The Solway Firth: 'En Plein Air'

with Lewis M Mackenzie & Ewan McClure Sun 15th to Sat 21st June 2025

Starts Jun 15, 2025

1,900 British pounds

Auchencairn

Available spots

Service Description

Immerse yourself in the beauty of nature for this plein air landscape painting retreat with award-winning Scottish impressionist, Lewis MacKenzie and assistant Ewan McClure. Your days will be spent painting in the open air at locations along the stunning Solway Firth coastline as well as in the grounds of Auchencairn House, DG7 1QZ. This course welcomes students of all levels of experience and ability to expand and develop their landscape painting skill set in a relaxed and supportive learning environment. We aim to arm students with a key ideas and techniques that will allow them to approach landscape painting with purpose. Each afternoon will be spent painting in a new location allowing students to develop their skills in a variety of settings and with a diverse range of subjects. The mornings prior to these sessions will consist of a series of exercises, short presentations and demos These include • Common compositional motifs in landscape painting • Understanding value masses in pictorial composition • Carlsen's “Theory of Angles” - how the planar structure of the landscape can help you to simplify and organise what you see in nature • How to create depth in your paintings using geometric and aerial perspective • Colour and harmony – primary and secondary light sources in the landscape, and how the relationship between light and shadow colours varies in different lighting conditions • How to apply paint in different ways to create variety, texture and the impression of complexity • Trees, bushes and buildings – populate your paintings with convincing objects that serve your pictorial purpose • How to paint dramatic skies that lend emotional weight to your compositions Prices range from £1900 - £2250 pp +VAT depending on which room you book. All meals provided. Please contact the school for booking, materials lists & invoices from £1900 + VAT Tower Lodge single occupancy £2350 Tower Lodge for a couple £2800 King size bedroom with ensuite bathroom with a sea view £2150 King size Blue room with ensuite bathroom £2150 Four Poster bedroom with ensuite bathroom £2150 Double Green room with shared WC/Shower £1950 Twin room with shared WC & shower £1950 Single room with shared WC/Shower £1900 Non Painting Partners £1400 (£233.33 pp pn including all meals) Painting only students Monday to Friday: £950 pp pw incl VAT (£26.66 per hour x6 hours per day tuition, £30 lunch & tea) check in Sunday 15th June 4pm check out Saturday 21st June 9-11am

Upcoming Sessions

Cancellation Policy

We will provide a 50% refund if you give written advance notice up to 30 days before the course start date. 0% refund 30 days before a course starts. Please note there is an administration fee of £5 payable in respect of such refunds to cover payment processing fees. You will need to inform a member of administration staff in writing by emailing EDS at info@edinburghdrawingschool.co.uk. Additionally, if you withdraw for any reason after the course has started you will not be entitled to a refund. We are a small business and we depend on every booking to ensure that classes can go ahead. If a tutor has to withdraw from teaching the scheduled course for any reason (medical/personal/professional) before the start of a scheduled course, during a scheduled course, if the course is 8 weeks long or scheduled as x3 terms of 8 weeks long each, The Edinburgh Drawing School will find a replacement tutor for the course designed by that tutor for The Edinburgh Drawing School. The course content will be the same as the originally booked course. A student will not be entitled to a refund should the school have no option but to find a replacement tutor. If a tutor leaves and starts work elsewhere, and a student prefers to take classes with them personally at the tutor's new workplace, that is at the discretion of the student and no refund is entitled to them or will be given. If a student is unable to attend a class due to medical/personal/professional reasons, then EDS must be informed immediately so that the tutor can be notified. If you are missing a class because you suspect that you have developed Covid-19, please let us know immediately so that we can alert fellow student and tutors. Non-attendance of classes/workshops does not automatically mean a refund, however EDS will assess the circumstance