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Well done Georgie
It’s always great news when a graduate of the Virtual Art Academy has a major success. So huge congratulations to Georgie Rey for being accepted into 2024 Pastel Art Society Exhibition, at the Mall Galleries in January/February 2024.
Not only that, but her painting “Buriton Farm In Turquoise/White Wild Flowers” has been accepted for the Royal Society of British Artists (RBA) Exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London from 29 February – 9 March 2024. Well done again, Georgie!
Comments from Georgie Rey
“I found VAA online and did one of Barry’s courses in Knysna many years ago (12!) then signed up and started following Barry’s course. I learnt about Notans, Values, simplifying big shapes, colour pairs…. and it made so much sense. Working through the programme and doing the exercises you develop an eye for a good composition and learn about the details that make up a good picture: the lessons have sunk into my subconscious.
Barry always talks a lot about values, values and values….. One of his important tips was to just work in black and white paint or a range of grey compressed charcoal sticks for a long time just do exercises (Notan, Outline Study, 7 value study, colour map, 7 value colour study) and not make paintings for a year or two! This really helped me to make progress.
The dry pastel painting “Mill Pond Bottom” was done on site as a sketch and the oil pastel painting “Buriton Farm” was done in the studio trying to resolve the foreground and composition problem I was having! I like to keep going back to the same place over a year or 2 or 3 !! (that works for me) I am always trying different mediums and sizes and often go back to charcoal when I get stuck.
Since 2022 I’ve had paintings selected at The Pastel Art Society, The Chelsea Art Society, The New English Art Club and The Royal Society of British Artists (Mall Galleries). I’m still experimenting and often feel frustrated that there isn’t one size and one medium that I stick to, but that’s creativity isn’t it?
I open my studio in June:
https://surreyopenstudios.org.uk/open-studio/georgie-rey/
https://www.instagram.com/georgierey/
Please pop in to say Hello, and chat about my VAA experience.”
P.S. Here is Georgie’s website and story
… and some of her wonderful art work
Invest in her work now before she gets too famous!
I started learning oil painting with VAA from scratch. Just one year later my paintings started to sell
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. I hope you find it useful. If you would like to get free painting tips by email, please sign up for my free tips newsletter.
If you are interested in a structured approach for learning how to paint, take a look at my online painting classes.
Happy painting!
Barry John Raybould
Virtual Art Academy
What The Students Are Saying
A great learning platform
I have been working my way through the Virtual Art Academy for almost a year now, and cannot recommend it highly enough. The Workshops are thorough, structured and substantive. There… Read more “A great learning platform”
It is wild to see how much I am learning in this course!
Five star rating from me for Virtual Art Academy (VAA)! I retired last year, and decided I wanted to spend my time in retirement learning how to oil paint. But… Read more “It is wild to see how much I am learning in this course!”
comprehensive art education
I wanted to get a comprehensive art education with the freedom to work at my own pace. I’m several years into the curriculum and I feel like my work has… Read more “comprehensive art education”
Only online learning program I have ever discovered using a training industry best practice
Before repurposing my vocation into avocation, I spent 20 years in the corporate world as an instructional designer and performance consultant creating training curricula for diverse clientele from NASA to… Read more “Only online learning program I have ever discovered using a training industry best practice”
The small steps are easy to do
I am extremely impressed with the process that Barry has developed for VAA. Learning to paint can be intimidating, but when broken into many small projects it is very do-able. … Read more “The small steps are easy to do”
An excellent foundation on so many aspects of painting
I never had formal training in painting and my style has always been very realistic, slow and not at all artistic, just a copy of a photograph. When I got… Read more “An excellent foundation on so many aspects of painting”
Barry gave me a fishing rod so I can catch my own fish
After weeks and even months of searching YouTube, “googling” and spending a fortune on art instructional books I finally came across the Virtual Art Academy®. When it comes to purchasing… Read more “Barry gave me a fishing rod so I can catch my own fish”
No need to buy expensive art books…. Just do the VAA 4 year course. I still refer to it
I finished the VAA course a few years ago, but always refer to the notes, rereading the course many times. This is not a course the day you are finished, you… Read more “No need to buy expensive art books…. Just do the VAA 4 year course. I still refer to it”
The equivalent of a 4 year art education at a fraction of the cost
This is a great course for anyone who is serious about improving their painting. I have been a student here for several years. When I am finished, I will have… Read more “The equivalent of a 4 year art education at a fraction of the cost”
Read about another Virtual Art Academy student, Meng Qing Sheng, who has had major success with a national exhibition in China.