Lower Halstow Art Experience
Kent UK - Summer 2022

Thank you to Derek and Steve for sharing below their plein-air art experience.
Hopefully this will be inspiring for you if you wonder about trying!

Steve’s testimony

Despite many years of teaching art and a number of years pursing my own art in retirement I was quite trepidatious when I was offered one of Nathalie’s ‘plein air’ art experiences by my daughter for a birthday present. I immediately sought a friend to share it with and set about considering what I should aim to get from the day. Reassuring emails from Nathalie and a choice of venues (all of which I had some knowledge of) led me to Lower Halstow Creek and a determination to be more adventurous in what I might achieve in the few hours available. I bought a 20” x 16” canvas-covered board, rediscovered my telescopic easel, ordered some more manageable acrylic paints and hoped for good weather. I hadn’t painted out of doors for years and, apart from sketching, spent most of my creative time indoors, in comfort.

In my painting I have always wanted to more impressionistic as I tend towards detail. I am generally undaunted by subject matter, usually relishing a challenge and trusting in my ability to get at least some things right. Confidence however is personal and only comes from being successful in one’s own terms. I have found other people who know anything at all about art, especially those who have been on their own art journey, are magnanimous when it comes to appreciating the work of others and criticism is more helpful than pointed. I knew that this need not be a concern. All the same I was intrigued by the group and what we might make of each other as we chose our spots and worked together.

As it happened Derek, whose is both friend and an ex-teaching colleague (whose own experience and work are available in this blog) and I arrived first and took up what we thought was a prime viewpoint. The day was fine and warm and both the creek and the splendid Thames Barge ‘Edith May’ offered everything I could have hoped for by way of subject matter and opportunity. We began work and arranged ourselves in what we hoped was a professional manner while awaiting the arrival of Nathalie and the rest of the group. We had already noted that the sky was lively and that the light would change. A strong sun meant vibrant colours and deep shadows and the tide was on the ebb. With moving water and constant variety we took photographs of the whole scene and important features; knowing we would need these to complete our work. Derek sketched first but I chose to draw in paint directly from the scene before us. A carefully balanced composition and attention to foreground, middle-ground and distance are second nature to me, knowing that details and brushwork contribute to depth and realism. I was keen to quickly capture the sky, the water and the relationship of the barge to both of these and the quayside. A tree framed the basket of the beacon. The flowing creek made interesting reflections: such a lot to consider and no time to lose – who said painting out of doors was easy? I quickly encountered all manner of things to resolve.

I have long admired ‘The Group of Seven’, Canadian artists who ventured into the wilderness, painting spectacular scenery directly onto small cigar box lids and later developing epic canvasses in the studio. My canvas seemed vast by comparison and I struggled to ‘fix’ the sky and the water that was draining away so quickly. I wanted to use big brushes and bold strokes but found I was having to deal with colour choices and paint thicknesses at arm’s length, while avoiding the whole thing falling off the ledge that we’d chosen to set up on. Nathalie was encouraging and discussion was both thoughtful and helpful, though the need to be realistic about what was achievable was becoming all too apparent. No wonder those artists on ‘Landscape Artist of the Year’ often try again. We did not stop for eat or drink but stuck at it. A passing youth (obviously without any art experience – or means) offered to buy my ragged work for £5,000. It must be worth something and I soldiered on.

I think we were all pleased to be forced to stop for lunch at the nearby ‘Three Tuns’ which is a splendid hostelry. Packing away took a while and there really wasn’t much opportunity to view each other’s work, though the experience itself was discussed over welcome drinks and eats. It was good to meet the others and learn something of their motivations and approach to art. We had all enjoyed the morning even if we were not satisfied with our work; unanimously agreeing that there was more to do.

So, a work in progress. After careful consideration and looking at the photos again, I reworked my canvas at home. The same view but discarding the extraneous bits that added nothing to the composition. ‘Edith May’ developed a personality. The tide came back in again, hiding the weedy little stream I’d ended up with; enabling the reflections that gave life to the water and buoyed up the boats. The sky remained windswept and the sun shone, the tree that hogged the centre of the stage was tamed and framed with a variety of herbage and colours. The brick-red shore was softened and the distant yachts grew spindly masts and swam at their moorings. I found myself going back to both the painting and the day, being satisfied with one but never with the other. One had passed and the other needed to stop.

All in all, a very good experience. What had I learned and what had I produced as a result? It really only matters to me and that’s how it should be.

Steve Varley

Derek’s testimony

My career in education included teaching art to children, trainee teachers, teaching assistants and qualified teachers on Continuing Professional Development courses. Despite this wide experience, it had been some years since I last painted outdoors and so the task ahead was quite daunting and left me feeling a little nervous and apprehensive. I have done quite a lot of drawing outdoors but painting is a very different kind of activity, involving a range of additional elements to those found in drawing.

Preparation for the day began with gathering together all the materials and equipment which would be needed including a small folding table, chair, table top easel, paints (acrylic and water colour as, at this point, I still hadn’t decided which I would use), water bottles, brushes and palette knives, mixing palettes, sketch book and pencils etc. The list appeared endless and proved to be quite a discipline in itself!. I now realise that I over prepared and would reduce the amount I took on any future occasion.

Arriving at Lower Halstow my co artist friend and I selected the view point we felt would offer us the most interesting subject matter and variety of content to form an appropriate composition for our paintings. I took a number of photographs to use as reference points when finishing the work at home. Other group members soon began to arrive and go through the same procedure. Within the group, the range of media used consisted of acrylic and watercolour paint and pastel. The view chosen included an ever changing sky of sun and moving cloud, an inlet of water at low tide (soon to become mud!) with two moored barges as a main focal point. The foreground particularly interested me as it was made up from attractive riverside / marsh type foliage with green pendulous leaves edged with silvery white.

One of my life long interests in art has been illustration and consequently my painting style tends towards being illustrative with considerable detail included. Although I have made attempts to move away from this and try alternative styles of painting, over time I find myself drifting back to a more detailed illustrative approach where I feel most comfortable and confident. I almost always begin by making sketches as a way of getting proportions right as well as framing the general composition. It became apparent to me that I spent far too long doing this, leaving insufficient time to progress the painting.

Painting commenced on a canvas board, using acrylic paint and a palette knife to create the sky and cloud formations. Colour mixing was mostly done directly on the canvas. This was followed by brushwork, marking in the main areas and features of the chosen view. I then began to paint in more detail but tried to heed Nathalie’s advice to ‘loosen’ my style. I looked particularly for pattern, line and colour to add depth to the overall composition.

Time passed amazingly quickly and before we knew it, it was time to start clearing up, leaving me rather disappointed and despondent with what I had achieved. However, my determination to continue with the work at home, using the photographs, sketches and notes I had made at Lower Halstow was strong and proved to be very worthwhile. We had a short time to view and discuss each others work before setting off home and I was pleased to find that I was not alone in having the problem of unfinished work!

With careful re working of the original painting and adding considerably more detail to it, I was able to ‘rescue’ the painting to a point where I felt happy with it as an acceptable representation of the Lower Halstow view. Self assessment is an important and valid aspect of any piece of art work

It was a thoroughly enjoyable, but also challenging, activity. I learnt a lot from Nathalie and other members of the group and would recommend the experience to anyone interested in furthering their own skills and knowledge

Derek Greenstreet