Sketching at Norton Conyers

Sketching trip to Norton Conyers, north of Ripon > nortonconyers.org.uk

It is a late Medieval Manor House with Stuart and Georgian additions. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086 and has been in the Graham family since 1624. In 1839 Charlotte Bronte visited the house and, hearing the legend of the mad woman in the attic, used it in her story of Jane Eyre. There is a large walled garden with a central orangery and there is the addition of a new exhibition of vintage garden tools.

 

 
 

It was a mainly dull and cold day, however the rain held off and the walled garden and orangery kept the wind in check. The garden was blooming and kept in good shape by the friendly gardeners.

The members were productive with pencil, ink and paint. Most sketches were unfinished, some were preliminary to paintings.

              

 

Katharine Holmes – Malhamdale Artist

Katharine Holmes gave an illustrated talk on her painting career. Her main interest is in painting the landscape around her home in Malhamdale and the Dales.

She brought the following landscape paintings of the dales.

Spring on Boss Moor looking towards Winterburn, acrylic on board
Spring on Boss Moor looking towards Hetton and Rhylstone Fell
May, Little Fryup Dale, Acrylic on board

Katharine showed a video, assisted by Gordon, of her painting a landscape of Gordale in situ on the grass. She used a large sheet of Saunders Waterford 300lb cotton paper, 1.5 metre by about 2 metre. This involved pouring wet washes across the paper, painting with large brushes, embedding river gravel in acrylic medium and overlaying paper strips etc.

Gordale painting
Detail of Gordale painting

This can be viewed on her website at > www.katharineholmes.co.uk/light_on_land.html

Katharine showed us many images of her paintings, aided by Gordon, including views of Gordale Scar as follows.

Katharine has exhibited at Leeds University including this wall of sketches

Katharine let us browse through her sketching books. She often uses Daler Rowney FW acrylic ink, sometimes painting with the droppers.


Katharine’s showed many images of paintings by her grandmother, Constance Pearson and mother, Phillipa Holmes. Some will feature in her exhibition “Grandmother’s Footsteps” due to run in the Mercer Gallery from 16th September 2017.






More of her work can be viewed at > www.katharineholmes.co.uk/