Painting in St Ives, Cornwall.
At the end of July, I took part in a three-day course at the St Ives School of Painting, called ‘Mindful Ways to Abstraction’.
It had been 10 years since I attended a painting course here. I can’t remember what it was called, but I do remember it was where I painted my first abstract painting, which I still have hanging in my living room.
It was a suggestion from my artist friend, Carol Hosking-Smith, who lives in St Ives, and it looked like a lovely course for us to do together.
ABOUT ST IVES SCHOOL OF PAINTING
The School of Painting overlooks Porthmeor Beach in St Ives and was established in 1938. Since then, it has been a centre for modern abstract art with artists drawn to the wonderful quality of light, and the beautiful seascapes and landscapes.
Well-known artists like Barbara Hepworth. Ben Nicholson, Naum Gabo, and the Bernard Leech Pottery settled here. Peter Lanyon, Terry Frost and Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, regularly used the studios of the School, particularly attending the life classes.
‘MINDFUL WAYS TO ABSTRACTION’ - a three-day course
Described as a permission slip to slow down with artist and tutor, Kitty Hillier, to see how focusing on your breath and being ‘in the moment’ can help you work more intuitively.
Eight students came together from around the world - America, Australia, Spain, Ireland, and the UK. Some were complete beginners, others more experienced artists and also art tutors.
DAY ONE
COLLECTING INSPIRATION ON THE BEACH
We were so lucky throughout the course with the weather of bright sunshine, blue skies, and crystal clear water.
The first assignment was a wander on the beach to collect inspiration to work from over the next few days.
Exercises included:
Sitting on the beach and listening to sounds around us
Simple line drawings of the waves coming in and out
Beachcombing for interesting objects
Deep breathing awareness while listening to the sea
These helped by bringing us into a more relaxed state of being and less stuck in our heads where the focus was on the richness of all our senses and becoming present in the moment.
INK STUDIES IN THE STUDIO
In the afternoon, we returned to the studio and created marks with black ink from the objects we had collected beachcombing. I used the natural lines on stones I had found as inspiration.
It was fun to work with ink as I’m such a colourist. I loved the boldness of the ink combined with the watery effects that it can make.
DAY TWO
COLOUR MIXING AND CHOOSING
In the morning we worked with colour and learned how to colour mix with primary and tertiary colours using watercolours.
It’s something I don’t do, as I tend to use ready-mixed colours as I like to work fast and I’m impatient. It is something I would like to do more of, mixing my own colours and creating exciting colour combinations.
SWEET SPOTS TO ABSTRACT COLLAGES
In the afternoon, we explored collage.
We used viewfinders to find sweet spots in our artwork that interested us and could be used as starting points to base the collages on.
We ripped and cut up previous artwork into desired shapes to create A6-A5 size mini studies. I was in my element here, as I love recycling paintings into something new.
I'm such a messy worker!
My inspiration came from the mindful breathing exercise from the first day where we focused on our breath as we listened to the sound of waves coming in and out on the beach. I liked the cyclical and rhythmic nature of the experience.
I was intrigued by the sensation of the breath in the body, the direction it took internally and what parts of the body it moved into.
Mini collages based on mindful body mapping the breath
DAY THREE
INTUITIVE SELF-EXPRESSION AND FINAL PIECES
A day of free expression where we put together all the ideas that have inspired us so far, such as:
The preferred tools we used for mark-making
Colours we mixed and liked
Marks we enjoyed making through shapes, lines, and textures.
Art materials we were drawn to use
The focus was not to create finished pieces but to continue from a place of curiosity and exploration whilst up-scaling the work.
I continued with collage as I enjoyed making the mini-collages from the day before and felt the most connected to it.
To begin with, I did get stuck, but I realised that my perfection tendencies and pressure to create polished, finished work had kicked in. Recognising this self-sabotage helped me to return to a more relaxed, intuitive, in-the-moment state of being… and thankfully, the creativity and enjoyment started to flow again.
FINAL COLLAGES - ‘MAPPING THE BREATH’
GROUP REFLECTION
It was lovely to view and discuss everyone’s work at the end of the last day. We especially liked noticing how differently we interpreted the same exercises and use of materials.
Kitty asked us to share one thing that we were pleased, surprised or learnt about our art. For me, they were:
I was pleased with the contrasts in the compositions, the black and white areas alongside the coloured and the watery marks combined with the crisp cut collage edges.
I was surprised by how much I liked working with black ink, with its versatility ranging from bold, intense marks to softer, delicate marks.
I learnt to value my art more, especially when it’s simpler. That ‘simple’ doesn’t mean I’m being lazy or not trying hard enough. Simple is just as good enough when all the elements effectively come together.
THE MAIN TAKEAWAY
To start trusting in my decision-making process, especially around composition.
I automatically think that composition is my weak spot, that it’s not up to standard, and that I need to work harder before I can class myself as an accomplished artist.
The course helped me to change that limiting belief as I remembered that I had been practising painting for a long time, and practice automatically increases confidence and skill.
I can no longer use a lack of composition know-how as an excuse for not being good enough.
In reality, I do intuitively know what makes a good composition and not to doubt that inner knowing.
I will miss this space and co-working with artists
I’M SAD IT ENDED!
I loved being a student again. The course surpassed my hopes, and it was a lovely thing to do with a friend where we created shared memories.
Being in a room with artists making and talking about art all day was uplifting and exhilarating.
I was amazed at how much I had made in the three days and came away thinking about how having a longer time to deep-dive into the creative process was productive and helpful.
I enjoyed following the process set out by the tutor, Kitty, by noticing things and developing them into final pieces.
Everyone at the School was so welcoming. I want to thank all the lovely people who helped the course run smoothly and be so fun, including the art technicians who organised the materials and managed the studio so well, Kitty the fabulous art tutor, and my fellow students for creating a wonderful atmosphere of collaboration and friendship.
I will definitely return and I hope the weather will be as kind and beautiful as it was this time.