Michael Herron has been painting and drawing for 30 years and teaching for last 20.  At the age of 22, after studying for 5 years at both Meadowbank TAFE ’84-’85 and City Art Institute(now COFA) ’86-’88, he won The Sydney Morning Herald Travelling Art Scholarship in 1988 and – combined with the Dyson Bequest from the Art Gallery of NSW –stayed in the Mora Dyring Studio at the Cite Internationale des Artes in Paris and travelled for 2 and a half years in Asia, Europe and America.

On returning to Australia, Michael was involved in a number of solo and group show,s including a solo show at first draft in 1997, before once again travelling in Asia and Europe for 18 months.  He exhibited with the Tim Olsen Gallery 2005 -2010 where he had 4 solo exhibitions and numerous group shows.

Recently his works have been based on en plein air painting of the landscape, the sense of space and abstraction in the Flinders ranges,which has been charged with his previous focus on gardens and landscape gardening and much smaller spaces, often like Edna Walling or Capability Brown.

Michael has taught and run workshops and classes at numerous schools,community art centres and art societies and has guest lectured at COFA and TAFE.  Most recently convening a 3 tutor3 day workshop at Cockatoo Island in Sydney harbour.

Materials List:

Oil Painting Materials (NO MINERAL TURPS):

Brushes:

·        Bring a range of sizes and shaped brushes smallto large, including Flats bristle brushes - suggested sizes 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

·        Flat Nylon 1/2 and 1 inch

Oil paint colours (as a guide):

·        Titanium white

·        Lemon Yellow

·        Red middle

·        Alizarin Crimson

·        Ultramarine Blue

·        Cobalt blue hue

·        Burnt Umber

·        Yellow ochre

·        Viridian Green hue

Canvas:

·        1 or 2 x Canvas board or canvas approximately 18x 24

Miscellaneous (for Oils):

·        A palette knife

·        Odourless Solvent

·        Refined Linseed oil

·        Disposable tear off A3 palette or your ownpalette

·        Lean

·        Rags

Acrylic Painting Materials:

Brushes:

·        A range of different sized and shaped brushes

·        Flats bristle sizes 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or similar

Acrylic Colours (as a guide):

·        Titanium white

·        Lemon Yellow

·        Red middle

·        Burnt Sienna

·        Alizarin Crimson

·        Ultramarine Blue

·        Cobalt blue hue

·        Burnt Umber

·        Yellow Oxide

·        Viridian Green hue

Miscellaneous (for Acrylics):

·        Spreader or Flow Medium (any brand)

·        Drying Retarder

·        Disposable tear off A3 palette or your own palette

·        1 or 2 x Canvas board or canvas approximately 18x 24

‍PLEASE BOOK & PAY BY FRIDAY 20 JUNE 2025

Local artist Ros Gervay will take you through a joyful, hands-on workshop designed to help you loosen up,experiment, and reconnect with your creativity. You’ll begin with liberating, expressive mark making— embracing play, colour, and boldness, before being gently guided into shaping your canvas into a vibrant, intuitive abstract floral.  This workshop will be perfect for artists of all levels who are ready to try something new, trust their instincts, and enjoy the process of turning playful chaos into beautiful, expressive art.

Ros has a background in interior design and teaching has shaped how she approaches her art, blending a love of aesthetics with a deep appreciation for creativity as a way of life.  Inspired by artists like Matisse, O’Keeffe,and Tucker, her style is pure and bold, using raw brushstrokes and rich textures to celebrate our connection to nature. For Ros, art isn’t just something she creates - it’s something she lives and breathes.  Through her paintings and passion, she hopes to inspire others to fill their spaces with beauty and joy,and also embrace their creativity.

‍‍Materials List:

Surfaces:

·    2 x Medium to Large Canvases/Canvas Boards/Heavy Mixed Media Paper (taped to board) A2 or larger

   [Bring what feels good to you!]

Paints & Mediums:

·   Acrylics in a range of colours (including some you don’t normally use!)

·   (Optional) Acrylic Inks or liquid acrylics

·    Water soluble crayons, pastels or pencils – eg. Neocolor II, Derwent Inktense,etc

Extra Tip:

·    Bring a sense of curiosity and a willingness to experiment!

·    Bring some ‘unexpected’ tools from around the house  – eg. Forks, kitchen spatulas, cardboard, string.

Mark Making Tools :

·    Brushes in a range of sizes – include, at least, 1 x Large Flat Brush

·    Palette Knives or Old Gift/Credit Cards

·    Sponges, Rags, Scrapers

·    Spray Bottle

·    Anything else you’d like to play with!

Other Essentials:

·  Palette or Plate for mixing paint

·  Water Container

·  Paper Towels or old cloths

·  Apron or Old Clothes (it could get messy – in the best way!)

(Optional) Notebook or Sketchbook for ideas and notes

‍PLEASE BOOK & PAY BY FRIDAY 23 MAY 2025

Josefia is a Sydney artist whose work has been displayed in group exhibitions in Australia, Korea, Mexico,Taiwan and China.

She has been inspired by the natural surroundings in Sydney and rural landscapes found on her trips.

She is an experienced watercolour tutor and has taught classes and workshops at the Julian Ashton Art School for about 20 years, as well as at the Gallery Lane Cove and Creative Studio  for about 3  years.  Josefia  also  assisted the process of supporting the start of an art group called “Artists of Sorts”, established by the Inner West Council in 2017, at the Jimmy Little Community Centre, Lilyfield.   Josefia has conducted many workshops for different art societies.

In this workshop we will aim to simplify some of the fundamental techniques of painting with watercolour and to achieve a sense of distance using tonal values, colours and shapes and the composition.  Josefia will demonstrate step by step.  We will aim to produce 2or 3 paintings and you will be encouraged to work fast and confidently.  

Josefia will supply reference material.

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Materials List: (Bring what you have!)

Colours:

·   Alizarin Crimson (Permanent is more expensive!)

·   Prussian Blue

·   Cobalt Blue

·   French Ultramarine Blue

·   Cerulean Blue

·   Raw Sienna

·   Raw Umber

·   Burnt Sienna

·   Sepia

·   Quinacridone Gold

·   Viridian

Optional Colours:

·    Cadmium Yellow

·    Cadmium Red

·    Burnt Umber

·    Sap Green

Miscellaneous:

·   3B Pencil

·   Kneadable Rubber

·   Watercolour Palette with large mixing areas

·   2 Water Containers

·   1 Roll Toilet Paper

·   1 Old Towel

·   1 Kitchen Sponge

·   Painting Board

·   Box for propping up the board

Brushes:

NB.  Different brands have different sizes.  You need a large brush for washes, and amedium & smaller brushes for painting.

·    Squirrel Brushes – Sizes 1, 2 & 3

·    Synthetic Liner – Sizes 4 or6

Paper:

Suggested brands –Saunders-Waterford, Arches or Baohong “the Master’s Choice”.

·   A4 or a bit larger watercolour papers

·   300g watercolour paper, medium texture (cold pressed)

·   Or watercolour pad.

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