant over the year with more than 100 members.
There were many entries for the Christmas Card Competition and three worthy winners selected by a simple majority vote: Celia Maddison’s Christmas tree, Mark Radford’s cheeky robins and Chris Meek's angular bird received the same number of votes.
After the AGM cakes and savories were served. Jean had provided quizzes for people to try and many members had brought paintings they had done over the summer period which were of a high standard. Our outdoor summer painting sessions had been lucky with the weather and were well attended and very much enjoyed. Members liked particularly The Panacea Society’s beautiful garden, Jordan’s Mill, Priory Marina – in fact the entire summer programme. Jean had organised both the summer painting programme and Portrait Painting which is very popular.
Pauline Brown
SEPTEMBER 2016
Bedford Art Society September meeting.
At our September meeting at Putnoe Heights Church, we were treated to a demonstration of portraiture by Peter Keegan.
He chose one of our members to draw and photographed her on his ipad. Armed with this picture, he showed us how he began to plot out his drawing with thin oils, stressing the proportions and direction of head, which gave us an insight into his work practice.. He talked us though all his techniques and by the time he had plotted out the main features of the face - the eyes – we could see the person begin to emerge from the paper. Already we could tell who it was.
As he built up the picture layering the paints and blending the colours to achieve his end, we marvelled at his talent, and vowed to try some of his ideas for ourselves. We also enjoyed looking at some other examples of his work during our tea-break.
We are very excited as he is coming to give us a workshop in October and where we hope to learn more to improve our own efforts.
Diane Bell
JULY 2016
CLIFFORD KNIGHT, Founder Member of Bedford Art Society, Dies.
Clifford Knight has passed away quietly at home whilst asleep. He was a founder member of BAS when it was then called Bedford Art Circle in 1954. He has been a stalwart member of the society ever since, even rising to be Chairman 1987 / 1989, until he moved away from the area about eight or possibly ten years ago. Even there Clifford soon joined in with the local art scene with the FPAA with Mr John Frederick Black as its President and founder member.
Whilst with the BAS Clifford always exhibited his works at every exhibition arranged by the society. I believe there was a retrospective exhibition of Clifford’s works in Wellingborough. Clifford’s works, although colourful, always managed to create an atmosphere that some described as melancholic. They could be of a building in a state of disrepair or a piece of neglected farm equipment or other machinery. His attention to detail was meticulous, and one could feel drawn into his work with an overcast sky threatening to downpour at any moment. Ask Clifford who his favourite artist was and he would fire back with John Piper followed closely by Edward Burrows. Whenever committee discussion came around to someone opening an exhibition of members’ works, Clifford always wanted a big name (as he put it). It was tried once, but when the ‘big name’ came back with a request for an appearance fee of some £3000 the committee returned to a local name but that never stopped Clifford from trying again and again for several years. I will miss seeing Clifford, although we only met at quarterly meetings in Wellingborough but am grateful that I knew him and being part of his art world.
Andy Graham
Bedford Art Society June meeting
At out last meeting at Putnoe Church we met an artist, Marilyn Ellis, who has been on the television programme 'Watercolour Challenge, has published books and lectured on cruises.
She planned to show her work through two paintings, which were of a loose and free style. It is amazing what can be done with three brushes, some colour and a bowl of water.
The first picture was taken from a photograph of cyclists on the Tour de France, demonstrating movement and speed. Marilyn had drawn the outline first and explained how she chose the colours to use, which would complement each other and enhance the action. The cycles were amazing and made you want to cheer the riders on.
The second picture, completed after our tea break, was a beach scene with people leading donkeys along the sand on a sunny summer's day.
The finely pointed brushes gave a detailed finish to the paintings, which used loose colour to pick out the characters and their clothing. An initial wash gave the sky and the ground for each picture, followed by the finer points of the colours and shadows of the main characters, plus a few extra pointers and tips which would add to the scenery to make it more realistic.
A most informative evening with something to practice at home.
Diane Bell
JUNE 2016
David Fletcher His talk was entitled ‘Behind the Scenes in the Saleroom’
At our most recent meeting we were entertained by David Fletcher, a local auctioneer and TV valuer, who told us something about his working life and how he had become an auctioneer.
His anectdotes were very amusing and gave us an insight into art from a different perspective. As he spoke, he sent some artifacts round for us to handle and assess, and later he gave us the chance to share our 'knowledge' of the objects and their values. Some of us were good at this and others not so good.
He then moved us on to an auction setting where he showed us how an auction sale was conducted, thus gaving an interesting insight into this world, and telling us of some of the amusing things which he has experienced during his career in this field.
An interesting, entertaining and different evening for us.
Diane Bell
MAY 2016
Linda Travers Smith
We were given an entertaining demonstration by Linda Travers Smith a tutor from Heath and Reach, who showed us her work using pen and watercolour.
Her style is very free as she sprays her paper with water then applies the paint – seemingly randomly – to produce a shape with which she can work. The first time it was to be flowers. She had roughly drawn the shapes in pencil on the watercolour paper to give her an idea of where to put the paint and the colour which was needed for best effect.
While this dried, we were shown more a structured approach to produce a picture of chickens. The ink had been used to draw their outlines, before filling colour to give the effect of feathers, light and shade. The background was then done afterwards.
Going back to the first painting – now dry – ink was applied with a variety of sticks and pens to give a textured affect of petal, sepals and stalks, which produced a lovely final picture.
She also showed us how black Quink ink separates into a variety of colours as it dries, which gives a delicate, shading effect.
By the end of the evening we were all full of questions which were answered clearly and concisely.
Diane Bell
JANUARY 2016
Artist Tony Mackay
2016 began at Bedford Art Society with a most interesting talk from the artist Tony Mackay. Although he has demonstrated to us before, we were treated to an insight into his new direction in painting. He showed us some of his earlier, more traditional paintings and then went on to explain why he decided to try something new. He told us his thoughts on his use of colours that he had not used before in his work and how we could 'read' his pictures, which were more geometric than before. It was a thoroughly informative and enjoyable evening, which may result in us trying something new as well.
Diane Bell