Our 2016 Season - Come join us  

Brochure

If you would like to find out more about us either click on the online Brochure on the right or visit us on our website. 

These will be our tutors this year and we also run our standard art holidays.  This leaves you free to paint when and what you want with the added bonuses of being taken out locally to visit our lovely towns and villages. Any queries can be covered by me if you need some one to one tutoring.  All this and the benefits of ensuite accommodation and full board.  

If you are a tutor and would like to bring your own group, please call and we can discuss the details.  Discounts will be available to 5+ people

Open access to the studio and materials also available

In addition to the above I will also be holding a Craft week to incorporate making unusual christmas decorations and other gifts and a Printing week, to include Gel Prints, watercolour batik, collagraph, decoupage and monoprinting.  Please email me at info@francepaintingholiday if you are interested.

Examples of my work are below: 

Two of these designs have been chosen to be used on fabric for clothes designs.  Take a look here

Thats it for today....two days in a row!!!!  Lets see when I next post.  

Bx

Nearly February 2016....where is time going?

Winter Solstice

Ok, I think you guys have got it....I am not the best at updating this blog, but with every New Year comes new intentions and this is one of them. New Years resolution..no 1 More updates!

But I do post alot on my FB page and the France Painting Holiday page too






This I did for United by Art FB page as a challenge and received 4th place out of 50+ entries which I have to say I was chuffed with. Good start to the new year! 




No 2 New Years resolution was to get more into sketching as I would love to own a "beautiful" sketch book.  So as a christmas present to myself I signed onto two online sketching courses with Craftsy and have found them to be one of the best things I have done.  These are the two that I have gone for.


Firstly, Travel Sketching in Mixed Media with Mark Taro Holmes, as he is a fantastic sketcher and one of the founders of Urban Sketching I believe and Travel Sketching really covers the type that I want to be doing. He also has a lovely relaxed and natural way of teaching
Travel-sketching-in-mixed-media

And then Perspective Sketchers with Stephanie Bower as again she is a stunning sketcher, architecture being her "thing" and her lessons in really seeing what you are looking at are great. 
Perspective-for-sketchers



This is pretty much my tool kit when I go out.  Dont normally need more other than kitchen roll and extra water maybe in case my water reservoir brush runs out.  Which incidentally has never happened!

Plein air kit!

Items from left to right are:- small paintbox (these are not necessarily the colours that I am using as I change them regularly), white gel pen, Waterreservoir brush, fountain pen, cut down flat brush, fine permanent pen, mechanical pencil and refills, brush pens in different tones.

So since joining I have done more than I normally do at this time of year.  The trick will be to keep going on a regular basis as practice makes perfect! And I am longing for the weather to improve so that I can go out and do more plein air. Here are a few from last week!

French shutters                        Coupling in Bressuire                Amailloux Church                     

Oh and little idea I played with today incorporating quick sketch with brayered paint left over from a gel plate run!!!

I think it works..do you?


I will leave it there for today and continue again in February!!! Oh is that tomorrow....Handy!  

Bx
PS and Arty is still with us and thriving!  x

Stephie Butlers portrait workshop 2015

Well what an amazing week that was!  Apart from watching Stephie doing her wonderful demos the weather was beyond belief!  By Tuesday we hit 42 degrees but working in the coolness of the Studio during some of the hottest times was lovely. But even there we needed some airing!

The above paintings are some of the demonstrations that Stephie did for the group and she also found time to do some large cat studies aswell to demonstrate that her techniques work well for wildlife too!

Inbetween time we popped out and visited a couple of places early in the morning when the air was nice and cool and it was comfortable to walk around.  A nice photo opportunity for everyone and then back for a well deserved lunch.

Aut Fouee - Parthenay

St Loup Chateau

Le Chapeau Rouge St Loup

To see all the photos from that week please visit our Facebook page by clicking here

If you are interested in one of our workshops either tutored or just to come here for an art holiday please contact us through the website or email me on bixnash1@yahoo.co.uk

See you again soon

Bx

Oh and here is one that I did on Sunday following everyone departure!

June 2015

Keiko Tanabes Demonstration paintings at Bandouille 2015

Bandouille                                 Chateau de Tennessus                      Parthenay                                    

With Keikos workshop now complete here are a few of her lovely paintings she created in that week.

Alot of hard work was done successfully by all the students and we all had a wonderful time.

Thouars Market

We are looking forward to Keikos 2nds week with us later in August.

This wonderful painting of Thouars Market was gifted to us by Keiko and will look wonderful on our wall at Bandouille.

Chiche

This was painted in our small village of Chiche and was chosen for the shadows and the way the road goes gently down the hill!   The students were givin the choice of where to paint and some chose this position and other chose other locations in the village.

All our guests had some wonderful results during their stay with us and here are some of the results

Paintings done in june 2015 in Keiko Tanabes Group

To see more paintings from this week please visit our Facebook Page by clicking here

Also if you are interested in coming to one of our workshops in 2016 please send an enquiry to bixnash1@yahoo.co.uk or go through our contact page on our website www.francepaintingholiday.com

Late Delivery!

I know, I know........November was my last post.......but I do update on France Painting Holiday page on facebook much more regularly!

Anyway, our 2015 Season has begun and I will keep this fairly short.

Keiko Tanabe is in the house and that kickstarted our year with a jolt! 

Everyone enjoying her paintings and now the sunshine is very present!  Today we had 37 degrees....blistering to paint in but at the same time wonderful.  We have done visits to Partheny, Thoaurs and Chateau Tennesus and achieved great results with alot of fun and laughter!

Here are a few of the paintings Keiko has done so far and also places where we have been.

to stay updated see us on FB on this link
France Painting Holiday Page

More to follow later about this workshop later.
Bx

Armistice Day

Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

John McCrae

This beautiful poem was pointed out to me from Dorothy, a member of I Draw and Paint, that I belong to.  I am so glad she did.  What a poingant end to an emotional day.

Photos by Stephie Butler

These incredible images were taken by Stephie Butler who is an outstanding portrait watercolour artist in her own right and will be coming back to us next summer to hold another workshop. Check website for details. To see more of her Images visit here website www.stephiebutler.com

ART

And to end this post in fitting style...here is my little collection of gelli prints that I have done as a lead up to this day.  The collection is called Cenenary Fields 2014 and each is approximately 6 x 6 inches.

Ghosts of Summer          Blowing in the Wind        Lest we Forget          Les Champs Sauvage                           

2 Videos to watch and created by ME
These paintings were created on a Gelli Plate that I made following this technique  and to watch a short demo on how I created Blowing on the wind click here

Stephie Butler

All of this and alot more can be learnt from me by attending one of our residental weeks here at Bandouille.  I will be  running a Gelli Plate and printing workshop next may covering lots of techiques and how to make the tools to do them.  So please click here to find out more

Catchup again with you soon.  Feel free to leave a comment both here and on youtube and tell me what you think

Bx

Its Poppy Time!

I think I am not alone to say that most of us were very touched by the incredible display of handmade poppies displayed in the grounds of the Tower of London as a tribute to the fallen of the First World War. And also the effect that it has had on the nations here and abroad.  This one display contributes heavily to our childrens edcuation both in History and humanity.

This whole year has had me thinking about poignant images to reflect this and I have almost completed my little collection of Gelli Prints and the print below is the result of the video which you can view here                                                                                            

This is the first little video clip of I hope many. I enjoyed doing this and this was my first take. I learnt alot from doing it and have welcomed some wonderful professional advice too from a dear friend Corinna who films for a living.  All done using my ipad as the video camera and an easel to prop it up. So only basic equipment but effective.  Alot more to learn though.

Blowing in the Wind

I will post all of the prints on Novemeber 11th after the minutes silence.

This short clip shows how I use the plate to create my little landscapes and has been done to promote my Gelli and Printing workshop next year here at Bandouille. The workshop will be limited to only 6 participants to make sure we all have room and therefore early booking recommended.
Non painting partners welcome!

Also if you love Gelli Printing I have just joined a couple of Facebook pages which look very inspirational and I thank them for adding me to their groups.
Gelatin Printing Enthusiasts and Gelli Printing too

More about gelli printing in older posts

Click here for details of the above workshop and our watercolour workshops and standard holidays here at Bandouille in 2015.  Please note that Keiko Tanabe will be now running two workshops next year - May 31st and August 23rd

Carp fishing holidays also available.

Enquiries and bookings are better than we have ever had and we are looking forward to another busy year next year.  I do have a couple of other things up my sleeve, but nothing is yet confirmed....so you will have to wait

This is it for now...I know you are all amazed how I have managed to keep this short, but will be posting again soon.

Bye for now 

Bx