In September, Bell House ran a series of drawing workshops for adults and children. Artist Liz Charsley encouraged participants to use our gardens as inspiration and was on hand to provide guidance and encouragement. Hear from Mary, who attended the Saturday sessions, below.
I was lucky enough to attend a ‘Drawing in the Garden’ course for three Saturday mornings at Bell House in September and October 2021 run by the excellent artist Liz Charsley.
Bell House has a truly beautiful garden with a wide array of amazing flowers and interesting nooks and crannies for exploration. It was great also to see and chat to the excellent volunteers in action who help to make the garden so beautiful. The first two Saturdays were gloriously sunny. A group of about a dozen students met Liz in the garden while she told us all about the various different media we could use; pencils, charcoal, ink, watercolour or even a mixture. She showed and demonstrated some of her own work to give us some ideas. She then encouraged us to explore the garden and decide where we would like to sit to do our work. It was really peaceful and tranquil sitting in the garden on these glorious sunny days giving time for reflection. Liz came round on a regular basis to give us tips to help us on our way. Midway through there was a welcome break for a coffee and a chat. At the end of the sessions Liz looked at our pictures with us and gave us supportive encouragement. It was so interesting to see the various different media used by everyone and all the different results. During the third Saturday, the weather took a turn for the worse. Liz quickly moved us all inside making sure that the door and windows were open and everyone wore masks. A couple of us did sit outside for a while. As the weather worsened, I put my chair on the steps which had a covering so I did not get wet. My watercolour did get slightly wet but I think that it only added to the art work. I definitely learnt some very useful tips and ideas from Liz and it was great to get to know the other students too. My artwork now sits just below the TV in the front room so that I can enjoy looking at it every day.
