Watford and Bushey Art Society (WBAS) is for people who enjoy the creation of fine arts. Our society welcomes artists of all levels or people with just an interest in the process of making art. At our monthly meetings professional artists demonstrate the use of various techniques to our members and visitors; it could be about oils, acrylics, watercolour, pastels or many other techniques or a talk on an art related subject.
One thing is for sure, whoever the guest or whichever method they use, these meetings are always full of hints and tips for all artists, no matter what their preferred medium. We hope to inspire our members with creative ideas to pursue their own art in any direction they choose.
WBAS members also have many opportunities to exhibit and sell their work, with exhibitions in various venues around the area. Please note however that while we love to exhibit our members original art whether by brush, pastel, collage, etching, lino cut or other similar hand created work. We do NOT exhibit photographic or digital work other than prints of original art and only then as unframed work in certain exhibitions.
MEMBERSHIP
ONLY £35 FROM NOW UNTIL THE 31ST DECEMBER 2025
We are a very friendly group and we would be delighted to hear from you. Why not join us? Just click on the ‘Join Us’ button for more information.
OUR RECENT WORKSHOP WITH RUBY LEWIS
After our last workshop with Jan Munro, we promised that another workshop was in the planning. Today (17th February) twelve members of the Society spent a fabulous day being guided by the talented artist, Ruby Lewis.
We came together in the wonderful Frobisher Studio again, each working on our own individual landscape images. The tricky part for many of us was that Ruby had prepared our canvasses using a traditional method to give a textured surface, which many of us were not used to using. So it presented some challenges!
The next unusual player was the metal leaf! Used only by some, this was applied using glue, with the excess rubbed off when dry, to add a subtle glow into the picture. All painters were using oil paints, some for the very first time, and Ruby recommended the use of Poppy Seed oil or Linseed oil to allow the flow of paint, in thin layers over the boards. As the layers of paint built up, so emerged the images. Ruby was encouraging an abstract approach, but some of us couldn’t resist representation!
At the end of the day, we gathered around each painting whilst Ruby talked through the challenges faced and hurdles overcome by each artist. As she appraised all of the work, it struck me that everyone should be proud of their achievements. All participants said that they had enjoyed the challenge of working on the textured board and it was interesting to see how the gold leaf enhanced the work. Thank you Ruby for a wonderful experience.
Keep your eyes open later in the year for the next workshop, due in October / November……
