FROME Community Education has launched an ambitious creative programme for next term with four new art tutors set to join the team.
“Our existing art and craft courses are almost always oversubscribed” explains chair of Frome CommEd, Malcolm Lloyd. “Our students have been asking us to expand the number of art courses we offer for a while now and we hope that they will approve.”
The new tutors span a diverse range of artistic mediums including watercolour, collage, printmaking and art for beginners.
Catherine Beale, a watercolour specialist and experienced tutor is to teach a 5-week course “Dive into Watercolours” in the Black Swan Gallery. She seeks to help those starting out as well as those with some experience to explore different aspects of this medium, including how to maintain bright colours, control running paint, how to plan compositions and how to suggest sunlight.
When Catherine is not demonstrating her craft, she works to exhibition and commission and writes about watercolours. She currently has a watercolour of Catherine Hill hanging in the Bath Society of Artists’ Exhibition and a portrait of her sons in the Society of Women Artists’ Annual Exhibition.
Amy Yates, a regular exhibitor with Frome Art Society is a self-employed artist and illustrator. Amy will deliver a 10-week art course at the Black Swan Gallery which is suitable for all abilities. The course will span drawing and composition, line and mark making with ink, mono-printing and tone, collage using newsprint, the introduction of colour with acrylics, the colour wheel, and painting and mixed media on paper or canvas.
“Printmaking Without a Press” is a new course run by Jennifer Douglas. This 5-week course will encourage experimentation in the process of gel printing with acrylic paints. The course will incorporate the use of plants in printmaking as well as handmade stencils and everyday objects for pattern making. It is suitable for complete beginners as well as for those who are seeking fresh inspiration.
There is also the scope to try a one-day workshop in “Collage Art” with Jessica Wilker. Suitable for all abilities the workshop will introduce students to the tricks of the trade and encourage them to engage with colour, shapes and images to puzzle out their chosen patterns.
“These new courses will run alongside our existing, very popular classes in Photography, Wood Engraving, Mosaics, and Drawing and Painting,” continues Malcolm. “We feel that we now have a huge range of art and craft classes to offer our students from January to March – in addition to new classes in creative writing, poetry, art history and much, much more!”
For more information on Frome Community Education’s range of classes, and to book, please visit their website – www.fromecommed.org.uk – or visit the Box Office at the Cheese and Grain.
