Drawing is an activity you can sink into. It’s become clear over the years I’ve been running this weekend, now in Belton, Lincolnshire, how much the people who come value some time to slow down, and be somewhere beautiful, with nothing but their art to focus on.
Drawing is a quiet, reflective practice, and drawing from observation can really connect you to a place. Belton is a place where views open up as you walk: light glitters through the rain of the fountain in the glasshouse, statues appear in a gap between the hedges, the house is glimpsed through trees, and a tower appears in the distance between long lines of lime and chestnut trees.
This year’s drawing weekend was hot, really hot -quite a contrast to last year when the rain was persistent and heavy. We chose shady spots to sit in and looked at garden buildings and the house itself, for ways of presenting space and distance.
Back in the Old School Room, one painted, another experimented with an assemblage of views; someone else made a series of small details sketched from around the place, and another produced a long strip of drawings merging into each other across the whole weekend. There was an array of interesting objects to draw from for those who wanted to stay in our base, and plenty of tasty things to eat and drinks to keep us cool through the weekend.
On this weekend we start drawing together, and then paths diverge as each of us reacts differently to the space, according to what draws our attention, what we feel like exploring, and what media we want to use.
Consider joining us next year, around the end of July, for some quiet drawing time, somewhere beautiful, in a small supportive group.
Caroline Homfray 