Art Class Bookings & Events
Watercolour Studio – Painting Britain. with Gail Astbury @ Soanes Garden Room
Course Overview 6 morning 10am- 12.30pm or afternoon 1pm-3.30pm sessions
Tuesday 8th September –13th October 2026 Full course - £125 or £25 per individually booked session
Apologies please note - Tuesday 29th September the venue is no longer available there will either be a date change or refunds available
In this 6-week term, we will be looking at the different techniques and perspectives of artists that have painted the British lsles. Starting with James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) who is currently showing at Tate Britain until the end of September. Then we will head out of London to Chichester to the Pallant House Galleries wonderful exhibition called British Landscape. This landmark exhibition explores how over 60 different artists from the 18th to the 20th century have responded to the landscapes of the British Isles. Finishing back in Trafalgar Square at the RWS Gallery to discover how our contemporaries are using watercolour to describe their experiences of today’s Britain.
Week 1 & 2:
Tuesday 8th and 15th Sept
1864 Chelsea in Ice
Tate Britain - James McNeill Whistler
Although an American by birth, Whistler spent many years living and working in London and was an influential teacher at the Slade School of Art.
Week 1: Whistler became a master of painting subtle tone and atmosphere in a time when polished realism was more desired. His visionary determination to craft a more open-ended perspectives on the London that he saw from his window has paved the way for artists to explore these elements as subjects in themselves. In this session, we will be experimenting with limited colour palettes and glazing techniques.
Week 2: We will continue to develop our own atmospheric views of London using the methods developed last week.
Week 3 & 4:
Tuesday 22nd & tbc Sep
Spencer Gore 1910 The garden path
British Landscape painters @ Pallant House
Spanning Romanticism, Modernism and postwar abstraction, the exhibition traces a rich lineage from Thomas Gainsborough and the golden age of British watercolour to the postwar works of Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Barbara Hepworth, Paul Nash, and Eric Ravilious.
Week 3: At the start of the 20th century, landscape became a vehicle for experimentation. When new ideas about colour and form reached Britain, painters didn’t turn away from their back gardens, – they used them. This week we will look at tone and texture through the lens of a dominant colour seen in our parks and gardens.
Week 4: Choose one or more of the 60 artists in this exhibition as your inspiration for painting a British scene that expresses your own lived experience and emotions. There will be the catalogue for you to browse and lots of printouts examples of the works in the show.
Week 5 & 6:
Tuesday 6th & 13th Oct
Sophie KnightLochalsh Scotland
RWS 5 Whitcomb Street (Facing the National Gallery Sainsbury Wing)
To conclude this term, we will come right up to date and see how our contemporary watercolourists are responding to the British environment. This exhibition is free with all works on display for sale.
Week 5: I will introduce and demonstrate new or unusual watercolour technique of some of the works in the show, then you can practice that technique for a familiar place drawn from your own photographs, sketches, or printouts.
Week 6: Continuing to develop your own paintings of the British environment in terms of – subject matter, memories, emotions, scale, brushwork, colour, technique etc.
Materials to bring:
Supplied:
Drawing boards
Paper
Waterpots
Masking tape
What you need to bring:
Watercolours
Brushes
Pencil for sketching
Courses take place at:
Soane’s Garden Room,
Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery,
Ealing Green,
London,
W5 5EQ
For information on previous classes click here
FAQs
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I have space for up to 18 students at each session. Let me know if you want to be informed about openings from cancellations.
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Yes if you contact me beforehand to ensure availability and pay on the door. However, availability is often not guaranteed so booking in advance is recommended.
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Yes so long as you have made an arrangement to ensure there is space available. To guarantee your spot I would recommend booking prior to all classes.
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We must use water based materials due to the nature of the venue facilities used. Oils and other materials will not be allowed on the premises.
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Yes, there will be the opportunity to feedback about the facilities to fine tune things for the autumn term. If you have any recommendations in the meantime please post them below.
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Cancellations for drop-in bookings made 7 days or more in advance are eligible for a 50% refund.
Cancellations with less than 7 days’ notice are non-refundable, as it’s unlikely we can fill your spot on short notice.
If you're cancelling your full course up to 14 days before the first session a full refund is available or you may wish to carry it to the next turn, please reach out so we can discuss the best way forward.
Thank you.