18/11/2025
As the trees turn to shades of amber and burnt umber, The Valees latest art master class used the seasonal, falling leaves as its inspiration.
Using the flame-coloured foliage on the tree in the grounds of The Vale and the leaves from the oaks on Streatham Common, our artists learned how to put down a ground for their painting. One person suggested using a sponge to create the dappled backgrounds. The resulting, stippled, effect proved to be perfect. The students then learnt brush stroke techniques to carefully overlay the delicate oak leaves.
Painting like this brings benefits for everyone, helping with cognitive skills and maintaining dexterity in hands, fingers and wrists. Of course, working in a group, as our residents do, also brings the social advantages of a shared experience, joy and pride in an end product plus a cup of coffee in the Bar & Bistro.
There was lots of laughter as participants remembered the Tony Hancock film The Rebel, which portrays him as an amateur artist who moves to Paris in a bid to be taken seriously as a professional. The song, Autumn Leaves, also sprang to mind and the group was about to launch into before realising that they only knew the first line.
As the session drew to a close, the completed artworks drew much admiration from all and everyone looks forward to our next class.
