This week I had the pleasure of giving a live painting demonstration for the Charnwood Drawing and Painting Club — a group I always enjoy visiting. There’s something special about painting in front of an audience who are genuinely curious about the why as much as the how.
For this session, I focused on three areas that often make the biggest difference to developing painters:
- the relationship between colour and tone
- the expressive potential of brushwork
- and the often “dry” but essential world of colour theory
Rather than treating colour theory as an abstract topic, I approached it as colour practice — talking through each decision as the painting evolved. It’s a way of teaching that feels more alive and more useful, because you can see the theory in action rather than as a set of rules on a page.
The group were wonderfully engaged, and the atmosphere in the room made the whole evening flow beautifully.
After the session, Bob Nunn, a committee member at the club, shared this generous feedback:
“I always look forward to a session by Amanda as I know it is going to be well-prepared and well-executed. Tonight you managed to deal with three separate key issues around painting, namely the relationship between colour and tone, the use of different brush strokes, and the potentially ‘dry’ subject of colour theory. The latter you bravely and knowledgeably illuminated by turning it into colour practice rather than colour theory as you talked us through the decisions and choices you made as the painting developed. You always manage to explain fluently and clearly the choices you make whilst simultaneously creating the striking painting you completed during what was a most enjoyable and rewarding session.”
I’m always grateful for feedback like this — it’s a privilege to share my process with artists who are eager to learn, experiment, and push their own work forward.
Thank you to Bob and everyone at Charnwood for such a warm welcome. I’m already looking forward to the next time our paths cross.