LESLEY BIRCH
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30 Paintings in a Day Course
#lesleybirch30paintingsinadaycourse


Day Course Dates for 2022
Saturday November 26th - FULLY BOOKED
Sunday November 27th - FULLY BOOKED
Saturday December 10th - FULLY BOOKED
Sunday December 11th - FULLY BOOKED

Lesley runs her course just once a year so there is a high demand for places. 
Class sizes are small.

Please ask to go on Reserve List and options for 2023
please email [email protected] with RESERVE LIST in the subject line. 


 30 Paintings in a Day.

"It's a case of the imagination, the eye and the hand."

Who is this course for?

My annual course is geared towards those wanting to explore a personal painting journey.   Through active experimentation and play, I believe each of us can begin to develop a personal voice and decide what we like and what we don't like about what we create.   Personally, I have always painted from a source.  "I see, I hear, I feel ... I paint" is my mantra - so whether it be a landscape or a bouquet of flowers - I'm working from observation or memory and combining this with my feelings about what I'm doing.  My work has developed over the years through daily studio practice, becoming familiar with my materials and developing my critical eye. No matter what we paint, there is always a bit of the artist's personality in there.  And that is what I try to bring out in participants in my courses.  Working with unfamiliar materials can bring out all sorts of surprises in your mark-making and decisions about colour and form. I always say that even though you may LOVE Joan Eardley or Rembrandt or Joan Mitchell, it doesn't mean that it has anything to do with who YOU are in your expression.
Anyway, there is nothing more important than actually making art, rather than talking about art. Through the making, your ideas, your hand, your eye - all develop and change.  My practice in the studio has involved mixing media and experimenting with different surfaces  - in effect, playing and being in the moment, often moving swiftly and sometimes slowing down.  Reflection does not occur whilst painting. 
That comes inbetween bouts of intense concentration.
In this course both beginners and experienced artists can benefit from simple play and risk-taking.  I have always painted this way and enjoy the freedom of expressive mark-making.  This is connected to my love of improvisation as a musician.  In my lessons, I combine a structured and controlled approach with playful experimentation to enable you to 'find the beginnings of what you do' - or at least, to push your practice forward. Some of my exercises involve controlling your choice of media, colour or shapes, thus allowing you not to overthink.  You'll feel at times you are back at primary school!  Beginners are often surprised at what they can achieve in a simple day of exploration with different media.  However, the painting journey is a lifelong one and so I would hope that the course triggers in participants the joy of play as well as making clear the realistic frustrations and trials of the hard work of painting.  One has to be realistic. 
But, art can be therapy for many and in brief moments,
we can achieve creative insights that set us off on another journey.
It's a case of the imagination, the eye and the hand. 
And a case of practice, practice, practice.

To find out more about this course click HERE



PREVIOUS COURSES
2009 - 2020
Structured Courses by Lesley Birch


Acrylics for Beginners
Experimental Acrylics
Find Your Voice
Inspired by Poetry
Playing with Colour
Developing Acrylics
Discovery Drawing i
Discovery Drawing ii
Plant Life
Absorbing York - a Sketchbook Course
Paint & Clay in a Day (with Emily Stubbs Ceramics)
30 Paintings in a Day 2018
30 Paintings in a Day 2019
30 Paintings in a Day 2020 (postponed due toCovid)
30 Paintings in a Day 2021


Lesley has been invited to teach at:
York City Gallery - Inspired by Albert Moore - Painting the Figure
York Open Studios - York College - 5 paintings in a Morning
Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery - Responding to George Morland: In the Margins
Leeds Museum - Draw a Still Life


Talks & Demos
St Peter's School, York
Harrogate & Nidderdale Art Club
Horsforth Art Club
Stokesley Art Club
Alwoodley Art Club



I see, I hear, I feel ... I paint

Picture
King & McGaw INTERVIEW with Lesley Birch 2022
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All Images ©Lesley Birch 2007-2022
  • Home
    • About
    • Clients
  • Paintings
    • Landscapes
    • Florals
    • 100 Florals Project
  • Galleries
    • Exhibitions
  • ARCHIVE
    • Landscapes 2019/2020
    • 2020-2018 Scotland
    • Musical Abstracts
    • Ireland 2018
    • 2017-2015 Stories of Land & Earth
    • Tidal Rhythms 2017-2018
    • 2016 Into the Woods >
      • The Presence of Trees
    • Pandemic Projects >
      • Flashback for Lockdown
      • Lucky Dip for Lockdown
      • 21 Days Isolation Project
      • Holding Series
    • Paintings 2021-2019
    • Romantic Collection
  • Courses
    • 30 Paintings in a Day Course
    • Lesley Birch on Film
  • Contact
    • Mailing List >
      • Studios
      • Interviews