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Leaf Study Moving to Abstraction Workshop (Age 8+) – October Half Term
Leaf Study Moving to Abstraction Workshop with Lucy. Get into the autumnal spirit with this drawing workshop for young artists aged 8+!
We’ll begin with a few warm-up exercises to loosen up our hands, sharpen our focus and get our creative minds working. We’ll then take inspiration from the beautiful shapes, patterns, textures and colours found in autumn leaves, using them as the starting point for our drawings.
Lucy will guide participants step-by-step through creating an observational leaf study, using a range of dry media including pencils and chalks to develop detail, texture and tonal contrast. Once they’ve created a realistic study, we’ll take things a step further and explore how to transform their observations into expressive abstract compositions.
Lucy will introduce a variety of techniques for simplifying, transforming and rearranging shapes, patterns and textures. Young artists can use their own leaf studies as inspiration or work from photographs of leaves to create their abstract compositions.
This workshop is designed to develop technical drawing and observational skills while encouraging young artists to experiment with creative abstraction. It’s perfect for anyone who wants to improve their drawing, explore new dry-media techniques and discover how inspiration from the natural world can be transformed into imaginative artwork.
Lucy says “Art has always been one of my passions. I studied it at Hertford Regional College, where I discovered how much I loved the process of drawing — really looking at something and capturing its form on paper. Later, at De Montfort University, I took this further with a degree in Arts Management, which gave me a deeper appreciation of how art connects people and communities.
Lucy says “Art has always been one of my passions. I studied it at Hertford Regional College, where I discovered how much I loved the process of drawing — really looking at something and capturing its form on paper. Later, at De Montfort University, I took this further with a degree in Arts Management, which gave me a deeper appreciation of how art connects people and communities.
Since 2017, I’ve been teaching in primary schools across East Herts and Essex. Alongside the everyday joys and challenges of teaching, I’ve often taken on the role of Arts Leader, running lunchtime and after-school clubs. These clubs are some of my favourite moments in the school day — a chance to see children explore their creativity freely, experiment, and surprise themselves with what they can make. Outside of school, I keep my skills fresh by drawing things that hold my attention – people, animals, even the smallest natural objects fascinate me. I find real calm in those moments of sketching, noticing the details that are so easy to miss in everyday life.
I also love visiting art exhibitions. There’s something special about stepping into a gallery space and being surrounded by creativity. Nature does the same for me. A walk outside, a sudden shift in light, or the curve of a branch can spark an idea that ends up on paper later. For me, art is about connection. It connects me to the world around me, to the children I teach, and to myself. Whether I’m standing in front of a class, wandering through an exhibition, or sitting quietly with a sketchbook, art is one of my deepest joys and passions that I love to share with others.
The workshop will take place in our Downstairs Function Space with access from The East End via our new SMart Cafe. Parents are welcome to stay and have a drink, snack or lunch in our new café.
This is a drop off workshop with our DBS certified tutor with a maximum of 10 students.
The workshop will run from 10am – 12pm on Friday30th October and is costed at £20. Morning and Afternoon Workshops can be booked separately, but if you book this workshop in a combined ticket together with Lucy’s Animal Skull Drawing Workshop then you will get a £5 discount and the kids can do art all day! Here is a link to Lucy’s Animal Skull Drawing Workshop: Animal Skull Drawing Workshop (Age 8+) – October Half Term – Southern Maltings
Plus our new SMart Café is now open! You can make things truly convenient in the holidays by pre-ordering a lunch bag in our SMart Café for just £5. In the bag you will receive a sandwich (Choice of ham,cheese, jam, marmite, cream cheese or peanut butter), a piece of fruit, a yogurt, a packet of crisps and a drink carton. Just book a ticket for lunch at the same time of the workshop and Carol will have everything ready at the end of the Morning session.
Do look online as we have a host of workshops for children of all ages running in October Half Term including Spooky Mosaic, Halloween Crafting, Halloween Facepainting, Calligraphy, and more!
Southern Maltings is the trading name of Ware Arts Centre Limited and is a registered charity (Registered charity no. 276998). All events are run by volunteers and proceeds go towards developing the Southern Maltings into an amazing creative arts centre which will enable us to put on a wider and more frequent range of events and activities for the whole community.