Dates for your diary: 
Turps Intensive Summer Exhibition, Taplow House, Thurlow Street, London, SE17 2UQ
Preview: Friday, 11 September, 6 -9pm
Saturday & Sunday, 12 & 13 September: 12 - 5pm

I was overjoyed to be selected to take part in the Turps Banana Summer Intensive this year. 
This is a unique program run by professional artists for professional artists. And it certainly is intensive!

There are 17 of us, from all corners of the globe: from India, Chile, Australia, Oman, Dubai, China, Ireland, Scotland, Malta, Sweden, London...and Arisdorf. 

The ice cream van calls at the studio...

Together we paint, go through the excitment of a group crit, visit galleries and even experience an eclipse of the sun! 

So far we have had 1 to 1 mentoring from our personal mentor, mine is Katrina Blaninn, a successful artist in her own right, who found my work exciting and was reminded of Paula Rego's early work - she even interviewed Paula as part of her MA. 

Buying some art materials

We have had guest tutors, who give a presentation about thier practice in the morning, then work thier way through each of us, givng insightful and thoughtful feedback to our work. So far we have spoken to Grant Forster and Ansel Krut. 

Workshop on Josef Albers' colour theory

We have survived the group crit: where we have 20 minutes to give feedback to each artist and then 10 minutes to say what we thought about the feedback we were given.  We were divided into two groups,  the session was lead by Scott McCracken and Karolina Albricht, both practicing artists. 

My studio space...still empty and "new"

We will go on group gallery visits with our mentors and at the end there is a group exhibition in the Turps Banana Galleries in Taplow House, near Elephant & Castle. 

I've been wallowing in the  wonderfully large walls I have to paint on - making work around 2.30m x 1.40m in size - not possible at present in my studio in Arisdorf. I'm now wondering how I could do this at home! However, my work has to be rollable, as storage and transport is always an issue. Thanks to a talk given by Jon the proprieter of Fitzpatrick Art I now know how to roll my canvases so the paint doesn't crack, which mediums to use and so on. We will visit his shop and learn how to mix our own pigments too. 

I feel this course will have moved me irrevocably deeply  into the field of professional artist - I already had the theoretical background thanks to my 10 years study of art philosophy, now I also have a breadth and depth of knowledge about different art practices. 

Taplow House where Turps is located

I am extremely grateful that I have been able to raise the funds, through exhibitions, commissions and teaching art and the kind support of my husband who covered my room rental costs, to live in London for 8 weeks. Thank you to every one who has supported my journey by buying work, commissioning work, taking part in my art classes or just generally giving your generous support. Without you all I could not have done this. 

There will be an interview published in the Volksstimme newspaper about my London art experience soon.