By Jo Blaker

In this exploratory post, artist Jo Blaker shares how she facilitated an online workshop inspired by the landscape drawings of John Piper. Piper (1903-1992) was an English painter, printmaker and designer of stained-glass windows and theatre sets. He was an official war artist in World War II, and in the 1930s, created a series of drawings depicting the Kent and Sussex coastline in the UK, using collage and ink.

In this resource, Jo describes how she used experimental collage techniques to explore Piper’s coastal works. Through a series of creative exercises, she shares ways that collage and mark-making can be used to capture the drama and movement of the sea and the surrounding landscape. Although the participants of this workshops were adults, the exercises included can be adapted to younger learners.

To access all content, I would like to join as…

An Individual

Creative practitioners, educators, teachers, parents, learners…

From £3.50

An Organisation…

Schools, Colleges, Arts Organisations: Single and Multi-Users

From £42

AccessArt is a UK Charity and we believe everyone has the right to be creative. AccessArt provides inspiration to help us all reach our creative potential.

You Might Also Like…

Artist Studio Series

Talking Points: Artists as Collectors and Explorers

Explore Contemporary Artists, Designers and Makers

See How This Resource Is Used in Schools…

You Might Also Like…

Landscape Painting: Plein Air Painting

Working With and In the Landscape

Painting The Storm

See This Resource Used In Schools…

You May Also Like

Lets start with collage

Insect hotels

See This Resource Used In Schools…

You May Also Like

Manipulating Forms in Landscape Painting

Imaginary Landscape

A collection of imagery and sources designed to stimulate conversation around the work of Saoirse Morgan.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt Membership.

Saoirse Morgan

“My paintings explore my connection with familiar landscapes. The subject of my work is my home terrain of West Wales: the landscape, the coast, the ecology. I am inspired by local colour, plant life, atmosphere and weather. I spent my childhood on small islands, surrounded by swirling tide races and wild, wind-blown seas.  My terrestrial environment is maritime heath and lowland heath. It’s a warm, familiar colour palette, dominated by bracken, heather and gorse.” – Saoirse

Questions to Ask Children

How does Saoirse’s painting process connect to the sea?

How do the colours, shapes and textures evoke the atmosphere of the sea?

Questions To Ask Children

How does the painting, and process capture the essence of the sea?

What do you like / dislike about the painting?

How does the painting make you feel?

Questions to Ask Children

Are there any animals / insects / plants in your local area that has been suffering the consequences of climate change? How has your local landscape been affected?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Mixed Media Land and city scapes

This is featured in the ‘Mixed Media Land and City Scapes’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Show me what you see

Concertina Landscape

See This Resource Used In Schools…

See This Resource Used In Schools…

You May Also Like…

Pathway: Mixed Media Land and city scapes

This is featured in the ‘Mixed Media Land and City Scapes’ pathway

Talking Points: Vanessa Gardiner

Talking Points: The Shoreditch Sketcher

Talking Points: Kittie Jones

What We Like About This Resource….

“You can get a real sense of the environment in this post and how this could provide so much inspiration for creative projects. We are aware there the challenges to exploring the outdoors when many schools are in towns and cities. A way around this could be to have a regular collection of natural objects within the classroom and using them as a stimulus to respond creatively in sketchbooks or in extended projects” – Andrea, AccessArt

You Might Also Like….

Woodland Exploration

A Passion for Woodworking

Visual Arts PLanning: Tees, Forest and Landscapes

What We Like About This Resource….

“The sense of journey and feeling of movement is such an interesting part of Cas’ textile work here. We love how location and place is communicated through the variety of fluid and meandering textile marks used. Cas’ Romani background as well as early experience living in Japan make for a rich cultural backdrop to her work. The themes here could be explored in the classroom by asking children to use memories of places they’ve visited to produce a creative response using fabrics and mixed media” – Rachel, AccessArt

You Might Also Like….

Draw Your Home

Working With and In the Landscape

Landscape Sculptures