Loosening Up with Soft Pastels – Two Day Workshop

Dates: 16–17 May

Time: 10am–4pm

Venue: Elmslie House, Malvern

This 2-day expressive soft pastels workshop offers two days of guided tuition in a small, supportive group. Through demonstrations, practical exercises and individual feedback, you’ll be encouraged to loosen up, explore expressive mark-making and develop confidence in your own way of working. The emphasis is on enjoyment, experimentation and discovering a more expressive approach, rather than getting things ‘right’.

Soft pastels are an often underestimated medium, yet one of the oldest, offering exceptional versatility and an immediacy that is hard to match. Their intensity of colour and responsiveness make them exciting to use, whether worked dry, used wet, or combined with other media such as watercolour or acrylic. This workshop will help expand both your knowledge and enjoyment of soft pastels, opening up new possibilities for how you use them within your own practice.

I am an award-winning, Malvern-based artist with a particular passion for soft pastels, drawn to their versatility and the clarity and intensity of colour they offer. My own practice informs the workshop, and across the two days we will explore a range of techniques and approaches - from bold, energetic mark-making, effective underpaintings to more considered layering, texture and colour relationships. Alongside this, we will touch on the basics of image composition, helping you give yourself the best possible chance of using these techniques within a successful painting.

The workshop is suitable for beginners and those looking to refresh or expand their practice. Teaching is delivered in a relaxed, encouraging environment, with plenty of individual support and space to experiment.

Participants are encouraged to bring their own source material. Landscapes or seascapes work especially well, using photographs, sketchbooks or digital devices (plug sockets are available for iPads). For those who prefer to work from life, seasonal flowers will be available as an alternative source of inspiration.

Some basic limited materials will be available to support the workshop. Participants are also encouraged to work with the pastels and materials they already own, as learning to get the best from what you have is an important part of developing confidence and developing your own visual handwriting and mark-making. A suggested materials list will be provided in advance, with additional supplies entirely optional.

We will be working at easels where you may sit or stand depending on what you prefer.

The sessions take place in the beautiful historic setting of Elmslie House, Malvern. Free parking is available on the street or all day paid parking is available a few minutes walk away on Priory Road, we are 5 minutes from Great Malvern Train Station.

The Hall is accessible to wheelchairs but there are two steps up to the toilet.

What’s provided

• Easels & table

• A2 drawing boards

• Some basic materials will be available to use (charcoal, basic pastels, paper samples for you to try) but please bring what you like to use – a suggested but optional materials list will be published in February.

• Tea, coffee & biscuits! Please bring your own lunch.

Booking is essential. The cost is £160

(Payment is by card via my website -for those who like to split payments Paypal and Klarna -offering interest free options- are available)

Please arrive 9.45am for a 10am start. No refunds are given but if you need to cancel, Gemma will make every endeavour to fill your place and if successful in doing so then a full refund will be issued.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with any questions on info@gemmagriffiths.com (please don’t contact the venue!).

Elmslie House, Great Malvern is a privately owned Grade II listed Victorian villa with a long association with the arts. As well as hosting exhibitions and creative events today, it has historical links to notable artists including Dame Laura Knight RA, who is recorded as having painted a portrait of George Bernard Shaw in the hall where our workshop will take place.

Elmslie House, 8 Avenue Rd, Malvern WR14 3AG (the Hall is the first door on the left as you come down the drive)

To book, click ‘BOOK NOW’ then go to the ‘shopping bag’ icon at the top menu bar to check out (normally found in the top right hand corner).

Particpants must be over 18. If in the unlikely event of the course being cancelled by the organiser, you will receive a full refund.