A day long event to practice art in the setting of Abbott’s Hall nature reserve the headquarters of Essex Wildlife Trust at Great Wigborough, led by artists Sarah Hill and Tertia Ringwood on Sunday 7th September 2025, 11am - 4pm.
This is a rare opportunity to participate in a visual Celebration of Summer in the setting of Essex Wildlife Trust’s Abbott’s Hall and the beautiful 700 acres of natural habitat. Creating art indoors and outside, this structured day of workshops is about connecting people to natural spaces and the habitats that flourish.
Come and explore the visual delights that this rewilding project offers. Discover the reclaimed salt marsh coastline, the abundance of emerging plant species and witness the range of animals that thrive here. Let nature teach us something about our art making as we play our part in the Wildlife Trust’s Strategy for 2030 to do more for nature and learn how to have less impact on the natural environment.
Who would be interested in this art day
This day is for anyone interested in exploring a range of ‘hands-on’ art workshops including the practices and techniques of drawing and painting. Both beginners who might welcome some guidance from Sarah and Tertia and also practicing artists who wish to develop at their own pace.
Sarah and Tertia will lead and facilitate the workshops across the day. You will choose your media from paints, pastels, charcoal and inks to record the rewilding landscape of saltmarsh coastline, life drawing and explore natural form. Our primary endeavour is to explore how we might examine our human impact on the natural world by discovering how nature flourishes and reveals its beauty when left to do so.
What to expect
Workshops include life drawing, observational study of natural form and also landscape painting. All the activities will take place inside a studio environment, ‘en plein air with easels and working outdoors as well as in a bird hide. A superb home cooked lunch will be included and participants can eat together, sharing their experiences of the day. Refreshments at mid-morning and afternoon will also be served. You will have an indoor base where you can safely leave your artworks and belongings. Toilets and seating areas are accessible throughout the day. Parking is plentiful. The day is fully accessible for wheelchair users.
What’s in it for me
Immediate self-discovery through own personal visual record of the day with the longer-term aim of enhancing our own relationship to the natural world.
