I am really looking forward to teaching some wild ink on 23rd November when I run the inaugural workshop at my new riverside studio by Hampton Court. All those over 16 are welcome, (and children over 12 yrs old may attend if accompanied by an adult). All materials, refreshments and equipment are provided. Details below, call or get in touch via the contact form to enquire or book. 5 places only.
It’s been a busy couple of months, with Wild Twins 2 full of sunshine and wild art in West Cork. Thanks to all who came and made it such a wonderful week. Photos and a write up on the website soon…
Next week my work illustrating Andreas Kornevall’s writing about Norse myth will be featuring in The Clearing, an online magazine from publisher Little Toller, I will put the link in my news section as soon as it is live. My latest article for Dark Mountain is here. It details my time under the trunk of a great fallen oak tree last autumn, and how returning to earth periodically keeps me sane and hale.
My work will feature shortly in print and online in Earth Island Journal, and at Wild Pigment Project online, and I will post snippets here as soon as they are finished. There are many projects awaiting the right time to announce, including an artist residency in a city farm, a possible illustrated book with a great author, and some collaborations. For now, it’s back to work for me, as I am off to the woods tomorrow to make buckskin and moccasins again, in the embrace of the wild wood.
There will be monthly classes in all the techniques and disciplines which teach, and I am looking forward to launching those over the summer, and taking bookings for September. These will be small classes of up to 6 people, held at my home on The Thames. Do get in touch if you are interested in wild pigments, birch bark boxes, hand made watercolours, colour theory, drawing, painting and so much more. Updates and pictures post daily on my Instagram account, @foundandground
Best wishes from the river.
Caro.
The Wild Twins course I run in Ireland in early May with writer Paul Kingsnorth has one more bursary place, as a student had to drop out, and the non-refundable deposit means we can reduce the price for someone on lower means, it is 699 Euros rather than 950 Euros. All the details are here. If you or a friend you know would like to come, get in touch. Please feel free to pass this info on.
The venue Sherkin Island North Shore is amazing… Great food, wonderful hosts, wild Atlantic beauty.
I will be teaching short courses on natural materials over the coming winter and into the spring. These will teach you how to make oak gall ink, quills, brushes and tools from feathers and sticks, natural watercolours, gouache, distemper, glair an tempera paints, how to source and grind natural pigments, how to sew books to paint in, and so much more. I also aim to offer classes on birch and ash bark box making (great for storing those natural materials and tools), charcoal making for drawing, natural cordage making, pouch and bag making with buckskin, and how to paint on buckskin to decorate it. Alongside these ancient skills, I also offer life drawing tuition, colour theory classes and bespoke art sessions for young and old, details to follow soon. Get in touch if you are interested. Classes will take place on The River Thames, near Hampton Court. There is nearby free parking, and great local public transport.
I’ll be teaching life drawing at the great art club at Café Canela @Canelacafeartclub in Hampton Court, starting this month on 20th October 2018. Come along for drinks, cake, a great model and tuition from me to get you drawing, cost £12. No experience is necessary, just bring a drawing pad and something to draw with. We will have exercises to get started followed by some longer poses. As soon as I get on Instagram I will link there, I know I am late to the party but I tend to live life in the real world rather than online, so bear with me. For now, have a look here. Contact canelacafeevents@gmail.com to come along.
3 minute drawing, warm up.
Thanks to all who came and made this course so great. There’ll be much more on this website soon, but for now here’s a few pictures. Paul’s Wyrd School is launched, and Wild Twins was everything we’d hoped for and more, as the folks who attended brought so much expertise, enthusiasm and openness. Paul brought his wild writing, and I brought a very large bag of rocks and feathers… and we worked all week in a light-filled room 12 feet from the edge of the ocean, pulling apart our old notions, listening to the land and water speak, watching the sea otters watch us back, and responding freshly with our materials of earth.
Go to Paulkingsnorth.net/course for more details, price and venue. We’ll be out in nature and waist deep in story, myth, beauty and radical connection to the land. Artists will respond to writers and vice versa. Image and text will re-join as they should, twins who are too often split apart in the world of adult books. This course will suit any one who writes, paints or draws, at what ever level, who sincerely wants to reconnect to land, wild nature (inner and outer) and to the deep red thread of story in their work.
Welcome to the blog. This will be updated often with the natural materials, news and workshops being made here on the river, and on my travels.
In Spring and Autumn 2017 I taught on Fire and Shadow, an eight month long Dark Mountain course. We made archaic materials out in the wild, and took as much time in making them around the camp fire as using them. I have put great pictures and more info on the Workshops page.
