Matthew showed them that ‘every little helps’ when it comes to painting, so the retired staff members followed Matthew’s instructions and created their very own watercolour masterpieces, many of them painting for the very first time! Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the workshop and they all took home a painting to be really proud of.

If you are part of an association or an organisation that would like to hold a workshop as part of your activities, why not get in touch? We’d love to hear from you! Drop us a line at info@saa.co.uk

Founded in 1832 the Cumberland Pencil Company was the first and is now the last pencil manufacturer in Britain, and to mark its 180th Anniversary it has produced a ‘Best of British’ limited edition wooden presentation box beautifully crafted in Oak and celebrating Great Britain in all its glory.

Only 500 of the Best of British collection boxes have been made. They have been filled with a stunning selection of 165 fine art pencils and blocks drawn from Derwent’s unique, innovative and classic ranges. These include Coloursoft, Inktense, Watercolour and the traditional Graphic pencils which are presented in a special edition Union Jack tin. The collection also includes an array of useful and creative accessories ranging from erasers, embossing tools, a sharpener and a paper stump.

The Best of British presentation box features a pull-out Commemorative Draw full of iconic symbols of Great Britain and the Cumberland Pencil Company. Including models of a London Taxi and Routemaster Bus and the Cumberland Pencil Company delivery van which sits outside the Pencil Museum in Keswick. The draw also contains a vintage metal sign depicting scenes from the old pencil mill and 4 coasters each one featuring a drawing of one of the UK’s floral emblems; a Rose, a Daffodil, a Shamrock and a Thistle. You can also take a tour of the British Isles using the pictorial map illustrating well known and loved British landmarks from Stonehenge to Edinburgh Castle and the Giants Causeway to the Angel of the North.

Each presentation box is individually numbered and comes complete with a Certificate of authenticity.

This unique box is now available through the SAA, so if you’d like to get your hands on one of these very special edition sets, simply click here.

North Light • £12.99 (£16.99 non-members) • LHAPB • 192 pages • Paperback

You can almost guess what this is from the title! If you haven’t encountered her before, Lee Hammond is a versatile painter who is good on all the subjects she covers, which include still lifes, landscapes, animals and people.

Each of these has a section to itself and there’s also a comprehensive technical introduction that includes a run-through of tools and equipment, a handy guide to understating colour and a good grounding in basic techniques. In fact, the section on People goes into so much detail about the elements and structure of the human face that it’s almost a manual of portraiture in itself.

Mainly intended to be an introduction to the medium, it also goes into more depth than some similar titles and you’ll find it a handy book even if you have a little more experience. If you want to discover the wealth of possibilities offered by acrylics, there’s nothing better than this substantial offering.

Get your copy today!

This book was reviewed by Henry Malt

Celebrate the Diamond Jubilee and capture the scene for the BBC

The BBC have been in touch with us here at the SAA in connection with the live television coverage of The Diamond Jubilee River Pageant, which is taking place on the Thames on Sunday 3rd June, and will be broadcast on BBC One.

As part of the programme, the BBC is inviting artists of all ages and mediums to join them on one of the bridges to paint or draw their interpretation of the pageant – which will be filmed during that afternoon.

If you would be interested in taking part, or would like to find out more, please contact Zoe on zoe.russell-stretten@bbc.co.uk as soon as possible, with your name, age, and location – and remember to include one or two examples of your work.

If you would like to be on one of the bridges, celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee through your creative talent, then don’t hesitate to get in touch with Zoe!

Update:
The BBC would like to thank members of the SAA for the overwhelming and positive response to their call for Artists to participate in the Diamond Jubilee. They will be contacting all those that have already replied, but will be unable to respond to any further applications from 21st April.

Put a new ‘spring’ in someone’s step this season and give them the gift of SAA membership! For just £27.50, you can help your loved ones find their inner artist and discover that everybunny deserves a treat this Easter!

Let your friend enjoy the benefits and privileges of SAA membership with your compliments:

• The bi-monthly PAINT magazine
• Huge savings and discounts in the Home Shop
• Free UK delivery on all orders (UK mainland only)
• Free exhibition insurance
• Free unlimited entries to the SAA Artist of the Year competition
• New members will receive a welcome pack including a free watercolour book and ‘paint your own’ postcards
• Loyalty Points on purchases over £15
• The sense of belonging to a worldwide family of artists
• … and so much more!

When you buy gift membership for your friend this Easter, we’ll give you £10 worth of Loyalty Points free as a thank you!

To buy membership just click on one of the links below. To ensure we know who the membership is for please include your friend’s full name and address in the ‘additional comments’ box when you place your order. If you would like the gift membership to be sent direct to your friend, please enter their details in the delivery address. Please also quote EN0312A as your offer code to ensure you get your free gift.

Give your friend the perfect gift this Easter!

But is it for everyone?

The exhibition currently taking the UK by storm is the latest David Hockney, open at the Royal Academy until the 9th April 2012. The exhibition includes some of Hockney’s very latest works using an iPad, as well as large scale, multiple-screen films. In an interview with the Guardian, Hockney said of the iPad that “It’s like an endless piece of paper that perfectly fitted the feeling I had that painting should be big”.

Alan Davey, CEO of the Arts Council England says, “How the cultural sectors engage with emerging and existing digital technologies in the next few years will have far reaching effects on our creative, social and economic lives, as artists and audience members.”

On his latest DVD, up and coming artist Fraser Scarfe uses an iPad to create a digital image whilst on location in Lincoln Cathedral. (You can find the DVD details here).

But can digital art create the same interaction between artist and medium? Is part of the joy of painting about physically putting brush to canvas and paper, and interacting with the paint itself? Can digital mediums ever hope to replicate that tactile element of the creative process?

History tells us that digital art will simply become another medium through which creativity expresses itself. When photography first appeared on the art scene, it was with much criticism and outcry, but now, photography, collage, image projection and even edited photography (or ‘faked’) has become absorbed into the myriad of established creative mediums.

Will we see digitally created artworks becoming part of normality at exhibitions and galleries? Only time will tell, but given the popularity of the (needless to say, sold-out) David Hockney exhibition, it seems the general consensus from the world of the art lover is that we will and already are.

Tell us what you think

Would you like to see more digitally created art at exhibitions? Or do you think these emerging technologies are simply a phase that will run its course? Are you a digital artist? We’d love to hear what you think… Share your ideas with us below.

Batsford • £16.99 (£18.99 non-members) • STBRB • 128 pages • Hardback

OK, it’s early, but if this isn’t the book of the year, there’ll be some headgear to be eaten!  Watercolour is supposed to be a demure medium; its soft brushes and liquid handling means it can’t roll up its sleeves and get its hands dirty. Can it? Oh yes it can, and Shirley will show you how you can use colour and shapes to make your subjects jump out of the frame. Let’s be clear from the outset that this isn’t a book of instruction – there isn’t a demonstration in sight. Rather, Shirley analyses ten of her own paintings in some depth, showing you how she approached the subjects and how she uses colours and negative shapes to create images that, while by no means abstract, absolutely stretch the boundaries of representation.

It’s challenging, and chapter headings like ‘Keeping my options open’, ‘Going for green’ and ‘Breaking the rules of perspective’ will give you an idea of the ride you’re in for. However, I think we’re ready for this – it’s not as if this is Shirley’s first book, after all. What she’s done here, though, is to have the courage of her convictions and to set out her stall as something you too can follow. It helps, of course, that she writes as well as she paints, a rare skill and one we should treasure.

Click here to get your copy now!

Also available is an accompanying DVD to bring Shirley’s paintings to life in your own home. To purchase Breaking the Rules of Watercolour book and DVD set, click here

This book was reviewed by Henry Malt

Now is your chance to pick up a paintbrush and discover your inner artist! Whether you’re a complete novice, or have been painting and drawing for years, there’s something for everyone.

With expert demonstrations and live workshops from some of today’s most popular artists,

there’s lots to see and learn whatever your ability. What’s more, you’ll have a fantastic day out with your friends, as well as meeting and learning from the professional artists.

This year, the SAA show is hitting the road, bringing all your favourite artists to a region near you. It’s all about Art is travelling to two great cities: Bristol and Manchester.

With 11 of the UK’s top artists running FREE demonstrations and FREE workshops, The Home Shop live, ask the experts and much, much more, why be anywhere else! Tickets available from just £8!

Bristol – Friday 29th & Saturday 30th June 2012
Brunel’s Old Station, Clock Tower Yard, Temple Meads, Bristol, BS1 6QH

In the beautiful Brunel’s Old Station, It’s All About Art Bristol is the first of our regional events, bringing all your favourite artists to the West Country. Located in the historic railway terminus building of the Great Western Railway, the venue is situated right next to Bristol’s Temple Meads railway station so is really easy to get to.

Featuring popular TV artists: Matthew Palmer, Geoff Kersey, Hashim Akib, Jeremy Ford, Vic Bearcroft, Fraser Scarfe, David Hyde, Sue Deighton, Dermot Cavanagh, Dee Cowell and Jan Mehigan

Get your tickets for Bristol NOW!

Manchester – Friday 27th & Saturday 28th July 2012
EventCity, Phoenix Way, off Barton Dock Road, Urmston, Manchester, M17 8AS

Located next to the Trafford Centre in Manchester’s bustling hub, EventCity is the second venue for It’s All About Art, taking creativity and fun to the northern regions of the UK. The venue is easily accessible with lots of free parking, and there are regular buses from all train stations in Manchester taking you to Trafford Bus Station where you are within a couple of minutes walk of EventCity.

Featuring popular TV artists: Matthew Palmer, Geoff Kersey, Hashim Akib, Jeremy Ford, Vic Bearcroft, David Hyde, Sue Deighton, Dermot Cavanagh, Roy Lang and Dee Cowell.

Get your tickets for Manchester NOW!

Yes, the new 164 page catalogue is packed with special offers, brand new products and mega deals to inspire you this spring. SAA members save up to a massive 60% so don’t delay, get your copy now!

If you haven’t got yours yet, call us on 0800 980 1123 or click here to request a copy.

Don’t forget, all the products and deals can also be found online, so why not visit the Home Shop and you can browse straight away.

Here are some of the highlights:

• New SAA Acrylic brushes, and new SAA Oil brushes – both ranges designed to give you the very best in control, durability and flexibility.
• Daniel Smith Watercolours – the full range of 231 of the brightest and boldest colours modern technology has to offer are now available through the SAA, as well as the best selling Watercolour Ground and Masking Fluid.
• New Derwent Artbars – These new water-soluble wax bars are perfect for creative marks and textures. With a beautiful creamy consistency, these triangular bars of solid, highly pigmented colour offer artists a new world of creative potential.
• ‘Breaking the Rules of Watercolour’ with Shirley Trevena – Shirley’s latest book is not a technical manual about how to paint, but rather about how to see and interpret your subject. Throw the rules out of the window and follows Shirley’s expert advice about when to break them!

There’s a whole host of other great new products and ideas to help bring out the artist in you, whatever your ability. So don’t delay and get your hands on the new catalogue today!

Call 0800 980 1123 or click here to request a catalogue.

Rewind to the NEC event. We took loads of products with us and some of our most prestigious artists (Matthew Palmer, Jeremy Ford and Fraser Scarfe among them). The painting workshops went down a storm, with many people returning for a second, and even third, bite of the cherry!

Speaking of cherries, we’re now planning our own events calendar for next year. Many of you have attended our annual show at the Business Design Centre in London. Well, we’ve decided to shake things up a bit and go regional. Three events await you: one in Bristol, one in Manchester and one in Peterborough. We look forward to meeting as many of you as possible at one or all of them. A great day out: guaranteed!

For more details please go to http://www.saa.co.uk/iaaa12.php

Happy Painting!