Ali Witchell writes:

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This month (October) we were privileged to spend the demo evening with Chris Forsey, a renowned artist who is both a member of The Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours and The Society of Graphic Artists.

After studying in Bristol he worked as a graphic artist, being particularly adept at illustrations involving dinosaurs!

However, his fascination with light, weather, atmospherics, the seasons and texture led him to explore and translate these elements onto canvas. Using a mixed approach which combines the abstract with graphics he has developed a unique style which results in artwork that is bold, colourful and strong yet sensitive.

Working from a photograph of Robin Hoods Bay in Yorkshire he employed a mixed media approach using oil pastels, watercolours, ink and acrylic paint. The tools of his trade were not just restricted to brushes but implements such as an old credit card, which he used to create textured effects.

Starting with what appeared to be random areas of dark ink and (forgive me Chris) blobs of coloured paints, the painting literally emerged in front of our eyes.

The final result was a beautifully balanced, colourful and textural painting which importantly captured the essential elements of any artwork, which are light and shadow.

Chris is also an excellent teacher and shared with us how we can use the techniques that he employs in order to enhance and develop our own work.

It’s no easy feat for our visiting artists to work ‘live’ within the constraints of time – less than 2 hours – and the venue. However, Chris overcame these restrictions and left us all feeling inspired.

Furthermore a group of very lucky members met Chris the next day for a painting workshop after which we all ended the day more adept at using a mixed media approach and had fun in the process.

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