What we’re about
A friendly group for artists and aspiring artists, living near Bristol, England, who are working in the visual arts, particularly painting.
We are each developing a thoughtful, explorative individual art practice and enjoy sharing and discussion with others. We provide a positive, supportive, and fun community, helping each other develop our individual styles.
For us, devoting time, an inquiring mind, and a desire to express something of ourselves, is more important than realism. If your aim is realistic painting, this is probably not the group for you.
Our activities include:
• Discussion evenings: We do some research on a particular topic in advance, then get together to discuss what we've learnt and how it applies to our practice.
• Virtual art days: Participants commit to a day of creativity. We start with a 30 min Zoom call sharing individual objectives for the day. We share midday results over lunch. At the end of the day we meet again to discuss how we got on, show results and share positive feedback and constructive suggestions.
• Visiting art exhibitions: We look round the exhibition then meet in a cafe afterwards to discuss what we've seen .
The group will always run on a not-for-profit basis. I'll ask regular attendees for occasional donations to share costs.
Upcoming events (1)
See all- Discussion: Abstract ExpressionismRitorno Lounge , Bristol
Following on from our discussions of German Expressionism and the Bay Area artists, in this event we will consider the Abstract Expressionist movement. Abstract Expressionism emerged in the 1940s and 1950s, primarily in New York. It emphasizes the artist’s emotional and physical engagement with their medium. Artists like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning moved away from representational forms, creating bold, dynamic works.
Essential Preparation:
Look at the videos listed below. How did Abstract Expressionism change the role of the artist and the viewer? How does the freedom of expression in Abstract Expressionism compare to more traditional, representational art? As artists do we want to incorporate elements of abstract expressionism in our work? How might we do this? Bring along photos of your work to discuss how abstract expressionism might have influenced your style.Abstract Expressionist New York (4:49)
MoMA and Abstract Expressionism (5:14)
Franz Kline (3:11)
Jackson Pollock (5:14)
Barnett Newman (4:32)
Mark Rothko (5:37)
Ad Reinhardt (3:24)
This event will link into a Virtual art day when we will attempt to paint like Willem de Kooning. See the MoMA video How to Paint like Willem de Kooning (19:50)
