Padiham Painting at Leisure Group Exhibition

Padiham Painting at Leisure Group Exhibition

 

Today I talked to Clare Smith of Padiham Painting at Leisure group, who are the current exhibitors at the ACE Centre about her work, the group themselves and the exhibition that is on.

Clare originally got into art when she was younger, as her granddad who was a member himself of Padiham Painting at Leisure group for 20 years, would take her with him and hang the group’s work in the summer holidays, when she was about 6 years old. She did art all through school, and college, and was always interested in art and creativity, but only really took it up as an independent hobby when she left university six years ago.

Clare works in oil paint for her pieces, as it’s is quite flexible if you make mistakes, and she likes the actual technique when using it. She used to work solely from pictures in magazines and calendars for example, but says now takes a lot more photos and does preliminary sketches. Clare also said she creates a lot of the pieces after she has visited the place and taken in the atmosphere, and that she thinks it’s easier and better to create pieces from places you know. She loves the local countryside such as Pendle Hill and also the Lake District, which is where she got the inspiration for the piece below (Thirlmere), after she had been on walk there. Clare is particularly interested in light and tonal aspects of painting as well as colour. This is particularly prominent in the ‘Thrilmere’ piece, where Clare has paid particular attention to capturing the light hitting the water subtily, but effectively.

The group who are exhibiting, are the Padiham Painting at Leisure group. They have been running for over 20 years and are a very varied group of artists. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never done any artwork before in your life, or if you are an experienced artist, the group brings together people who want to have a go and enjoy art! There are no regimented rules, or scary exams, it’s all about giving it a go and having some fun, while creating some nice artwork in the process. 

Their tutor is Iris Owen and the group run six different classes a week, so everyone can find one they are available for. The group vary in many ways. The age ranges from 6 years old-93 years old, so everyone is welcome to join. Some artists paint in oil, some in acrylic, or watercolour, and some even do mixed media, and fabric pieces. It’s all about experimenting and giving it a go, to find how you work best and can develop as an artist. There are also many different subjects. While some are inspired by detailed landscapes, others prefer still life, or buildings.

Although diverse in many ways, the group all share a common interest of creating artwork and having fun.

If you are interested and would like to come along and join in one of Padiham Painting at Leisure classes then they would be glad to have you.

After all, as Pablo Picasso once said,
"Action is the foundational key to all success." 

The classes run:

Tuesdays

10.30am – 12.30pm

1.45pm – 3.45pm

7.00pm – 9.00pm

Thursdays

7.00pm – 9.00pm

Fridays

1.45pm – 3.45pm

7.00pm – 9.00pm

Bye for Now
Rosie