Art Masterclass 09 http://www.laterlife.com/features/laterlife-art-masterclass-09.

htm

Cookies | Later Life Network | Retirement Guides | Pre-retirement Courses | Site Map | Text size A A A | Contrast

Home LaterLife Today Health Travel Work Retirement Finance Leisure Relationships Guides Competitions & Offers

What's happening
for you?
Art Masterclass May 2006
Special Celebration?
Trying to stay fit? Each month laterlife.com presents a feature from either The Artist or its sister
Searching for a job? publication, Leisure Painter.
Search
Wondering what to do?
Art masterclass
New Interests?
Grandparenting? from The Artist, the monthly magazine for amateur and semi-professional painters,
Holidaying alone? giving practical instruction in painting and drawing in watercolour, pastels and oils, as
Feeling Nostalgic? well as news of art events, exhibitions and competitions open to leisure artists;
Dating? www.theartistmagazine.co.uk
Voluntary work?
This month: an Art Masterclass featured in the current edition of The Artist, the
Managing Money?
magazine for amateur and semi-professional painters.

Fresh-picked flowers
in oils

Wild flowers and bunches

picked from her garden provide
constant inspiration for Anne
Cotterill, and she paints them
to capture their individual
characteristics

Wild Roses, oil board,

12x10in. (30.5x25.5cm)

Anne Cotterill is one of the most

accomplished painters of flower
subjects in the UK today. Her
paintings are distinguished by their

Live Online Auctions

sensitive use of colour, the vitality of
the paint handling, and the skilful
way that she manages to capture
the character of different flowers. invaluable.com
Without doubt they are painted by
someone with a real passion for the Browse and bid online in fine art,
subject matter, and it is not
surprising to discover that flowers
coins, jewelry, & antique auctions
have always been her main source
of inspiration.

“The continuing motivation,” she

says, “comes from the immense
variety of flowers, especially wild
flowers, which give a non-stop
display practically right through the White Wild Violets,
year.” oil on board,
5x53/4in.
(12.5x14.5cm)

Inspiration, that inner excitement, is the essential starting point for every painting, Anne
believes. “Whatever the subject matter, it is absolutely necessary to be enthused by
what is there and have a strong desire to paint it. Maybe this is why I am not interested
in commissions, for the initial idea must come from something that has attracted and
moved me. But I suppose it doesn’t take much to get me excited about flowers and I am
sure I will never run out of ideas!

“I paint all types of flowers. I am fortunate to live in a part of the country that has a
wonderful variety of wild flowers in the hedgerows, lanes and meadows. And I also have
a large, rambling garden with roses, lilies and countless other flowers. Paintings are also

1 of 4 29/09/14 9:53 am
Art Masterclass 09 http://www.laterlife.com/features/laterlife-art-masterclass-09.htm

Tweets Follow

Later Life 12h

sometimes inspired by flowers that people have given me, or I may buy certain varieties
to paint, but mostly I enjoy painting the flowers that I have picked freshly myself.” @LaterlifeTweets
Caring for elderly parents & relations is something
Having decided on a selection of flowers to paint, Anne sets them up in her studio, many of us who are over 50 have to undertake.
choosing a vase or container that will complement the colour and nature of the Read our guide ow.ly/sG3HE
arrangement. However, the flowers are not arranged in a formal manner. Expand

“I normally place the flowers in their pot the day before I start painting, to allow them to Later Life 27 Sep
settle. Essentially, they arrange themselves and usually when I return the next day they
@LaterlifeTweets
look just right. If not, I make adjustments or perhaps try a different container – I have
literally hundreds to choose from. Timely advice on beating coughs and colds now
the sneeze season is upon us ow.ly/3rAXgL
“The lighting is another important factor, and for me it must be natural light. Show Summary
I work seated, with the board fixed in a fairly upright position on an easel, and usually
with the light coming from a large window on my left, although I do vary this approach by Gizmodo 26 Sep
using other windows and positions in my studio. Artificial light changes the colours, I @Gizmodo
feel, and sharpens the shadows too much.
How an octagenarian preserved an endangered
“There are various tables, chairs and stools in my studio that I can place the flowers on, Native American language gizmo.do/OtXbywJ
depending on the viewpoint I want. Generally they are positioned about three feet from pic.twitter.com/ADT9c1XAkX
me, at eye level or just below, thought for large lowers or a big bunch I am farther away Retweeted by Later Life
from the subject. While I am not a botanical artist, I still find it important tot be accurate
as regards numbers and shapes of petals, sepals and so on. I aim for a good likeness of
that is
there, and try to add something to that, particularly the sense of light and movement in
the flowers.

Extensive palette

“I paint exclusively in oils. What I

especially like about this medium are
Expand
the textures and glowing colours that
can be achieved, the way that you Later Life 26 Sep
can move the paint about and
develop different effects, and of Tweet to @LaterlifeTweets
course the fact that you can alter
things and rework areas.
However, particularly with flowers,
you have to be careful not to
overwork the colours; they must
always look fresh, so I clean the
brushes frequently. I paint on
hardboard, which is carefully
prepared with three thin coats of size
followed by a further three coats in
oil-based flat white primer. Then the
surface is sanded to produce a finish
that is not shiny, but has a nice ‘bite’.
Primroses, oil on board,
One of the advantages of hardboard
12x10in. (30.5x25.5cm)
is that you can cut it to any size and
shape you require.”

Anne works from an extensive

selection of colours. Her basic
palette includes titanium white,
cadmium yellow pale and cadmium
yellow deep, Indian yellow, yellow
ochre, raw sienna, burnt sienna,
alizarin crimson, scarlet lake,
cadmium scarlet, permanent rose,
ultramarine, cerulean, cobalt blue,
Prussian blue, Prussian green, sap
green, terre verte, viridian, mauve,
violet, magenta and permanent
magenta. She never uses colour
straight from the tube; all her colours
are mixed, using brushes rather than
a palette knife.

She prefers Winsor & Newton

Artists’ oil colours, because these
have the right consistency and oil
content for the way she likes to
work. Consequently there is no need
to add any linseed oil or other Spring Flowers, oil on board,
medium to the mix. For brushes, she
131/2x111/2in. (34x29cm)
chooses Pro Arte Acrylix, which she
finds are softer than hog brushes,
have more spring, and are
hardwearing.

2 of 4 29/09/14 9:53 am
Art Masterclass 09 http://www.laterlife.com/features/laterlife-art-masterclass-09.htm

The painting process

Some flowers last quite well when

picked and arranged in a vase,
others soon open up, shed petals or
wilt. “And all flowers change to some
extent,” Anne comments. “they
never just sit still in the pot!
Therefore it is often necessary to
work quickly, and always the painting
process must respond to the
particular nature of the flowers as
well as respecting the qualities and
potential of the medium being used.
Each new painting requires a slightly
different approach.

“I normally start by covering the

entire board with a neutral-coloured
wash. This is usually made from a
mix of burnt sienna, ultramarine and
a touch of white, or it can be more of
a purple colour, but always thinned
with a lot of turpentine. It is applied
with a wide brush.

“Then, for the lightest parts of the

flowers, I use a turpsy rag to rub Poppies, oil on board, 18x14in.
through the ground colour to the
white surface beneath and, now (46x35.5cm)
working with a brush, I add the main
darks. I keep to thin paint throughout
this first stage, which probably only
takes about ten minutes, and my aim
is to suggest the general look and
composition of the painting and
begin to get everything moving.

“Having considered the basic tonal

values, I start on the flowers, usually
beginning with an area that I really
want to pick out and treasure. For
instance, if there are a couple of
flowers that look wonderful together I
paint those straight away, although
not to an entirely finished state.
Then I perhaps move on to the
surrounding two or three flowers,
and so on. The aim on the first day
is to capture the sense of the whole
bunch of flowers, leaving the detail
to later. At the end of the day I put
the flowers in a cool, dark place, to
help preserve them.
Michaelmas Daisies,
oil on board,
161/2x153/4in. (42x40cm)

“While I paint I am constantly looking

at the relationship of one flower to
another, as well as the way that they
cast shadows. All the time it is a
matter of comparing light to dark. In
a way it is like painting a landscape
– you look through some dark leaves
and there is a bright light beyond. It
is this play of lights and darks that
gives a sense of the roundness and
form of the subject. Generally I
exaggerate these contrasts."

The background colour

“My response is more instinctive as

the painting progresses and I focus
in turn on the parts that attract and
interest me. Of course, it is equally
necessary to react to things that
might be suggested by the painting
itself. At this stage I also begin to
pay more attention to the Pink Clover, oil on board,
background than how it relates to
18x14in. (46x35.5cm)
the flowers. In some areas I may use
the background colour to delineate
the flowers or, in contrast,
sometimes it is very effective to
‘lose’ the flowers into a soft-toned
background. Mostly I like a fairly

3 of 4 29/09/14 9:53 am
Art Masterclass 09 http://www.laterlife.com/features/laterlife-art-masterclass-09.htm

neutral colour, so as not to compete

with the flowers.

“Essentially I use the traditional

‘fat over lean’ approach, finishing
with the principal lights, which are
the most impasto areas. In fact,
I usually work on the pot and the
foreground last of all, making the
foreground fairly positive, to help
place the flowers in a context.
Occasionally, the ellipses on the
pot cause me some problems, and
to check their accuracy I use a
mirror. If you face away from the
painting
and view it as a mirror image, this
will show up anything that needs
attention. It is also
useful to turn the painting
upside-down and check the look
of things that way.

“In some paintings, after finishing

the pot I add a few leaves or flowers Buttercups in a Silver Coffee Pot,
drooping across it, to unite pot and oil on board, 151/2x111/2in.
flowers. And something else I (39.5x29cm)
occasionally do, to capture the
moment as it were, is to paint one
or two drops of water on a leaf
somewhere or running down the
side
of the pot. This enhances the sense
of freshness and vitality that I want
to convey in the painting.

“Over the many years that I have

been painting flowers, I have
learned that there is a limit to how
much you can discipline them.
They have their own ideas and they
obviously play a vital part in
determining the success or
otherwise of the painting!

Sweet Peas, 14x12in. (35.5x30.5cm)

4 of 4 29/09/14 9:53 am