Urban Landscapes in Oil Pastels - fast & free with Roy Simmons

Urban Landscape in Oil Pastels  ~  fast & free with Roy Simmons ...  Beginners and intermediates.

On this course, we will be working in a fast, fun and intuitive way and will move through this exciting step by step technique to producing a really effective piece of art.

Using oil pastels we will find new ways to work, both as sketches and more finished work. We will work towards producing a painting which includes buildings. At the end of the day you will complete at least 2 paintings, one of which will be mounted. Our first step will be to review the different media we will use, these include: Charcoal, Water Soluble oil pastel, wet wipes, sennelier oil pastel, pencil and white gouache paint. That may seem like a crazy mix, but the results can be surprising! To introduce the materials, we will do a step by step painting of an imaginary still life of a pot or vase on a table. This will help us loosen up and get a feel for this way of working. Next, students will work from the supplied source photos, as I demonstrate each step in turn to make a view of cottages on a harbourside.

 After lunch, we wil paint another urban view, step by step from start to finish, using the techniques we have tried and discussed. Students will then do their version using their choice from the supplied reference photos. This way of working is superb for working outdoors ‘en plein-air’. The amount of ‘stuff’ you need is not excessive, and fits in a small bag. You can produce urban sketches with a great sense of light. Or even produce charcoal sketches with written colour notes that can be ‘worked up’ later at home

10.00am – 4.00pm
£80 Lunch included
Material Charges: £8

Dates for this course - see the table below to book:

Saturday 3rd October 2026

Please bring: Roy provides all materials including drawing boards, paints etc and instruction are provided, you will take home a mounted painting at the end of the day.  Please bring a £8 materials fee for Roy on the day. About the Artist  Always passionate about art, Roy Simmons moved to Cumbria a few years ago and soon became inspired by the wealth of land and seascapes around him. He enjoys painting in most mediums and often combines them with mixed media. As you can see from his course description, he also enjoys passing on his skills to others.