Bandstand Bailando, Brighton Beach

…reduce the elements down to their simplest forms….then build them up from there, being mindful of balancing colour, proportion, perspective, direction, shape, tone, rhythm.

To achieve balance: use the ‘mostly, some and a bit’ rule… making sure one value predominates. The other 2 values should be divided unequally.

Golden Hour, Leamington Spa

…”your aim is to capture emotion, convey a feeling, dance to the beat: draw the figure, but with expression and feeling and flair”…

In contrast to Impressionism’s spontaneity, Pointillism adopted a more scientific approach to colour, grounded in contemporary colour theory. Tiny dots of pure colour are applied to create images that blend optically in the viewer’s eye.

NEW Abstract Sunflowers workshop, launching summer 2026. We will draw, cut, collage and paint, exploring colour, composition, shape and tone.

Starting from observation and Notan collage, you’ll progressively abstract your design, choosing to paint or collage in colour.

Painting Pointillist style and planning another new workshop! 🎨 Pointillism emerged in the mid-1880s, pioneered by French artists Georges Seurat and Paul Signac, and went on to influence modern movements such as Fauvism and Cubism.

I’ve developed a new still life workshop focused on painting with a limited palette. Using just three colours (plus white), you’ll deepen your understanding of colour mixing, composition, and how colours interact/

During the summer I did a couple of impressionist style landscape paintings. I wanted to have another go to see if I could use the same technique on a flowerscape. I found a beautiful reference image to use with a fantastic colour palette. This painting has inspired me to create a NEW ‘Impressionist Flowerscape’ One-Day Workshop.

I have recently prepared a new ‘Talk & Demo’ to deliver to Art Groups where I’ll be explaining how to approach a painting using a ‘split primary’ palette to paint a still life and why, by limiting your choice of paints to just 6 (plus white), it forces you to explore the art of colour mixing, deepening your understanding of colour interactions.

Recenty I did an impressionist style painting of this scene. I wanted to have another go …only this time making a different- more ‘Pointillist’ kind of mark. It had crazy beginnings….but slowly, slowly it came together to create something quite beautiful. It’s always interesting to see if trying a new style somehow feeds back into your work at a later date.

Start by trying to see past the detail. Block in the main shape, using big brushes, laying down brushstrokes in unusual directions with a selection of colours that are the correct tone. This way you can be loose with your mark making, creating interesting marks that would be difficult to achieve if you were to go about painting each petal individually.

I spent my Saturday with 2 other artists oil painting this beautiful live nude model. In just 6 hours we managed 3 paintings , a drawing, coffee and lunch! I was specifically aiming to paint in this loose blocky style… I’m also aiming to get my colours and tones down right first time, with no fiddling, which doesn’t leave much room for error!

Dailiy free demonstrations and workshops with 12 talented oil painters in the new LSA Springboard Studios.

There is something about the simplicity of these images that i absolutely love. Creating a notan collage in just 4 tones forces you to see past the detail and focus on creating a strong tonal image.

Want to give it a try? See the workshops tab for more details.

There is something about sunflowers that make every one feel happy…I wonder if it is because they stare at us - so boldly - face to face? Or is it because we all did that thing in nursery school where we planted a seed and watched them get bigger by the day! Bigger than we were!

I like to paint with rough/loose/slightly textured marks so smooth white eggs were a challenge for me. Once again - it comes down to getting your tones right.

Keep your eye on the ‘Workshops’ tab for more ‘still life’ workshop dates later in the year.

I ended up walking some of the tow path in 'Hockey Heath' last week...it was truly beautiful. i'm not generally a landscape painter but I really wanted to capture this moment.

It has also inspired me to create a NEW ‘Landscapes’ One-Day Workshop. Keep your eye on the ‘Workshops’ tab for dates later in the year.

The tonal sketch: This is where you do your thinking! The key to this painting is the way the light flows into the cut plum and the way the darks cascade down like a waterfall from top left to bottom right. A simple 3 tone sketch forces you to make those decisions up front - are the cut plums going to be a light or a midtone? or in this case one of each.