Studio Journal
Welcome to our Studio Journal, where we share creative inspiration and ideas, stories from artists past and present, and useful guides to St Ives and beyond.
St Ives Past & Present
Experience the history of the St Ives art scene through this collection of films featuring St Ives School of Painting and the importance of St Ives and Porthmeor Studios as an artists’ colony. Since 1938. A glimpse into St Ives and the St Ives School of Painting originally established here in 1938 by Leonard Fuller….
Artists & Illustrators: The Art of Keeping it Simple
As seen in… Artists and two of tutors Liz Luckwell and Marion Taylor share their insights to achieving modernist minimalism in a modern time frame. Harness the powerful abstract potential of the still life, inspired by modernist icons William Scott and Ben Nicholson. Though still resolutely abstract, these 1940s paintings had a domestic quality to…
The Sunday Times: The Art of Learning
As seen in… Is it a bird, is it a plane? Our budding Rothko, Sean Newsom, signs up for an abstract art class in St Ives. Can I remind you that this jumble of fisherman cottages and harbour walls was also – for a time – the forcing house of British abstract art? – When…
The Wall Street Journal: A Brush With St. Ives
As seen in… Anne-Marie Conway visits St Ives and joins us at the School of Painting to experience art lessons in Cornwall, in our stunning location above the beach during the quieter months. “Tape the paper down on your clipboard, you don’t want it blowing away,” advised our tutor, Liz Luckwell, as she led us out…
The Independent: Barbara Hepworth’s St Ives
As seen in… Words by Jonathan Lorie As a major exhibition of the British sculptor opened, Jonathan Lorie travelled to St Ives, the town that inspired Barbara Hepworth, to feel its draw for himself. “Are you OK to get a bit mucky?” asks the drawing teacher as he hands me a stick of charcoal on…
How to Paint a Landscape
As seen in… Landscape painting from artists’ perspective Words by Katie Avis-Riordan Three landscape artists, who also teach at St Ives School of Painting, reveal their top tips on how to paint a landscape painting for beginners. Find out how to paint landscapes using the recommended materials and techniques; and discover how to get inspired by…
The Health Benefits of Life Drawing
Life drawing has slipped in and out of vogue in recent decades, but as public attention shifts to the importance of mental health and wellbeing, it is enjoying something of a resurgence. A recent study by the BBC and Newcastle University compared memory and cognition in a group of 30 adults: they asked 10 to walk briskly, 10 to do puzzles such as crosswords and sudoku and 10 to attend life drawing classes. The experiment took place over 8 weeks, with a series of tests carried out across the volunteers at the beginning of the study and at the end. The life drawers, it turned out, showed significant improvement in memory and cognitive function following the experiment.
Restaurants & Beaches
With its rocky outcrops and golden crescents, St Ives’ peninsula is awash with beach options that rival any in the world, with world class surfing, powdery white sands, crystal water. Plus: some of the finest restaurants and cafés in Cornwall are just a stone’s throw away. Eating in St Ives Nestled in the town’s historic…
Bonnard The Revolutionary with Alice Mumford
Join Alice in our studio, as she takes her students on a gallop through the history of art, to demonstrate what a revolutionary Bonnard was. Part One Part Two Part Three
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