WEA courses

This Art for ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) course is a 5-week watercolour painting course for anyone wanting to learn or improve their painting skills. You will learn how to draw and paint within a group of like-minded people. Guidance and support are offered throughout the course from our talented tutor, to develop your artistic skills. You will also have the opportunity to connect with and support others in a friendly classroom environment and improve your English conversational skills. No previous skills in watercolours are needed to join this group.

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of practical drawing and painting techniques with a specific focus on still life compositions. Through a series of hands-on exercises and projects, students will develop their artistic skills and gain a deeper understanding of the principles and elements of art. In a supportive and collaborative environment, participants will learn to observe and capture the essence of still life objects using various drawing and painting mediums. Through a combination of demonstrations, discussions, and individualized feedback, students will refine their abilities to render form, texture, and light with accuracy and sensitivity.

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of practical drawing and painting techniques with a specific focus on still life compositions. Through a series of hands-on exercises and projects, students will develop their artistic skills and gain a deeper understanding of the principles and elements of art. In a supportive and collaborative environment, participants will learn to observe and capture the essence of still life objects using various drawing and painting mediums. Through a combination of demonstrations, discussions, and individualized feedback, students will refine their abilities to render form, texture, and light with accuracy and sensitivity.

This 6 session course will offer learners the opportunity to practise and learn more about using watercolour as a medium through different tasks and projects. You will be working from imagery of flowers, trees and other organic objects to inspire you and will cover use of specific essential techniques such as wet on wet, lost and found edges and tips on how to work from light to dark. Sharing work, feedback and group discussion will be an essential component for this course. Suitable for beginners and those with experience. Materials list will be available on canvas prior to course.

Discover the beauty of botanical art with our Art Practical: Botanical Illustration course. Learn techniques for accurately depicting plants and flowers in your artwork. Ideal for artists and nature enthusiasts looking to refine their illustration skills.

This course will help you develop further watercolour techniques interrelated with drawing skills, and in connection with inspiring examples in art history. It will help you learn classical techniques in a subtle way, by relating them to examples by various masters of drawing and watercolour and contemporary artists. If you would like to have a fresh view of watercolour painting and drawing, and learn how to achieve expressivity by carefully combining techniques such as glazing, graded wash or cross-hatching, this course will offer you an overview and will inspire personal artworks of great subtlety and sensitivity It will also encourage you to create your own original artworks based on the techniques learned and it will bring a fresh perspective on known techniques and styles, if you have already practised them in your own paintings. You will need to bring your own materials, paints and paper along for this course. The tutor will let you know what to bring

This 5-week course delves into the works of five local artists, featuring James Dodds; Aline Gowen; Ian Hay; Wyndham Lloyd; and Michael Middleton. Each week explores key art concepts including, colour and composition through samples of their work. You will engage in group discussions, take notes, and recall information. By the end of the course, you will be able to notice significant local artists, describe their artistic methods, spot similarities and differences among local artists, deconstruct essential components of artworks, and select a preferred piece based on personal opinion.

Have you ever wondered how to look at a painting? This session will give you some keys to develop your understanding and appreciation of paintings. Learning the ‘Language of Looking’, you will be guided as to how to articulate an appreciation of art and to communicate your thoughts effectively to describe paintings. We will mainly study the technical and visual aspects of a painting: What is a painting made of? And how to look at its scale, format, colours, lines and texture? Also we will look at the cultural context of the setting of a picture to appreciate its visual meaning. This is quite literally an “eye-opener”, and should make your next visits to art galleries even more enjoyable!

Explore the art of animal painting with our Art Practical: Learn to Paint Animals course. Learn techniques for capturing the beauty and character of animals in your artwork. Ideal for artists of all levels interested in animal portraiture.

Explore the art of animal painting with our Art Practical: Learn to Paint Animals course. Learn techniques for capturing the beauty and character of animals in your artwork. Ideal for artists of all levels interested in animal portraiture.