Summer Schools 2025
Based in the heart of the South Downs National Park
Summer School Workshops from 28th July to 8th August
Based in East Dean, East Sussex, UK
The popular Summer School programme of small group, 1 day workshops is spread over 10 weekdays, using a marquee in a private garden in East Dean as a base. Courses offer a variety of subject matters, and are for all abilities. Some groups will be working on location with the marquee as a backup, most will be based in the marquee. As usual, Roz will be demonstrating and providing lots of individual guidance and help.
Please see the bottom of this page for a more information and to register your interest. More specific workshop details sheets will be sent on booking.
See below what’s on offer…
1. Papier Maché Vessels | Fabulous, colourful vessels which will hold water, decorated in your own light weight collage / prints / painted papers, napkins, etc...
Monday 28th July | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£75 | Container, extra decorative papers, tape, glue, reference and equipment provided.
Using the paper / PVA glue method, and a waterproof plastic container which will remain inside so your vessel can be used as a vase, we’ll use masking tape and card to customise the shape and newsprint to build up layers. After lunch we’ll begin to use plain papers for background colour and then your own or provided light weight papers to introduce colour, pattern and visual texture. We’ll encourage drying at lunchtime in the sun and the plastic containers will support working on the damp shape, which will dry over the following days.
Image: Planters, Claire at Pillar Box Blue
2. Painting with Gouache | Exciting resist and blending techniques, landscape, wildlife, botanical.
Tuesday 29th July | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£75 | Extra gouache, paper, reference, ink and equipment supplied.
Gouache is opaque watercolour, and incredibly flexible and forgiving to paint with, and also can be used for wonderful creative wash-off / ink resist techniques together with Indian or drawing ink, which gives print-like results, when the gouache is washed off after the waterproof ink is dry.
Reference will be supplied for a variety of subjects, we’ll prepare the gouache and ink image first and while it’s drying, we’ll get to know the soft, blending techniques that you can use for landscape / wildlife / botanical painting. Various inks are supplied, along with other mixed media and exciting mark making tools.
Image: Washing off the gouache to reveal a lovely ram!
3. Loose, Wild Nature! | Painting small birds, bees, beetles, butterflies, wild flowers, seedheads etc, choice of subject matter, watercolour, inks, coloured pencils, mixed media.
Wednesday 30th July | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£70 | Extra colourful inks, other media, lots of reference.
A relaxing and very enjoyable day, focusing on painting individual small subjects such as birds, bees, butterflies, ladybirds and other similar insects or animals – or botanical subjects if wanted such as seedheads, wild flowers - with reference to their presence in the lovely garden and fields around us, but also with the help of photos, collected specimens, books and Roz’s sketchbook examples...
We will be painting loosely to produce not scientific illustrations, just lively, well- observed, colourful sketches and paintings, using some interesting tools!
Image: Wren, watercolour, Tom Shepherd.
4. East Dean Village Scene | Local, quiet scenes, pen and wash or any media – exact location tbc
Thursday 31st July | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£65 | Bring own materials, easels, chairs available if needed.
We’ll be drawing or painting around the village in a couple of areas, the exact locations will be confirmed depending on the weather forecast and group preferences and needs when booking.
Working in your own choice of media and style, eg pen and wash / watercolour / mixed media or acrylic (bearing in mind if it’s warm you need to be familiar with acrylic), we’ll find shady / sheltered spots to paint if hot, loos will be available nearby. Roz will be providing general guidance including working with pen and wash and any perspective help needed, as well as suggesting different approaches, with reference to a few interesting artists.....
Image: Painting East Dean Church
5. Collage and Paint | Wildlife, Landscape or Botanical, using your own collage papers / prints / old paintings if wanted.
Friday 1st August | 1 Day, 10-4.30pm
£70 | Bring own papers, extra papers and materials provided – Gesso, PVA, reference, etc.
In this exciting workshop we’ll glue some coloured / patterned / textured papers of varying weights including old prints or paintings, onto a base of watercolour paper or mountboard. This will build mainly random surfaces across which we’ll then paint, to produce creative, lively, semi-abstract images.
Paint or Gesso layers can be used to emphasise these which will result in an even more complex surface, and, if wanted, used to add more specific shapes, colours, tones and textures which will relate to your subject. We’ll look at imagery by Joan Fullerton, (image, left), Karen Stamper, and others
6. Nature Lino Print | Simple printing (b/w or colour), soft, easy-cut lino, animal, plant or landscape
Monday 4th August | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£75 | All materials, equipment, reference supplied.
A creative and fun day working with plenty of supplied reference to make a small, simple one or two colour lino print onto an existing white or coloured background. We’ll be using the easy-cut, soft lino, which is much easier to handle. You’ll be shown different styles and examples of relevant linocuts / ideas for simple but striking designs / how to transfer your drawing easily / using the tools provided to make the marks you want / how to cut safely. The inks are water-based and quick- drying, so you’ll take home several different versions of your finished design – ready to become cards!
Image: Roz Nathan. The Lino Print Workshop results! Summer Schools 2023.
7. Watercolour and soft Pastel or other Mixed Media | Landscape, Botanical, Trees painting nearby in the National Park
Tuesday 5th August | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£65 | Bring own materials, chairs.
We’ll be painting nearby in the Birling Gap / Cuckmere area - the exact location will be confirmed depending on weather and group preferences and needs when booking. Car sharing and lifts are possible.
Roz will be offering advice and demos for an enjoyable day exploring whatever materials you feel reasonably confident using, chairs and easels are available if needed. We’ll retreat to the marquee in East Dean if it rains properly, working with specific prepared photographic reference - but we aim to be outside if possible.
Image: Painting the Cuckmere, 2023
8. Botanical Drawing and Painting, any media | Cultivated / wild flowers or seed heads etc
Wednesday 6th August | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£65 bring own materials, chairs / easels available.
We’ll be drawing and painting cultivated or wildflowers or seedheads from the garden or surrounding private field, working from cut specimens in the marquee or sitting outside in situ as preferred. Choose a sketchbook study style or more developed painting in watercolour, pen, ink and wash, mixed media or any other you’d like - whatever materials you feel reasonably confident in using and would like to practise, Roz can advise prior to the workshop if needed, we’ll aim to observe well but work loosely and creatively!
Image: Ink and watercolour sunflower painting
9. Introduction to Gel Printing - exciting, creative easy printing | Various techniques
Thursday 7th August | 1 Day 10-4.30pm
£95 | All materials provided, including the use of a new 8x10’ Gel plate.
If you already have an 8” x 10” Gel plate do bring it, if so the workshop cost will be £75. If you wish to purchase a new plate after the workshop, they’ll be available at a discount price.
A cliff / downland / estuary / river view in the nearby Birling Gap / Cuckmere area - the exact location will be confirmed depending on weather and group preferences when booking. Car sharing and lifts possible.
A very exciting, fun and creative day! Gel plates are resin monoprint plates which, unusually, have a soft, flexible surface which enables much more creative work with acrylic, which will be our main printing medium, along with lots of interesting tools and mark making materials. We’ll look at various techniques using the Gel plate, including imprinting, stencilling, stamping and layering, working with various themes or subjects, including plant and other natural materials. We’ll then spend the rest of the day experimenting as people wish, making lots of prints!
Image, Susan McCreevy
10. Watercolour Underpaintings and Soft Pastel | Natural history subjects
Friday 8th August | 1 Day 10- 4.30pm
£70 | Some materials provided, including fixative, watercolour paper, some pastels and inks if wanted
An introduction to working with loose, bold watercolour underpaintings as a base for soft pastel painting on top when dry. Using an underpainting enables you to cover the paper, provide tone, colour and texture to work against with your pastel for your subject. Underpaintings also encourage us to be lively and loose with our pastel work, when we’ll add more texture, more specific mark making to suggest detail and work with dramatic contrasts to bring the work alive!
Image, Roz Nathan, Marazion Marsh, Cornwall
More information
Just next to the garden is a private, free parking area in a small mown field. There is a dedicated clean private toilet onsite in the double garage. An outside tap provides clean water for filling painting jars, cleaning paint palettes etc. Drinks are provided and there’s a dedicated fridge available -please bring your own lunch or try the village green for the Deli, café or the Tiger – you may need to book for the pub.
Inside the large marquee all 4 sides can open or close individually according to the weather, the marquee is very sturdy, set against the side of the house for shelter / shade and has a new roof. We can also sit in the garden, where there are lots of shady areas beside the marquee or under a gazebo.
Numbers will be limited to allow plenty of room, and for the outside painting days that means Roz can get around to everyone. If we do need more room, we’ll use the cool garden Piggery studio, and both that and the marquee as temporary bases on location days if there’s proper rain....
Chairs / table easels / foamboard can be provided, and a general idea of what to bring for workshops is at the end of these descriptions, with contact, booking and payment details. Roz will advise further with more specific info for each individual workshop when you’ve booked or on enquiry and provide a map for our marquee base, parking area and locations when needed.
Booking & Payments
As usual Roz has tried to keep these workshops as affordable as possible, and there is a £5 discount for any second or more workshop.
Please email Roz asap to register your interest in particular workshops, we are limited to 10 / 12 students for the marquee and overspill undercover areas including the garden Piggery studio, and 10 for outside landscape workshops.
When it’s confirmed there is a space, please pay asap preferably by bank transfer, the details of which I’ll email to you, or by cheque if needed, when the address will be emailed on request. You can pay the whole amount when booking, or a non-returnable deposit of £35 per workshop to book your place, with the remainder the week before the workshop date - or by arrangement, on the day of the workshop.
When you’ve booked, I’ll send directions, more general details about what to bring for the different types of workshop, and you’ll also be sent a handout with more specific info a little nearer the date.