What our Students Say
Be inspired – hear straight from our students about their creative experiences at
St Ives School of Painting.
After every course we ask students for their feedback and if we are not getting it right we take action. We are consistently rated as good or excellent by 99% of our students each year with nearly 70% being recommendations or repeat visitors. Have a browse of some their comments.
Adrian Holmes has an efficient but friendly and approachable personality, very encouraging.
Japanese Woodblock Printing (4)
Alice is an inspirational teacher. She gave us solid practical advice, and a good demonstration. She was encouraging and although my painting must have been the worst she did not make me feel despondent – quite the opposite! I like the smallish group and the amazing space to work in.
After Matisse
26/02/2018
The course was very well organised, Kitty was very experienced and enthusiastic. The experimental side was fantastic. Thank you!
Abstracting Nature
I cannot believe how much I have learnt on this course. Watercolours are so versatile and I cant wait to explore this further. Thank you so much Hilary!
Beginners Watercolour
18/02/2019
Greg was very generous with his time and knowledge…Best experience for a long time
Beginners Oil Painting
2019
The academic underpinning and contextualisation added to the fantastic facilitation of technique learning and application. All elements of the learning experience where full and well supported.
Magical Landscapes
I’m glad I came, the course was challenging and fun and the facilities were great.
Contemporary Landscape
19/10/2020
I enjoyed the pace and range of materials that Kitty covered. The course has given me lots of ideas and things to think about over the next few weeks. We were lucky enough to see Kitty’s piece in the exhibition at the Penzance Exchange, and it helped understand her thinking. The studio was really well organised – lovely to be able to have coffee and biscuits too!
Abstracting Nature
“Your online course was one of the big benefits in the lockdown, Martha is a excellent and clear teacher.”
I want to just say how much I’ve enjoyed this course! Liz has made it so interesting and inspiring. I’ll be signing up for her upcoming online course!
Ways of Abstracting
4/2/21
The resources and the space to work in were excellent. The tutoring was wonderfully inspiring and supportive. I felt encouraged and supported all through and learnt new things.
Discover Painting
Great course – covered all the basic elements and techniques and gave me the confidence to experiment and develop going forward.
Beginners Watercolour
18/02/2019
Andrew was excellent, lots of personal attention and great tips.
St Ives In Oils
Greg focused on making sure, as beginners, we had the understanding and confidence with oils.
Beginners Oil Painting
2019
Transformative in terms of artistic process.
Abstracting Nature
Amy is a wonderful tutor. Very patient and helpful to all students, no matter their skill level or experience. I so appreciate her sharing her skills and talent with us… I’ve learned so much!
I learnt a huge amount in three days. The studio was a fantastic physical environment Excellent teaching and support.
Sea and Rocks
Maxine created a relaxed and welcoming experience for all students of all experience level. I came away feeling ready to experiment and expand the skills learnt without fear.
Gestural Landscapes
It was really interesting to see how Gary linked his preliminary sketches with painting. I feel I have learned a lot and look forward to ‘attending’ more demonstrations.
From Sketch to Painting – Portraiture
17.10.2020
I have attended classes in watercolour painting before and not many of them were as instructive as this one. The teacher was very friendly, he made sure we made progress, and he was full of little hints and ideas on how to improve each individual painting. We spent delightful mornings sketching St Ives and then moved to the studio to turn the sketches into watercolour paintings. The studio was spacious, brightly lit by daylight, and fitted with everything we needed. We were supplied with all the materials and were allowed to keep the sketchbook. Friendly staff members cared for coffee and tea and requests of material. Our small group was very delightful and thanks to our teacher all our individual levels of skills and knowledge were merged into one instructive and yet easy and friendly weekend.
The Maritime Artist
I think the webinar series are brilliant! I have seen them all. A big thank you to you and all the people involved with these innovative ways of generating courses. They’ve been a lifeline during these difficult times.
Thursday Life Live – Inspired by Egon Schiele
I thought I knew how to draw but during the three-day course I discovered new approaches to the use of pencil and charcoal!
Love Drawing Landscape
Inspiring instructors… Ilker Cinarel and Camilla Dixon made for a brilliant week of individual creativity and group discussions that went beyond art into emotions.
Artists’ Retreat Week
Exceeded expectations! Venue, location, beautiful materials were all just right. Small friendly group of students and a tutor who inspired and really knew her subject and how to deliver and encourage us. I will be checking out your online courses because I live overseas.
Barbara Hepworth’s Garden
