Weekly Sessions - Alternate Mondays

First and Third Mondays – Pastels

The pastel sessions take place on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month, from 9.30 am to 4.00 pm.

People are welcome to arrive late or leave early. Tea and coffee are provided, but please bring your own lunch if you intend to stay for the full day.

We are fortunate to have a Master Pastellist, Maxine Thompson, with us for part of the year. She is very generous with her time and knowledge and is always willing to offer advice on techniques when asked.

We all work at our own pace on our own pieces and share our knowledge with one another in a supportive and helpful environment. We welcome artists at all levels of experience with pastels. Everyone is encouraged to try the various types of pastels and the different grounds best suited to pastel work.

We are a very friendly group who enjoy the camaraderie and support we offer one another.

Numbers attending vary, and everyone is welcome. We also have some pastels available for

newcomers to try, as purchasing a set of pastels and a range of colours can be quite expensive when starting out.

A number of us also belong to PANZ (Pastel Artists of New Zealand), a national association that promotes and encourages the use of pastels. PANZ organises various events, including an annual convention and workshops taught by local and international artists.

Members are eligible to enter PANZ exhibitions and Pastel Challenges, which are themed online monthly competitions, as well as the TSA Expos and Competition Days. There are plenty of opportunities to exhibit and share your art.

Mary McTavish, Pastels Convenor

Second and Fourth Mondays - Drawing

The drawing sessions take place on the 2nd and 4th Monday of the month from 9.30am to 4.00pm, but people are welcome to arrive late and leave early or just bring their lunch and have a chat around midday.

It is an untutored group where we enjoy sharing our technical skills and bouncing creative ideas off each other. We bring our own projects to work on, and our artworks range from realistic to abstract style and include cityscape, botanical, animals and still life. We use any type of drawing materials but mainly graphite, coloured pencils, and pens.  We are also experimenting with mixed media.

There are many reasons to draw, for example to produce finished art using drawing materials, to train your eye and develop your observation skills, or to make thumbnail and preliminary sketches to work out your composition for an artwork in a different medium.

You are welcome to join us and focus on any aspect of drawing.

Carol Macintyre, Drawing Convenor