Information
Socially distanced art
With uncertainty over when the group may meet again, some members have been holding an informal – and socially distanced – gathering in the middle of Grantown over the past week.
Here you can see members in the gardens outside the Garth Hotel.
While some members picked up their paper and pencils, others were happy to chat and catch up on the last few months.
It has been mooted to make this a regular meeting – depending on the weather and venue.
A Big Nature Weekend – indoors!
A wee reminder about the Big Nature Weekend exhibition. Obviously with one thing and another, this event has been postponed until next year.
But there will be a special virtual exhibition of the Spey Art Group’s work and hopefully some of you have already emailed photographs of your work to Lucy Ford, lucyford@cairngorms.co.uk by May 4. Make sure you include your name, the title of the work, the medium and also a comment on the piece. Put Big Nature Virtual Weekend SAG in the subject line of the exhibition.
As it is a virtual exhibition, you don’t need to worry about fees so you can enter as many works as you want. This is a great chance to share our work with other people despite being stuck inside.
Looking for a lockdown lesson?
Hello again and hope you are all doing well and keeping busy.
Just in case you haven’t explored the website lately, we want to point you towards our lessons page. Here you can find a host of presentations about how to paint subjects, including landscape and portraiture, and using different media.
Click here to get stuck in!
Keeping creative
Hope you are all keeping well and not going too crazy being stuck at home a bit more than we would all like.
Luckily that gives you more time to do art! And there’s lots of inspiration going around online at the moment, including lessons and virtual exhibitions.
We’re going to try and keep you entertained with a few of the most amusing and bizarre ones over the next few weeks – or for however long this all last. Fingers crossed it’s over soon and we’re back together on Wednesday nights.
And we’d love to see the art you are working on – if you’re on Facebook, do share a wee picture with us at our page.
First up, we thought you’d like a laugh. The Getty Museum in Los Angeles has challenged people to recreate a piece of art using things they’ve found around the house. There have been some inspired results. You can click here to see some of the best via Twitter.
And if you get bored enough to have a go, let us see what you did.
Osprey inspiration
News of a wee competition for you all!
It’s Year of the Osprey and organisers are looking for artwork inspired by this magnificent bird.
There’s some nice prizes available for the best works.
Get more details by clicking here:Â LEAFLET2FINALFORPRINT (1)
The final countdown
With just a few days to go until we launch our summer exhibition, Cairngorms, here’s a wee reminder about the requirements and arrangements.
Members can exhibit up to four works, at a cost of £2 each. Forms have been sent out and should be returned to Liz Downie, with payment, by Wednesday Jun 14 at the latest.
Artworks should be handed in at Grantown Museum on Saturday June 17, 1-2pm. They must be framed – fitted with D-rings and cord, not wire. Works should also be taped at the back, along with a label detailing the title, artist’s name and price.
No clip frames and if works are too heavy/large, they may have to be exhibited on the floor.
The opening event is from 6.30pm-8pm on Saturday June 17 – all welcome so bring your friends. Drinks will be provided but members are asked to contribute a plate of nibbles.
The rota for manning the exhibition is circulating via e-mail so do volunteer for a shift if you can. Having members there really does help.
As usual, commission on sales is 20% (split between the group and the museum: the rest goes to the artist).
Collection of works will be on Saturday July 1, from 5pm.
Looking forward to seeing everyone there and enjoying the art!
Sewing the seeds of new skills
The opportunities for building new skills are coming thick and fast this month!
Fast on the heels of silversmithing, pottery making and the SBSA art extravaganza comes something completely different from anything the group has taken on before.
Our member Ally Wardlaw has organised an embroidery workshop for Saturday May 6 at the Nethy Bridge Community Centre.
She’ll be teaching two or three different stitches (with a contemporary twist!) that you’ll be able to use to create some unique artwork. Ally will provide some materials, including backing material, threads, beads and needles but participants should bring their own scissors, threads or material scraps they wish to use, and an embroidery hoop if possible.
The workshop will run from 10am-3pm and the cost is £20 per person. The community centre has disabled access, kitchen and toilets. Bring you own lunch!
Spaces are limited to 10 so please contact Ally by email to let her know you wish to come.
And a wee reminder that we’re back on Wednesday for a new term. See the Summer Term page for a provisional timetable.
April 5: Pie and chips!
A reminder that it’s the end of term so we’re celebrating with a visit to The Craig Bar for pie and chips. Please note: The classroom at Grantown Grammar is not available.
Art group is off for a couple of weeks. Check the Summer Term page for details of what we might be up to when we get back.
But keep going with the wonderful work you started this term – lots of exhibitions coming up next term…
March 15: Tutoring
A chance to work on any ongoing projects you have – whether painting, clay or pastel.
For those doing clay work, you can have a go at glazing. But Angus is also offering the chance to have your drawing turned into a wee transfer for sticking to your ceramics. These are really effective in adding something extra to your piece.
They work brilliantly when they are a simple drawing so if you don’t have anything ready for tomorrow, you can have go during class.
However, these need to be sent away to be printed by a specialist so they need to be finished by the end of the lesson.
Blank ceramics will be available to those who have not made anything in the past few weeks, at a small charge (£1 per piece).
Please remember money for glazed ceramics (£2 per piece).
And there’ll be a selection of Cairngorm-themed images for inspiration.
See the pictures below for some examples of Angus’s use of the transfers.
March 1: Clay and candles
It’s back to clay work this week. Angus will show us how to use white clay and recycled glass to make a lovely tealight holder. And there will be a Cairngorm theme to link in with our exhibition plans.
Also, the Consequences exhibition at Eden Court Theatre has come to an end and Rona will bring the works to class from 6.30pm for members to collect them.
See you all then!
Spey Art Group 