Impressions Newsletter
August 2008
Hello Everyone,
Impressions Regional Art Awards
The buzz at Impressions over the last month has been to do with the Arts Council Nelson Impressions Regional Art Awards – and in particular the People’s Choice Award. The presentation of the prizes took place in-store on Thursday 26th at 6.30pm. We enjoyed a congratulatory glass of wine with Pamela and Nikki and their supporters to celebrate their success. For those who missed the announcement in the media the results were: -
Winner - Pamela Banks. Entry # 136, ‘Birds Eye View’
2nd Place - Nikki Huizinga. Entry # 47, ‘Josephine’s Profile’
3rd Place - Pamela Banks. Entry # 130, ‘Trusty Old Friends’
Pamela received vouchers to the
value of $725 and two framed certificates.
We’ve enjoyed having all the winning entries from the Awards on display in-store from 21st July until 2nd August. I hope you found time to see the exhibition of works while they were at the Refinery Artspace. It was a wonderful collection.
Inaugural Art Club Members Evening
The first of our Art Club Members’ Evenings was held on Thursday 10th July. About fifty people attended and were enthralled watching Tony Allain produce two paintings in just 30 minutes. The works bore his fresh, free and vibrant style which is very appealing and very skilful. His talk which he threaded throughout the demonstration explained the processes and principles of painting that he always adheres to whatever medium he is using. Two lucky members were able to purchase the paintings straight off the easel at a very generous discount. So our grateful thanks to Tony for his generosity and his willingness to share his talent and time once again with local artists. The next Art Club Members evening is planned for early November. An artist has been booked to conduct a demonstration/talk so now preparations commence to make that a truly memorable evening as well.Time Out
Over the last couple of months Impressions staff members have been taking their mid-year breaks. Charlotte visited her family in Germany, Catherine visited her family in England and Lewis indulged in a week of indoor bowls in Invercargill at the Chartered Clubs Men’s National Championships. So it must be my turn next – and indeed I’m off to Australia for three and a half weeks shortly, to catch up with my family in a trek across Australia from Brisbane to Perth, camping off-road sometimes and taking in the outback scenery as well as the wildflowers of Western Australia. The camera will be kept busy seeking out material which will inspire some artwork.Oil Painting Product Workshops
Response to our notice to Art Club members about the Oil Painting Product Workshops happing in-store this month was swift. The workshops were sold out within the first week. Charlotte will lead these sessions and participants will gain the benefit of her extensive painting education and experience. Clearly the workshops are filling a need, so we recommend early registration for future workshops so as not to miss out on a place.New Product
Conte 2B Carbon Pencils
Carbon pencils are made from lampblack which is derived from collecting the soot from the burning of oil. They are wood-encased pencils and are made from the finest particles available. Although the carbon lead is derived from traditional charcoals, they are more resistant that charcoal. Its lead does not crumble and dirty your hand.
Carbon and compressed charcoal pencils can be useful for obtaining a true black which is not really possible with graphite.
Conté Carbon Pencil
Carbon pencils are especially suited to drawings that are frequently handled because of their smudge-proof nature. They combine the advantages of graphite in achieving sharp lines, with those of charcoal pencils for rich, black lines. Unlike graphite, carbon pencil marks have no sheen. They are often considered by artists to be the perfect pencil because they enable the artist to make dramatic black marks and are perfect for rapid and expressive quick sketches and drawings. Its delicate and detailed finish allows you to accurately draw the perspective of a building or the architecture of a station or cathedral.
These pencils are recommended for on-the-spot small sketches. They are invaluable to the travelling artist or student taking evening classes in drawing.
Sennelier Extra Soft Large Pastels
We have introduced Sennelier’s large pastels with a selection of 36 colours. There are 60 colours available in all, and can be ordered on indent. Those people who attended our Art Club evening and watched Tony Allain produce his paintings, saw him using large pastels. Now the Sennelier range is available to you in Richmond. We will build the range of colours by responding to requests. These pastels retail for $29.50 each
White Fungus
White Fungus is an arts magazine with a difference. It features articles on art and new music, poetry, literature, comics and political satire. This biannual NZ publication has gone international and recently has been receiving very favourable media reviews. The retail price is $10.00.
Art Club Special
Throughout August, all Artist Oils, (excludes student and play quality oils) will be reduced by: -
25% for Impressions Art Club Members with Membership Card
15% for Art Club Applicants with Purchase Record Card
This offer includes Rowney Artist Oils, Winsor & Newton Artist Oils, Alkyd Fast-Drying Oils and Artisan Water-soluble Oils
Hint
Artist Tools
As a continuation from our last newsletter, I thought we might continue to look at a few more artists’ tools which you may find useful.
1. Silver Point Pencil
Silverpoint drawings have been described as elegant, delicate, and precise. They show the style of the artist more accurately than perhaps any other medium. These drawings are more wholly archival than any other; drawings from the late medieval period through the Renaissance have survived to the present without damage due to the inert and permanent nature of the materials. There is something special about the tool that encourages precision, depth, control and richness.
Silverpoint pencils enable drafting on special papers and canvas. They permit you to work out very fine lines in chalk drawing and are useful for scraffito or scratching out with oil pastels. With this pencil it is possible to finely remove colour layers.
2. Mahl Stick
A mahl stick is a short pole with a ball-shaped cushion at one end which is used as an aid in painting (particularly oil painting) to steady your hand especially when painting in detail in a large area where the paint is still wet and you want to avoid accidentally touching the surface.
To use the mahl stick, rest the ball-cushion on the edge of the canvas, on the easel or on a dry spot of the painting itself and hold the other end up with your non-painting hand. This then enables you to rest your lower arm of your brush arm to steady your hand as you paint. Hold the other end up with your non-painting hand and steady your arm holding the brush.
Exhibitions
“Salvaged” – An exhibition of drawings from the Nelson Foreshore by Ronette Pickering will be on show until 16th August at Refinery Artspace, 3 Halifax Street, Nelson.
Artist Website
A new website being set up for artists and craftspeople will go on-line in September. If you are looking to join a site to exhibit your artwork, you can make enquiries at info@jammy.co.nz .
Viv McCormick is a self-taught artist from Nelson, working mainly on glass panels. She tells us that the idea for Jammy started as a vehicle for her to sell her work online. She felt traditional ways of selling art took a substantial slice of profits, not to mention time. A number of friends expressed their wish to sell their work online too and it’s snowballed from there. Several key members of the artistic community in Nelson are onboard and Jammy extends a warm invitation to artists in other areas to join the website. Jammy is currently seeking artisans throughout New Zealand who wish to sell their work online. There is a special promotional offer of $30 for six months, available to the first 200 registered artisans who would like a cyberstall where they can list up to 30 items for sale online. Jammy can assist artists by offering them:
· A polished website worthy of presenting their work to a global market
· Affordability
· Access and control of their own individual “cyberstalls”
· Active marketing. Ongoing promotion of their work
· An online community they could be part of and be proud of
· access to shopping cart facilities and secure credit card facilities for their customers
They comment "Bringing our best creative talents together under one umbrella will bring Jammy to the attention of customers all over the world. Better still, you can get on with what you’re good at.... creating." For more details visit their information site at www.jammy.co.nz”
That concludes this update on the activities at Impressions. Thank you to all who have participated in the events of the past month and especially those who kindly voted for us in the Top Shop competition. We look forward to continuing to serve you well.
Best wishes for the month ahead,
Glenys and the Team