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Playper!
Cutting and Tearing with artist Lisa Takahashi In this new series of sessions, artist Lisa Takahashi invited group members to playfully explore the creative potential of paper, revealing the expressive range of this everyday material. We began with rhythmic folding and cutting to create a small booklet-style zine for collecting…
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Introducing Lisa Takahashi
Artist, printmaker and educator Lisa Takahashi invites you to join us in the Online Art Group over the winter months for PlayPer! – an exploration into the creative potential of the simplest of material: paper. Through cutting, tearing, folding, and layering, we’ll discover the surprising expressive range of this everyday…
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Everyday moments, Celebratory messes
We are wrapping up the final two, brilliant, Express & Illustrate sessions with the wonderful Jess Knights! Hosting my Express & Illustrate sessions on the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group over the summer and autumn months this year has been so rewarding and fun! I loved how the change…
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Online Art Group Film
Over the last few months we’ve been busy making plans to help protect the future of our beloved Online Art Group. To help us shout about the importance of this group and the space it creates for everyone who takes part, we’re proud to launch our new short film and…
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Energy, Seasons & Self
Over in the Online Art group we’ve been continuing with the brilliant Express & Illustrate sessions with artist Jess Knights. We’ve been invited to slow down, connect to movement and the seasons, and respond with mark making, texture and collage. Movement & Rhythm Reflecting on an activity we love –…
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Express & Illustrate
We’re excited to share what we have been doing at the first two Express & Illustrate sessions with the wonderful Jess Knights! Session one, If You Were a Plant, began with Jess leading a much needed moment of mindfulness, taking a few breaths and settling into our bodies. This led…
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Collage and Coffee
For his last two sessions with the Online Art Group, Gary Mills kept things fun and accessible, building on the playful mark-making and image-making techniques we’ve explored together so far. Living near the coast, a lot of Gary’s own artistic practice is influenced by nature. Across all four sessions, he’s…
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Welcome to Jess Knights
We’re excited to introduce illustrator Jess Knights as our new Online Art Group artist! Over Jess’s seven forthcoming sessions, participants will be guided through relaxed, playful drawing and illustration activities. The ‘Express and Illustrate’ workshops will start with a short warm-up (sometimes mindful and reflective) to help ease us into…
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Shapes in Nature
We are delighted to welcome artist Gary Mills back to the Online Art Group! For the first two sessions we’ve been experimenting with the idea of doodling – how this can help unlock those creative blocks we all have from time to time, and how to reconnect to accessible, mindful…
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Line, tone and shadow
For our final two experimental at-home printmaking sessions with Gemma Dunnell over in the Online Art Group, we pared things back to really hone in on accessible new ways of capturing and making line, tone and shadow. We began by trying wipe-away mono printing. A fun and loose method that…
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Creative Joy with Gary Mills *new sessions*
Hello everyone, I’m so pleased to be returning to the Online Art Group once again, inspiring you all from mid May and through into July! Since I was last with you, I have been busy in my art studio continuing to teach creative skills and workshops, but also, more importantly…
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At-home Printmaking
Spring has sprung, and with the sunshine pouring in through our windows we’ve been starting a new adventure over in the Online Art group with artist Gemma Dunnell. At-home printmaking can often seem daunting or unachievable, but with her wonderful sense of joyful play, Gemma has been introducing us to…
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Prompt Pots, Cabinets of Curiosity and *new* Printmaking Sessions coming soon!
We all know that sinking feeling as you stare at a blank white page with no idea where to start or what to draw… Well, over in the Online Art Group the brilliant Gemma Dunnell decided to tackle this age old problem head on, arming us with a brand new…
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January Journaling
For our first Online Art Group session of 2025, artist Gemma Dunnell helped us to break through the January haze with the joyful practice of creative journaling. We worked together to create spreads in our handmade sketchbooks inspired by experiences, trips, or even just a walk we have been on.…
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A Happy New Year with grant funding for 2025
SAW’s Online Art Group is close to all our hearts and we are delighted to announce that thanks to new grant funding from Somerset Community Foundation, we look forward to sharing another year of exciting, online, artist-led workshops with you! In 2020, in response to the pandemic, SAW developed an…
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Line and Colour
We’ve been having a brilliant time over in the Online Art Group playing with line and colour in Gemma Dunnell’s sketchbooking sessions. We had to leave all our expectations and inhibitions at the door as Gemma walked us through the idea of blind and continuous line drawings. Using a series…
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Winter Sketchbooking
We’ve begun our wonderful winter sketchbooking adventure with the brilliant Gemma Dunnell over in the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group. Starting from scratch, we began carefully and methodically creating our own books, all completely unique depending on our choices of paper and size, finished off with some simple binding…
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Welcome to our new artist Gemma Dunnell
We’re so excited to introduce you all to the next artist joining us over in the SAW Online Art Group – Gemma Dunnell! Gemma is an illustrator, writer, and creative interested in nature, folklore, and fungi. She will be accompanying us through the oftentimes dark and challenging winter period with…
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Changing seasons and thank you to Gary
After six brilliant sessions over the past three months, it’s sadly time to bid farewell to brilliant returning Online Art Group facilitating artist, Gary Mills. The past six weeks have been a beautiful introduction not only into new, practical textile techniques, but also to the relaxing and meditative benefits of…
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Celebrating Creativity on World Mental Health Day
The 10th October 2024 is World Mental Health Day and we invite you to take a moment to celebrate the transformative power of creativity! We began the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group back in early 2022. In the wake of the pandemic we became acutely aware of how a truly…
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Spinning a Yarn
As part of Somerset Art Works’ ongoing project Spinning a Yarn which explores the rich heritage of Wool within Somerset, artist Gary Mills has treated members of the Online Art Group to two very special sessions introducing us to the wonderful world of felting. Using nature once again as our…
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A Summer welcome to Gary Mills
We’re absolutely thrilled to welcome Gary Mills back to the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group to take us through August and on into the autumn. Gary will be with us for three months, with six exciting new sessions all based around textile art. In August the sessions will also be…
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Page and Pigment
Through July we have continued our journey of natural textures, pigments, land and seascapes at the SAW Online Art Group. After spending our first sessions becoming familiar with new materials and techniques, recent sessions with artist Sally Wetherall have really encouraged us to combine and translate these onto larger scale sheets to…
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Texture and Technique
We have been immersed in an exciting world of texture and technique in the Online Art Group during our first two sessions with artist Sally Wetherall. From making our own egg tempura, to resist, relief and collagraph printing, building new surfaces and compositions, with layering and mark making techniques peppered…
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Welcome to artist Sally Wetherall
We’re delighted to introduce the next artist to take the helm over in the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group – Sally Wetherall will be guiding our sessions throughout June and July! Sally works in ceramic, print and photographic practices to record, gather and decipher the processes that form landscape.…
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Near and Far
For our final two sessions with the brilliant Alison Jacobs, our attention was turned to an array of iconic scenes. Starting closer to home with views of the Glastonbury Tor, we began by understanding how to capture and render the landscape in simple pen and wash before moving onto a…
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Window to Horizon
“It’s amazing how the colour can change in a scene from hour to hour, day to day or season to season.” We’ve been on a journey through our windows and out towards the horizon in our first few sessions with new Online Art Group artist Alison Jacobs. We cant always…
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Online Art Group Case Study
Thank you to Sara Dudman for compiling this Somerset Art Works – Online Art Group case study. ‘I don’t think I can fully vocalise just how invaluable the Online Art Group has been for me. It has helped keep me afloat both creatively and on a mental health level. I…
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Welcome to our New Artist Alison Jacobs
We are pleased to introduce Alison Jacobs who will be leading Online Art Group sessions in April and May. Painting and Drawing Landscape with Alison Jacobs – appreciating the outside world from the comfort of your home. In all four sessions Alison will demonstrate in a variety of paints: watercolour,…
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Turn of the Seasons
As the seasons fully begin to turn, and we leave winter behind, we have also sadly reached the end of our most recent bank of sessions with Sara Dudman. Thank you Sara for the joy and inspiration of your sessions over the last 3 months! Also a reminder that if any…
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New ways of observing: Snowdrops and Camellias
We’ve really been basking in those first few glimpses of spring in the Online Art Group over the past month with Sara Dudman. We turned our attention to the powerhouses of this inter-seasonal time – the Snowdrops. Honing skills and techniques built up over the past few weeks and experimenting…
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Creative playtime with Cyclamens and Hellebores
We’re delighted to once again welcome Sara Dudman back to the Online Art Group for a new batch of sessions to guide us into Spring 2024. Sara’s sessions often have a seasonal twist to help keep us connected to nature and this time we’re finding joy and beauty in winter…
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Goodbye to Gary (for now…)
The final week of 2023 brought our final session with the brilliant Gary Mills, who’s been with us since October. Throughout the series, Gary has skilfully introduced us to the foundations of layering, mark-making, and surface decoration techniques. His approach encourages us to approach the blank page with confidence, transforming…
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Sara Dudman returns in January!
We welcome artist Sara Dudman back to lead the SAW Online Art Group in the New Year with ‘Signs of Spring’ – a series of online painting sessions focusing on making studies of winter flowers as we gently wander into spring. Spotting the first snowdrops in the middle of winter,…
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Scrolls and Journals
Through November at the Online Art Group, we’ve been delving into the construction of our own art materials with artist Gary Mills. We began with the process of creating a liner journal or ‘art scroll’; piecing together intentionally chosen materials through layering and stitch, and further working into this with…
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Colours and textures of Autumn
The beginning of October brought with it our exciting first few sessions with new artist Gary Mills over in the Somerset Art Works – Online Art Group. All of Gary’s sessions are loosely themed around sketchbook and journal working – how to make that fun, accessible and how to build a…
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Welcome to Gary Mills
Gary Mills will be our lead artist for the Somerset Art Works Online Art Group from October to December 2023, watch his welcome hello here! First and third Wednesdays 6.30 – 7.30pm Facebook LivePlus recordings to revisit at any time via the Facebook group page Sessions with artist Gary Mills:October…
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Thank you to Sara… until 2024
For our final two sessions with the wonderful Sara Dudman we celebrated the last moments of summer with some beautiful Blooms and Berries! We began with exploring negative and positive spaces and shapes around cheerful Marguerites, along with different colour choices and layering techniques to enhance and contrast. We then…
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Herbs, vines and beans
We’ve been basking in all things green over in the Online Art Group, in our produce-based sessions with Sara Dudman. First up was the wonderful twists and turns of runner beans on the vine. Combining the use of drawing, acrylic paints, and a bit of frottage, we made bold and…
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Bountiful Produce
We’ve continued to embrace beautiful summer produce as our inspiration to explore more advanced mark marking techniques and materials over in the Online Art Group with Sara Dudman. We transported ourselves to idyllic Mediterranean islands to kick of July with the sumptuous shapes and tones of fresh Greek Salads, building…
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Summery Goodness
After our short break we plunged back into summery goodness, making the most of this glorious weather we’re having and the ultimate British summertime treat – Strawberries and Cream! These beautiful and bountiful fruits provided such great inspiration as artist Sara Dudman walked us through new techniques to make the…
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Fungi Creations
We’re having a short break at the Online Art Group during May before Sara Dudman returns to regular sessions in June. At our last workshop we spent a brilliant evening making mixed media paintings focussing on expressing the form, texture, colours and domed shapes of some lovely little mushrooms. We…
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Curvaceous Walnuts & Doughy Hot Cross Buns
Our journey exploring mark making through seasonal produce has continued over at the Online Art Group through the beautiful shapes and tones of Walnuts and juicy Hot Cross Buns! Following on from our experiments with intricate Kale leaves, artist Sara Dudman guided us through frottage, collage and layering techniques to…
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Curly Kale Frottage and the Humble Potato
We’ve been having a delicious time in the Online Art Group with artist Sara Dudman. Ahead of each session Sara has been sharing seasonal produce as a starting point for exploring exciting new mark making techniques. So far we’ve been experimenting with hand cut frottage, ways of seeing and drawing,…
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‘You Are What You Paint…..or…..You Paint What You Are’’
Welcome back to Sara Dudman who will be leading the SAW Online Art Group as we move through 2023! And of course a big thank you to Simon Ripley for the last 6 months of inspiring printmaking workshops. “The subject / theme for this new series of 12 experimental online…
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Final Printmaking Sessions with Simon Ripley
We will miss Simon’s wonderful printmaking sessions for the Online Art Group, final workshops on 18th Jan and 1st February. Thank you Simon for sharing a wealth of inspiration, skills, tips and techniques with us! ”My penultimate workshop will explore a fun but basic approach to lithography – the most…
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Collagraph and Intaglio
Over the past month we’ve been deep-diving into lots of different printmaking techniques with artist Simon Ripley. Simon’s been great at introducing techniques that might normally require specialist equipment or access to a print studio, but in a really fun and accessible way so that we can all experiment with…
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September Printmaking
The Online Art Group’s new sessions with printmaker Simon Ripley kicked off in September – beginning with a lovely, informal, introductory session where Simon talked us through the many variations of printmaking. He showed examples of the effects that can be produced, as well as giving hints and tips for…
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Online Art Group – Welcome Simon Ripley
Simon Ripley will be joining us from 7th September (new date) to begin our new series of online workshops with a focus on Printmaking. Here’s a short video from Simon to give you an idea of what you can expect from these exciting upcoming sessions. Simon is an Artist, Printmaker…
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Not being ‘precious’
Through May and June our sessions with Sara we have been investigating different ways of drawing and seeing; using a viewfinder to help with composition and translating small subject matter into larger and braver pieces of work. Our inspiration has been the beautiful Spring and Summer flora that is so…
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Composition, Shape and Colour
“These sessions breathe life into my creativity” Moving on from a focus on colour, we’ve been exploring composition, balance and shapes (both positive and negative) to create paintings of things we can see. Developing some of the techniques for mixing and understanding colours, we’ve been learning and becoming braver and…
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World of Colour
Sara Dudman introduced the Online Art Group to colour and colour relationships in our recent sessions. What colours complement? What colours make others pop and which pull colours back? We experimented through layering acrylic paints and collage, through a process of trial and error to determine what we each individually…
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Warming up with Line
In February 2022 Somerset Art Works launched a brand new Online Art Group for Health and Wellbeing. Thirty people have joined to take part in twice monthly online classes with artist Sara Dudman – an opportunity to access some much needed creative time for themselves, in a way that suits…
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New Online Art Group Starting February 2022
Join us twice a month for Online Artist Led Workshops with Sara Dudman – for Health and Wellbeing. From 2nd February 2022 and running throughout the year.First and third Wednesdays, 6.30 – 7.30pm.Recordings provided – take part at a time that suits you!For Somerset residents – free places available. Contact…
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NEW Online Art Group Starting Early 2022
Artist Led Workshops For Health and WellbeingJoin us twice a month for online art workshops, starting January 2022For Somerset residents – free places available Contact us for more information, dates and bookingsadmin@somersetartworks.org.uk Further details coming soon
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Artist-led support for Wellbeing groups around Somerset
Note: This offer is no longer available In 2020 Somerset Art Works offered specialist, FREE artist-led advice and resources to wellbeing groups around the county – to encourage and support creative activity for health and wellbeing. We welcomed enquiries from wellbeing group leaders/ volunteers who wanted to increase their confidence…
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Working with Wax Resist
We made some wax resist drawings based on work by Swiss artist Paul Klee. Klee used geometric shapes to simplify and abstract from nature making cityscapes and portraits in vivid colours where the shapes blend one into another. We used oil pastels on rough surfaced watercolour paper to block out…
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Oil Pastel Prints – Allium and Waterlillies
“Like meditation, being absorbed in creative practice can help us to be in the present moment, and can help to free our minds from our worries, anxieties and stresses of our lives. Looking and really observing things around us and noticing things that inspire us brings our focus outside of…
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Quiet Places for Unquiet Minds – Working in Isolation
Paul Newman from Somerset Art Works recently caught up with artist printmaker Simon Ripley about the Quiet Places for Unquiet Minds project. Over a phone call, Simon began by telling Paul how he has had to adapt his approach to working with groups, using live online workshop delivery and individual…
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Taking a line for a walk
This is a drawing I did in my garden. There are lots of plants from last year which have died and I ought to cut them back, but I love the contrast of the colours and structures against the new green Spring leaves that are coming up. The Artist Paul…
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A Somerset Art Works Wellbeing Project 