Northern Beaches Council is coordinating an exclusive range of art classes in April and May 2025. Learn new skills or improve current ways from printing to landscapes and water colours each guided by experts in the field.
Northern Beaches mayor Sue Heins said the experts suggest opening your mind to creativity can improve mental health and wellbeing.
“Exploring your artistic nature is a wonderful way to improve brain power and capacity. What better way to do this but with an expert in a fun, small class environment.
“From beginners to well-practiced artists, all are welcome to joy our fascinating art classes.
“Although, be quick as classes are filling up,” Mayor Heins said.
Schedule:
Class: Cyanotype Printing with Bella La Spina
Dates: 4 & 11 April 2025
Time: 10.30am to 1.30pm each day
Location: Avalon Creative Space - 32 Old Barrenjoey Road, Avalon
Price: $150 per person
Join contemporary printmaker Bella La Spina for a two-part workshop exploring cyanotypes - camera-less photographic printmaking.
Cyanotype uses sunlight to create images with botanicals and photo negatives on paper and fabric.
Masterclass 2025: Plein air with Noel Thurgate
Dates: 28 April
Time: 10am to 3pm
Location: Manly Art Gallery & Museum - 1A West Esplanade, Manly NSW 2095
Price: $185 per person
For our 2025 Masterclass series three contemporary artists will each present a session interpreting the harbour foreshore landscape in the outdoors.
Join the April one-day workshop that will offer unique insights from the artist, Noel Thurgate as he shares his knowledge, skills and different approaches to seeing and perceiving the landscape.
Class: Travel sketching in Watercolour with Tanya Baily
Dates: 29 and 30 May 2025
Time: 10.30am to 1.30pm each day
Location: Avalon Creative Space - 32 Old Barrenjoey Road, Avalon
Price: $150 per person
Join contemporary watercolour artist, Tanya Baily for 2 fun and fast sessions, giving you the tools and confidence to record your travel memories with watercolour. Learn to capture light, mood and the essence of a subject in a minimum of time.
For more information visit our website
Media contact: For media enquiries or images please phone 0481 907 545 or email media@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au
Editor’s note:
Bella La Spina biography
Bella La Spina is a contemporary printmaker practicing on Gadigal Land. Primarily working with found and archival imagery, her practice spans across the mediums of printmaking, photomedia and sculpture to create assemblages that explore themes of memory, history, erasure and haunting. Bella holds an MFA in Printmaking and has since taught various workshops in print media, including at NAS. Her works are held nationally and internationally including in the Arts Law Centre of Australia collection and the National Art School Archive. Bella is represented by Dominik Mersch Gallery, Rushcutters Bay.
Noel Thurgate biography
Noel Thurgate is an artist with over 30 years-experience in teaching drawing including nine years as Head of Drawing at the National Art School, Sydney. Noel has exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions including five times as an Archibald finalist, a finalist in the Dobell Drawing Prize and the Kedumba Drawing Prize. He was 2024 Winner of People’s Choice award at the Salon des Refusés at S.H Ervin Gallery and his work is held in state, regional, institutional and private collections. Noel currently teaches part-time at the NAS.
Tanya Baily biography
Tanya Baily is an award-winning artist working exclusively in watercolour, exhibiting in Sydney and internationally. She spends time working plein air and it is from working from life that she develops her ideas. Tanya’s work is an ongoing exploration of the descriptive and emotive potential of the watercolour medium. She teaches watercolour painting and drawing at NAS and Artest in Sydney, as well as hosting workshops at art schools and associations around Australia.