UK WORKSHOPS
Vic offers a variety of teaching workshops in different mediums throughout the UK. Subjects vary from wildlife paintings and portraits, to seascapes, people, children and pets. With mediums in pastel, pencil, oil, acrylic and watercolour, there's something to suit everyone.
At this point in time, most of Vic's workshops and courses are run online via Zoom, This means people all over the world can attend from the safety and comfort of their own home.
Vic's workshops are suitable for complete beginners and advanced artists, and you will learn a great deal about the subject and medium you're working in.
The numbers attending his workshops are kept fairly small. This ensures everyone gets individual tuition and guidance throughout the day so they can learn a lot about the medium they're working in and achieve great results.
2025 WORKSHOPS & COURSES
Date: Thursday 7th August 2025
Subject: Sketching Birds of Prey
Medium: Graphite & white pencil on grey paper
Course length: 6 x 1.5-hour lessons (9 hours total)
Included in the workshop: All tuition, reference photo (emailed), feedback and recording of the course.
A workshop kit containing everything you need is available to purchase for this course for £10.99
Suitable for: Beginners and advanced artists.
Location: Live via Zoom – invitation emailed after booking.
Time: 7.00pm-8:30pm GMT (Please be ready with your materials by 6.45pm)
Price: £99
2 PLACES REMAINING
My Zoom courses have taken us on journeys to many parts of the world, sketching a wide variety of fauna
from land, sea and air. This time we're in Europe, focussing on a group of birds which are fascinating in both appearance and behaviour – birds of prey. This group of birds is typically characterised by strong talons and sharp, hooked beaks.
Instead of the standard sketching technique (graphite on cartridge paper), we will be using an interesting
and eye-catching combination of mediums to create portraits from a selection of magnificent raptors;
graphite pencil and white pencil on grey-toned paper.
The advantage of using a toned paper when sketching or drawing, is that the mid-tones, which would
normally be established with the graphite pencil, are already present.
Then, of course, there is the bonus of being able to add strong highlights with a white pencil; the result
being an image with more tonal values, depth and atmosphere than it would have on white paper.
When you begin to research and sketch birds of prey, you realise what a fascinating and varied group this
is. Along the way, as we get to know the individual birds through the sketching process, we will also learn
something of their habitat, physiology, conservation status and other interesting avian facts.
After the course, you can discover and research even more birds of prey to add to your collection of
sketches; the more you practice, the more your sketching will improve!
Lesson 1 - Thursday 7th August - Barn Owl
The barn owl, with its heart-shaped face and soft, pale feathers is a distinctive and popular countryside bird.
The course will begin with an introduction to using simple shapes – circles, ovals and triangles – to
quickly establish overall shapes and proportions of our subject.
From there, the process is one of gradual refinement, whilst getting to know the subject.
As the sketch is refined, and more details added, we will begin to add highlights – secondary highlights
for the owl's soft feathers, and stronger primary highlights for the reflection on the eye and shine on the beak.
When and how to use the kneadable eraser, as well as pencil sharpening are both important, often
overlooked issues which will be covered from the start of the course.
Lesson 2 - Thursday 14th August - Golden Eagle
The majestic golden eagle is probably the best-known European bird of prey; with only the white-tailed eagle being larger. Capturing the eagle's magnificent head with its intense stare and sharp, hooked beak are the primary focus
of this week's sketch.
Once we have established the overall shape and proportions, we will concentrate on the details in the eye,
probably the most important area in this image, before moving on to the beak.
The dark feathers, with their soft highlights will contrast nicely against the grey background to finish this
week's sketch.
Lesson 3 - Thursday 21st August - Kestrel
Kestrels are a familiar sight, with their pointed wings and long tail, and
can often be seen hovering above roadside verges when we're out driving. Close up they are also quite a
pretty-looking bird, with a more rounded head and eyes than some others in this group.
Apart from the initial shapes and proportions, this week will look at creating the soft tones and markings
of the kestrel's plumage.
Naturally, there will be time to focus on the details in that amazing eye and the small, but sharp beak.
Lesson 4 - Thursday 28th August - Osprey
As a piscivorous bird of prey, the osprey is an accomplished fisher; diving and grabbing its prey in spectacular fashion.
There are some interesting shapes in the osprey's head, created by the distinctive white feathers on its
head and throat.
The shapes, proportions and raptor features should be familiar by now, which will give us time to focus on those light and dark feather shapes and textures, which will really make our osprey portrait stand out from the grey background.
Lesson 5 - Thursday 4th September - Peregrine Falcon
So far we have sketched three carnivores and one piscivore. This week's bird of prey is an avivore; one that specialises in predating other birds.
The peregrine falcon is a crow-size raptor with quite a noble, almost aristocratic look which we will be
aiming to capture in this week's sketch.
The pose – head turned over the shoulder – will be the staring point this week; this will go a long way to
creating that noble stature.
In addition to refining the facial details and plumage markings, I will show you how to create some
interesting lighting by having a fading shadow area, contrasting with stronger highlights on the opposite
side. The use of a gradual fade out in the sketch will help to pull the viewer's eye back to the falcon's
head.
Lesson 6 - Thursday 11th September - Griffon Vulture
Like other vulture species, the griffon is mainly a scavenger, but will also predate live animals – particularly the sick and injured – when carrion is scarce.
Admittedly, to many people, vultures are not the most attractive birds, but they do perform a valuable
service in nature, as we will find out.
However, you have to agree that our final subject has a very interesting head, with varying textures –
feathers and wrinkly skin – that will undoubtedly make for a distinctive portrait.
For me, this is very much a character sketch; a bit like sketching a wrinkly old man (always more fun, I
think). If we can inject some character in among the wrinkles and straggly-looking feathers, then someone apart from his mother will love him for sure!
There is a kit available to accompany this course, which includes:
-
2B graphite pencil
-
White pencil
-
Kneadable eraser
-
A4 250gsm grey-toned paper (8 sheets)
-
Reference photos (6) emailed before the class, or included in the kit
** Kits are posted out approx. 1 week before the course starts **
SKETCHING BIRDS OF PREY – 6 WEEK ZOOM COURSE
Book Sketching Birds of Prey Course
Order Sketching Birds of Prey Kit
Date: Tuesday 12th August 2025
Subject: Sketching Animals
Medium: Blue Ballpoint Pen
Course length: 3 x 1.5 hour classes (4.5 hours total)
Included in the workshop: All tuition, reference photo (emailed), feedback and recording of the course.
A workshop kit containing everything you need is available to purchase for this course for £8.99
Suitable for: Beginners and advanced artists.
Location: Live via Zoom – invitation emailed after booking.
Time: 7-8.30pm GMT (Please be ready with your materials by 6.45pm)
Price: £50
10 PLACES REMAINING
I'm sure, like me, many of you will, at some point, have doodled with ballpoint pens. There has been many a shopping list over the years adorned with patterns, faces and strange creatures which have taken shape on the scraps of paper whilst deciding what provisions I need.
How many of us, however, then go on to consciously sketch with ballpoint pens as an art form it its own right? I personally believe that there is a lot to enjoy and learn from the techniques of ballpoint pen sketching.
Sketching with a blue pen also gives a softer, almost relaxed hue to your sketches than a black pen or even a graphite pencil, especially with the addition of a subtly toned brown paper, which provides a warm foil to the cool blue ink. The materials kit for this course will include a Paper Mate flexigrip ultra 1.0mm pen, which has become my favourite tool for ballpoint sketching, with less 'blobbing' and allowing for more subtle shading than standard ballpoint pens. This short course will hopefully make you think about the humble blue ballpoint pen in a completely different light, and creating artworks that are just a touch different from the 'norm'.
Part 1 – Black bear, Tuesday 12th August
In a way, the idea of sketching a black bear with a blue pen makes a lot of sense, as black fur often has a blue shine in photos. However, black bears also have brown fur on the muzzle, which can't easily be shown on white paper.
Not only will the brown paper automatically show the brown muzzle, it will also add an underlying warmth to the blue ink. This week's lesson will focus on the loose scribble technique for sketching the bear's dense fur, as well as using lines and angles to strengthen its features and profile outline.
Part 2 – Lioness, Tuesday 19th August
In contrast to the bear, this beautiful lioness is mostly brown – in simple terms of course. The paper now becomes the principle mid-tone for this week's sketch, which means that we don't need to use so much of the blue ink to create the texture of the lioness's fur.
This week's lesson will focus more on detailing features and subtle shading to create a stunning feline portrait.
Part 3 – Red fox, Tuesday 26th August
I love foxes, and I have doodled, sketched and painted them in so many different ways, with a variety of media.
As is usually the case, my personal favourite foxy artworks are the quick, unfussy sketches, especially those made with a blue ballpoint pen.
As we have already seen, the subtle tone of the paper can help to convey brown fur, add warmth and even create depth in a monochrome pen sketch.
In the final lesson, we will combine the techniques we've learned from the first two; creating varied fur textures, detailing features and strengthening outlines.
There is a kit available to accompany this course, which includes:
-
3 x Sheets of A4 Clairefontaine 'Paint ON' Naturel 250gsm Paper
-
Paper Mate Blue Flexigrip Ballpoint Pen
-
2B Graphite Pencil
-
Kneadable Eraser
-
1 x A4 Sheet Cartridge Paper (for mark making practice)
-
Reference Photos (3) Included in the kit, or emailed before the course starts
** Kits are posted out approx. 1 week before the course starts **
SKETCHING THE BLUES - 3 WEEK ZOOM COURSE
Book Sketching the Blues Course
Order Sketching the Blues Kit
Date: Tuesday 9th September
Subject: Wildlife
Medium: Oil Pastel techniques
Course length: 3 x 1.5 hour classes (4.5 hours total)
Included in the workshop: All tuition, reference photo (emailed), feedback and edited recording from each class
A workshop kit containing everything you need is available to purchase with or without pastels
Suitable for: Beginners and advanced artists
Location: Live via Zoom – invitation emailed after booking
Time: 7-8.30pm GMT (Please be ready with your materials by 6.45pm)
Price: £50
11 PLACES AVAILABLE
A brand new short course exploring techniques for sketching, drawing and painting with oil pastels. The very mention of the words 'oil pastels' is capable of evoking memories of greasy, crumbly sticks of colour, which we were seldom taught how to use properly.
When used correctly, however, oil pastels are capable of producing artworks in a variety of styles, utilising different techniques, such as scumbling, blending and impasto texturing; all of which will be covered in this course.
You will also learn how oil pastels are made, and how they came to be; from humble beginnings to their use as a serious, professional medium.
I find that oil pastels, like their dry pastel cousins, work best on a toned support. Personally, I think that a black background adds more depth to the image, as well as enhancing the vibrancy of colours.
Once you know how to use them, oil pastels can be fun to work with, which may not be too surprising as they were invented in Japan in 1929 for schoolchildren to explore colour in their artworks.
Part 1 – Fox (scumbling) - Tuesday 9th September
We begin the course with the technique of 'scumbling', often used to create a folk art style, in this case a charming, simplified image of a fox overlooking rolling fields.
In this style, the initial 'scumbled' layers are important in creating texture that will show through the layers from the initial black card, adding visual interest to the finished artwork.
Using my original pencil sketch as the fox 'model', the outline will be lightly sketched using a white pencil.
We will build up the composition as we build the scumbled layers of pastel. Wherever possible, we will create the outlines of the fox, fields, trees and flowers with the black card. If needed we can use the black pastel to enhance the outlines at the end.
This technique – scumbling from dark to light – is also a great way to mix colours, without getting messy.
The result will be a lovely, rustic image with textures not easily achievable with other mediums.
Part 2 – Toucan (blending) - Tuesday 16th September
In this week's lesson, we will look at blending techniques, useful for creating soft backgrounds and smoother finishes, like the toucan's beak for example.
After loosely sketching the toucan with the white pencil, we will tackle the background, using greens and blues to build layers which can then be softened with fingers or blending stick.
Fortunately, the black card will give us the black plumage of our toucan; we just need to add a few blue highlights here and there.
The beak, however, is very colourful and smooth, giving us the chance to layer the colours and use the tortillon to soften and blend the oil pastels for a smooth, shiny finish.
Of course, we can't forget the colourful eye and the final touch of white reflection to bring our toucan to life.
Part 3 – Elephant (impasto) - Tuesday 23rd September
Our final lesson is all about texturing; capturing the effect of a dawn light as it strikes the thick, wrinkled skin of an elephant's head and trunk, without blending.
After the initial white pencil proportional sketch, we will start to build layers of blue on the shadow side and orange on the dawn light side will serve as our underpainting and complimentary warm and cool base colours, in the same manner as a traditional oil painting.
We will then carve out the elephant's wrinkles using the black pastel, before starting to add more 'Impasto' textures with paler blue and orange.
The final step will be to add a few 'punchy' highlights with the white pastel, not forgetting the tusks of course.
The result is a visually strong image, as befits the subject.
There is a kit available to accompany this course, which includes:
-
Set of 12 oil pastels (Kit also available without oil pastels)
-
4 x Sheets of A4 350gsm black card
-
White Pencil
-
Kneadable Eraser
-
Medium tortillon (paper blender)
-
Reference Photos (3) Included in the kit, or emailed before the course starts
** Kits are posted out approx. 1 week before the course starts **
SKETCHING WITH OIL PASTELS – 3 WEEK ZOOM COURSE
Book Oil Pastel Techniques Course
Order Oil Pastel Techniques Kit
(With Oil Pastels) £13.99
Order Oil Pastel Techniques Kit
(Without Oil Pastels) £8.99
Date: Thursday 18th September 2025
Subject: Wildlife
Medium: Coloured Pencils
Course length: 6 x 1.5-hour lessons (9 hours total)
Included in the workshop: All tuition, reference photo (emailed), feedback and recording of the course.
A workshop kit containing everything you need is available to purchase with or without coloured pencils
Suitable for: Beginners and advanced artists.
Location: Live via Zoom – invitation emailed after booking.
Time: 7.00pm-8:30pm GMT (Please be ready with your materials by 6.45pm)
Price: £99
11 PLACES REMAINING
Many of us will have had some experience in sketching with coloured pencils; mostly on a variety of white smooth or textured papers, no doubt.
White paper can certainly give you a lovely soft, translucent effect with coloured pencils, but what about coloured paper or card?
Black paper is an ideal surface for creating contrast and making colours pop. A black surface – paper, card or canvas – can also provide an instant night-time setting for those more nocturnal subjects. It is also a effective, time saving device for drawing animals with black fur.
In this course, we will be using black card not only for night-time settings and black fur, but also to create dramatic visuals with strong highlights, or simply to enhance those more vivid colours.
Lesson 1 - Thursday 18th September - Red Cardinal
If there is a colour that really stand out against a black background, then surely it has to be red, and our first subject will certainly put that idea to the test.
The red cardinal gives us the opportunity to learn how to create the various shades of red from dark to lighter, more vivid hues, using one red and one white pencil and the underlying black card.
In order for the red pencil to 'glow' on the black card, we will need to start with a layer of white pencil, so that the black surface doesn't absorb the colour. Where the red plumage is darker, then we can use the red pencil directly onto the card.
A flurry of final details and a few dark berries will complete this atmospheric sketch.
Lesson 2 - Thursday 25th September - Black Bear
Drawing black fur on a white background can often be a tedious and sometimes difficult process.
How much easier would it be if the black fur was already there, in the paper? That is essentially what we have with this week's subject, a strong profile portrait of a North American black bear.
As usual, we will start by creating basic shapes, tones and the strong, angular lines of the bear's head with the white pencil.
The black fur and nose pad will be mostly created with blue highlights, which will compliment the warm brown of the bear's muzzle. Soft highlights and final details in black and white pencil will complete this atmospheric ursine portrait.
Lesson 3 - Thursday 2nd October - Fruit Bat
This week's subject is the first of our nocturnal creatures. The fruit bat is perhaps more attractive to our eyes than others in the family, with its large eyes and dog-like features.
As we all know, bats spend a lot of time hanging around upside-down. This pose can be a little confusing, visually, as we attempt to organise and sketch the features.
There is, of course, a solution to this problem, and that is to turn your reference upside down. All we need to pay attention to is the reversing of the light source, which will be moonlight in this sketch.
As this will be a nocturnal sketch, the colour scheme will be limited – mostly brown with touches of purple here and there for balance.
This promises to be a very atmospheric image – once we turn the card the right way round again!
Lesson 4 - Thursday 9th October - Chimpanzee
Once again, the dark fur of the chimpanzee is mostly taken care of in this week's lesson, creating a strong, atmospheric profile of a pensive-looking chimp, with just hints of cool blue to highlight the fur.
After we have explored the basic shapes and important angles of the chimp's profile, we will apply some basic 'negative' shading with the white pencil, followed by the blue and brown pencils for the base colours.
I will show you how to create the impression of light shining through the chimp's ear, before going on to refine the facial details.
The final step will be to make sure our white pencil is nice and sharp to create the backlit highlights to lift our chimp off the dark background.
Lesson 5 - Thursday 16th October - Flamingo
As with our first subject, the colours of the flamingo will certainly be enhanced by the use of black card.
Flamingos spend up to 30% of their day preening, and this week's sketch is a close up, cropped image of this important activity.
There will initially be a fair amount of sketching and 'negative' toning with the white pencil before adding the vibrant pinks and reds of the flamingo's plumage, along with detailing the eye and that impressive beak of course.
The finished sketch is sure to look stunning against the black background.
Lesson 6 - Thursday 23rd October - Arctic Wolf
Arctic wolves can often be seen in the daytime, but they are mostly active between dusk and dawn.
In our final lesson we will create the atmosphere of a cold arctic night; the only light source being a full moon, which is backlighting our white-furred wolf.
Of course, arctic wolves aren't pure white. There is usually an underlying brown hue to the fur, which will be balanced with hints of cool blue over the initial white pencil sketch.
After the fur and facial details have been refined, the final backlighting highlights are added.
You'll be amazed at what can be achieved with such a limited colour palette.
There is a kit available to accompany this course, which includes:
-
Set of 12 Coloured Pencils (kit also available without coloured pencils)
-
White pencil
-
6 x Sheets A4 350gsm Card
-
Kneadable eraser
-
Reference photos (6) emailed before the class, or included in the kit
** Kits are posted out approx. 1 week before the course starts **
WILDLIFE IN COLOURED PENCILS– 6 WEEK ZOOM COURSE
Book Wildlife in Coloured Pencils Course
Order Coloured Pencil Kit
(With Coloured Pencils) £14.99
Order Coloured Pencil Kit
(Without Coloured Pencils)
£9.99
Saturday 25th April 2020
Subject: Lion
Medium: Pastel on Velour
Length: 1-day
Included in the workshop: All materials, light refreshments, all tuition.
Suitable for: Beginners & Advanced Artists.
Location: Big Cat Sanctuary, Headcorn Road, Smarden, Ashford, Kent. TN27 8PJ
Times: 10am-4pm (arrive 9.30am)
Price: £120
2 PLACES REMAINING
Something new for me and hopefully for you, for the first of my Big Cat Sanctuary workshops in 2020; a full colour lion portrait in pastels on black velour.
The subject of this workshop is the handsome African lion, Kasanga, who you will get to meet and take your own reference photos, like this one, on the morning of the workshop.
The use of black velour gives much more depth of tone than other colours, such as the sand-coloured velour, as well as allowing you to create dramatic highlights that can give an otherwise ‘standard’ portrait much more atmosphere.
Whether you are an experienced artist or a beginner, Vic will guide you step by step through the process of painting with pastels on velour; how to create fur texture, realistic eyes, all important highlights and, of course, the special techniques required when using black velour.
As always, the big cat/art experience begins with a guided photography tour, starting at around 10am. This is a unique opportunity to gather your own reference photos of wide variety of big and wild cats at very close quarters for future use in your artworks.
The tour finishes at lunchtime, during which you are free to visit the on-site shop for souvenirs and enjoy your lunch under the watchful gaze of mountain lions and the famous ‘Maya’, whose enclosure is next to where we will be working.
The workshop itself begins after lunch and ends at around 4pm, after which you are free to admire and take more photographs of the beautiful Maya in the late afternoon light before leaving for home.
All materials and light refreshments provided. Please bring your lunch, an easel (table or standing) if you need one, and sensible shoes for walking around the enclosures (no sandals or flip flops please). And don't forget your camera!
The day will begin at 10am promptly, so please try to arrive around 9:30am.
For every booking, we donate £50 to the Big Cat Sanctuary. These funds help the sanctuary with upkeep and conservation projects.
LIVE ZOOM COURSE - PORTRAIT IN OILS
MORE WORKSHOPS AND COURSES COMING SOON...
BIG CAT SANCTUARY LION WORKSHOP
Stating date: Thursday 7th January 2021
Subject: Portrait
Medium: Oils on canvas
Course length: 4 x 1 1/2 hour classes
Included in the workshop: All Tuition, Reference Photo (emailed), Recording of the Workshop.
Other Info: The portrait course kit is available to order in advance for this workshop
Suitable for: Beginners & Advanced Artists.
Location: Live via Zoom - Instructions sent after booking
Time: 7pm-8.30pm (Please be ready with your materials by 6.45pm)
Price: £60
COURSE STARTED
‘Portrait in oils’ is a complete course aimed at artists who want to learn or improve their oil painting skills.
Each lesson will focus on a particular stage in the oil painting process, using the techniques that I have used myself for many years.
Lesson 1 – Underpainting part 1
(7th January 2021)
We begin the course with probably the most important stage in any painting, a burnt umber underpainting, using the dry brush technique.
Once completed, the underpainting acts as a tonal foundation for subsequent layers, giving both basic details and all important tones to create form.
Lesson 2 – Underpainting part 2
(14th January 2021)
Once the burnt umber underpainting is dry, which will be just a few days, we can begin to create more subtle mid tones and key highlights.
This will be achieved by using varied mixes of burnt umber and titanium white, thinned slightly with linseed oil for easier control and flow.
Note: There will be a two week gap before the next lesson to ensure that the whole underpainting is completely dry before lesson three
Lesson 3 – Glazing
(28th January 2021)
Once the underpainting is completely dry, we can begin to add colour in the form of transparent glazes, a traditional oil painting technique.
Using the additional colours of cadmium red, yellow ochre and French ultramarine, thinned with linseed oil, we will ‘tint’ the underpainting with various colour mixes to create skin tones, and background.
Lesson 4 – Final details
(4th February 2021)
Using the rigger brush and thinned mixes of burnt umber, French ultramarine and titanium white, we will refine the portrait with finer details in the hair, eyes, nose and mouth, adding a few finishing highlights here and there.
Please note, the course is £60 per person, however, if more than one person is using the same Zoom connection, then the fee covers all participants from the same household.
MATERIALS
-
290gm oil painting paper (14x10 inches)
-
#6 oil/acrylic round brush
-
Watercolour rigger brush
-
Oil paints: Burnt umber, titanium white, cadmium red, yellow ochre, French ultramarine
-
Linseed oil.
-
Reference photo (emailed upon booking)
A kit is available for this course, which contains all the materials you'll need to complete the oil painting. Please take into account delivery times when ordering the kit. This kit is posted in a large postal tube.
The great things about Vic's Zoom classes is that you also receive a recording after each class/workshop. So, if you cannot attend one of the lessons, or would just like to re-watch the tutorial, you have the recording to watch as often as you like.