Imagine Yourself Creative
Pet Portraits & Animal Portraits – Pastel Painting Workshop
A One Day In-Person Workshop for All Skill Levels
£115.00
Including All Materials
Capture the personality and soul of your favourite animals in this expressive, pet portraits and animal portraits pastel painting workshop. Using pastel alongside mixed media, you’ll explore bold, intuitive mark-making to create pet portraits that are full of life and character.
This workshop is for everyone who is interested in creating “painterly” pet portraits and animal portraits in pastels. Working from either your own images, or from the wide choice of source material I provide.
We’ll start by looking at how to avoid some of the more common errors in portraiture. Developing the best composition with an emphasis on likeness, light and movement. And of course some insights into the secrets of painting perfect eyes – and how they influence the essence of a portrait.
What you’ll learn:
- Getting started with pastel – understanding soft pastels and how to combine them with other mixed media materials for expressive results
- Capturing likeness and personality – techniques for observing and translating your subject’s unique features, expression, and energy onto paper
- Fur, feathers, and texture – using layering, blending, and mark-making to bring different animal textures to life
- Working with colour expressively – moving beyond realistic colour to use bold, emotive palettes that give your portrait real energy
- Mixed media approaches – incorporating ink, watercolour, or acrylic as a base to add depth and spontaneity beneath your pastel work
- Backgrounds and composition – creating settings that complement your subject without overshadowing them
- Finishing – how to protect and preserve your finished pastel work
I aim for simplicity in all my creative work, and this includes my workshops. I keep numbers limited to 5 or 6 students on my workshops, this allows me to offer detailed one to one instruction throughout the day. You may also be interested in my Pet Portraits & Animal Portraits – Oil Painting Workshop
Included in the workshop is everything you’ll need for your Pet & Animal Portraits – Pastel Workshop.
- Easel & pastel papers, and premium sanded paper board ready for painting.
- A selection of pastels, watercolour paints, inks, pencils, charcoals and brushes.
- Excellent, high-quality subject material and references to work from.
- Detailed structured teaching notes that accompany the workshop to take home.
- Refreshments, tea, coffee and homemade cake.
Please see the tab below What To Bring for more information.
Arrive at around 9.30 to get settled in, and after a quick run through of the day we’ll get straight into things at around 10.00.You’ll start with the essentials of creating a powerful portrait, how to avoid some of the more familiar errors in getting your portrait established, and getting to know the delicate power of pastel portraiture by experimenting with line, shape, and sketches. Via a short break late morning, you’ll have the superstructure of your portrait in place remarkably quickly.This will take us up to a quick lunch break, which usually works its way round to a relaxed chat about what we’ve accomplished so far, and the work ahead.The focus of the afternoon is to build on your portrait’s tonal structure as simply as possible, without losing the likeness.After a short, and usually much needed, break mid afternoon, a quick review will focus us on the final steps to finessing your portrait and bringing it to life.We’ll wrap up somewhere around 4.00 with a casual “debrief” and chat about the revelations of the day – and there will be many, some of which can be quite magical.
This workshop is for everyone. All my Imagine Yourself Creative workshops are structured to cater for a wide range of abilities, and reflect my teaching style – one small imaginative step at a time.My own artwork is a blend of process and practise founded on a few simple rules, one of which is to keep things as simple as possible.
When you have a beginners mindset, you’re not worried about looking smart. You’re more interested in exploration, discovery, asking questions, trying new things, and perhaps above all you see opportunities instead of obstacles in your learning experience.
How to Practice the Beginner’s MindsetAsk more questions. Especially basic fundamental questions.Be open to feedback. This should feel like a conversation between you and your creative project.Let go of being right. Focus on being open, learning not winning.Try something completely new. We are numbed by comfort, push yourself into a new space.Stay curious. Imagine how a child would respond to what you see and feel.
You can read the full Imagine Yourself Creative post on my blog [here]
My purpose built studio is located in East Cowton, DL7 0DX (Noble Fine Art), which is about 6 miles north of Northallerton. It’s a creative space where in addition to running art workshops I offer picture framing, fine art reproduction, scanning and giclée printing, along with (my husband’s) lovely old vintage printing presses.
Please click the link Contact Me & Studio Location Map above to view more details on my location.
What to bring? All you need is suitable comfortable clothing and a packed lunch, the studio is well heated. There’s a small kitchen with tea and coffee making facilities, a fridge, microwave and toaster in the studio which are all available for use. I recommend an apron or old shirt, and a beginners mindset, everything else is provided.
Read the Imagine Yourself Creative Beginners Mindset post on my blog [here].
The studio is a new building with good access which is suitable for wheelchairs, and all of my courses take place on the ground floor directly through the main double door access to the studio.We have a small kitchen area with tea and coffee making facilities, a fridge, microwave and toaster which are all available for student use. The kitchen is immediately accessible from the central ground floor area.
Click the Contact Me & Studio Location Map link in the top section of the page for more details.
Younger Students – 14 to 16 are always very welcome, though they will need to be accompanied by a responsible adult.
Gift Vouchers – Painting is one of the most therapeutic pursuits, and benefits us in so many ways, improving our mental health, concentration and general feeling of well-being.
You can purchase a gift voucher for £25 / £50 / £100 which you can use against any course / workshop & one to one tuition, or use against purchases for framing, prints and original fine art.
If you’d like any more information please just click on the link in the upper section of the page Contact Me & Studio Location Map.
Sometimes things don’t go according to plan, and if you’re unable to attend a course you’ve paid for, and would like to cancel I will always try and accommodate any request as fairly as possible. In any case, please just get in touch.
More than 8 weeks notice – You’ll receive a refund of 80% of the cost of the course.
More than 4 weeks notice – I’ll transfer you to another workshop / course to the same value. If there isn’t a suitable one free, your credit will be maintained and you’ll get priority bookings as more courses are released. Or, as below I’m happy someone to take your place.
Less than 4 weeks – I’m happy for a family member or friend to take your place, just let me have there details to confirm the booking.
