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Wyre Council have invited me to make a series of artworks as temporary installations along the Lancashire Canal at Garstang.

The pieces will resemble waymarkers/scarecrows and represent aspects of the canal's 200 year history.

The work is called "Stangs" after the town's name which originally meant pole or boundary marker and will link directly to the canal's bicentenary and the town's scarecrow festival.

Free public workshops will take place at Garstang Library in June.  If you would like to join in - no art experience needed - please message me.

The sessions will take place...

Friday 21 June:  10 - 1pm & 2 - 5pm

Saturday 29 June:  10 - 1pm & 2 - 5pm

Places are limited and are on a first come first served basis.

Children must be accompanied by an adult who is also taking part. 

The Stangs will be sited between Kepple Lane, Bridge 62 and Bridge House Marina, Bridge 64.  They will be in place over the weekend of the 6 & 7 July.

  

willow charcoal, cheap hard erasers & a blanket

Working on A3 paper fastened by masking tape to a board, we explored the properties of willow charcoal.  This form of charcoal is quite soft compared to compressed charcoal which makes it relatively easy to push around the paper using kitchen towel.

Highlights and lighter areas were brought out by drawing into the charcoal marks and smudges with cheap, hard erasers.  

These processes - redrawing, moving around and drawing in highlights/lighter areas - were repeated until we ran out of time or finished!

The lovely work follows.

Well done everyone! 

Derrick

Monica

Dorothy

Christine & demo

Stuart

Bluebells in Biro

The same principals apply whether you're working with pencil, charcoal or ballpoint pen.  

"Don't give too much away at the start."  

This enables more accurate marks, which naturally develop as the drawing progresses, to dominate or push back the first.

Colour was added towards the end of the drawings. 

   

Very well done everyone!

Stuart

Monica

Derrick 1, 2 & 3

Christine (demo page)