Newsletter

Here to Ignite, Encourage and Inspire your Creative Flame

‘In the mind of every artist there is a masterpiece’ Kai Green

Please note: some items are repeated for the benefit of new subscribers. Thank you 😊

Hey there my friends I hope you’re all keeping well and enjoying the occasional bursts of sunshine we seem to be getting at the moment here in the UK. Finally had time to finish off my Pied Wagtail acrylic painting, and I’m pleased with the results. I have to admit that I had lots of fun playing with the lighting on this one. In many cases the lighting and contrast within a project can make or break a painting, much more than colour can. So something to keep in mind if you’re planning your next project (no matter what the size or subject make sure to get some punchy contrast going to make your piece pop).

Just 6 sleeps to go until my Puffin in Acrylic workshop. There’s still a few places left, so if you’ve been wanting to try your hand at acrylics this would be a perfect opportunity to do so. This subject really is suitable for beginners, so don’t be put off if it looks a little intimidating 😉 For more information: Martin Mere Wetland Centre

Wildlife Art Workshops New for 2022

Six dates have now been confirmed over at Martin Mere Wetland Centre. One running each month until, and including, June. The mediums alternate between Watercolour, Acrylic and Pastel, and all workshops are suitable for beginners. More information can be found over on our exclusive Art Workshop page on the Martin Mere website as well as on the Workshop page of my website. If participants would like further mediums added then extra dates can be slotted in to suit. So if your passion is coloured pencil or you love oil painting then just let me know.

Diary Dates

Patching’s Art Festival	14th – 17th July 2022
Exhibition of Wildlife Art	29th – 31st July 2022
Art Safari in Uganda	15th – 30th September 2022
North West Birdwatching Festival	15th & 16th October 2022
Art Safari in Uganda	16th February – 3rd March 2023

Patching’s Art Festival – an international four day art event celebrating the best in art & craft. Open to all there’s something for everyone, the chance to meet over 250 artists, a lot of which will be demonstrating (including me demonstrating for Caran d’Ache). Plus ‘hands-on’ workshops and art material offers all set in 60 acres of beautiful Nottinghamshire countryside.

Exhibition of Wildlife Art – ‘an exciting three day show featuring the work of some of the world’s most talented wildlife artists. The biggest and most successful, open selling, exhibition of Wildlife Art outside of London. All exhibited work is for sale and many artist demonstrate whilst there.’ I’ll be demonstrating whilst exhibiting there this year and would love for you to drop by and say hello.

Art Safari in Uganda – a two week tour taking in some of Uganda’s best national parks, optional gorilla and chimpanzee tracking, visiting a rhino sanctuary and so much more. With a maximum of 6 participants this art based safari ensures you’ll have all the natural world of Uganda has to offer, plus plenty of 1 to 1 guidance from me when you need it to enable you to capture all that you want on paper or canvas. More information below.

North West Birdwatching Festival – Open at 8am, start your day by watching the spectacle of thousands of wild geese leave the roost before heading for breakfast in the Martin Mere restaurant. Over the two day there will be an array of guest speakers and exhibitors, artists and photographers including photography workshops, guided reserve walks, and more. I’ll be exhibiting and demonstrating throughout the weekend and would love you to drop by and say hello.

Latest News

On My Easel

Today the canvas resting on my easel is bare as I’m currently deciding on the composition for my next painting, all being well it will be a Ring-tailed Lemur study in acrylic. Hopefully I’ll have something a little more interesting to show you in my next newsletter lol.

For the love of Uganda

Calling all artists, would you like to take your love for art and wildlife one step further? Then why not join me on safari in Uganda this coming September? There’s so much to see and do on this adventure of a lifetime; safari drives, boat cruises, gorilla tracking, chimpanzee tracking so much more… Any questions? Then contact Lesley who’s looking forward to hearing from you.

‘Capture some of Africa’s finest wildlife in art that will help your memories last forever. We are very excited about our new partnership with wildlife artist Kerry Newell and hope this art safari – based on one of our classic wildlife safaris – will become an annual feature in our tour calendar.’

Subscriber Question

Q. How can I speed up when working with coloured pencils?

A. Working with coloured pencils is always slow compared to working with paint. Let’s face it trying to cover a piece of paper with a tiny sharpened piece of pigment is always going to have time related issues. Having said that, there are a few things you could try to speed the process along. Think about using a toned paper, this takes away the need for a background and lets you begin with a midtone. You could try adding base coats with alcohol pens, watercolours or gouache. You could even apply a background/subject base coats with pastel and leave your coloured pencil for the finer details. Obviously all of the above would be mixed media paintings when finished. In the following video Coloured Pencil on Toned Paper I show the benefits of working with a toned base and also the advantages of using a softer drawing pencil and odourless mineral spirits – techniques that can cut down on the amount of layering required whilst speeding up the process of completing a project too.

I may not always have a video on my YouTube channel to go alongside a subscriber’s question, but when I do I’ll be sure to add it.

Well it’s that time again to sign off for now, a quick cuppa with my husband before heading back round to my mum’s for the evening.

I hope that you’re weekend is a lovely one and that you’re able to spend it with the ones you love.

Thank you once again as always my friends for spending some time with me today, and please feel free to leave a question or suggestion in the contact form below.

Wishing you all the best, until next time, as always, stay safe and stay creative, Kerry xXx

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