News: Layers of Light: Simon Bishop’s Landscape Demo

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Demo held: Monday, 13 April, 2026

Talented LAS member Simon Bishop took us through his approach to using water-mixable oil paints, which he uses in both landscapes and portraiture.

Two abstract landscape paintings on easels in a gallery room, with muted whites, golds, and gray-blue tones

Simon began with a quick landscape sketch on white-emulsioned MDF, then built depth and atmosphere with a trowel and brushes, using clean water to soften edges and guide the viewer’s eye with light.

With a small trowel, Simon added detail and perspective. Then refined the foreground colour and mid-ground copse colour with a small flat brush. Next, changing to a big, soft brush, the existing colours were moved around using clean water and broad strokes. Removing hard lines and directing the viewer’s eye with light, with focus on the copse and fence posts.

For his second piece, Simon painted Storm Over St. James Church, using the same method to even greater effect.

Starting with rough sketches, he blocked in the main shapes and colours, introduced rays of light, then blended and adjusted layers as the paint dried to refine the church tower and surrounding landscape.

A thoroughly enjoyable and informative evening.

Artist painting on a canvas in front of an audience, with a camera on a tripod recording.

Person in green sweater standing beside a canvas on an easel, painting in a room

A lone tree on a pale golden hillside beneath a cloudy sky with greenish and yellow tones.

Abstract misty landscape in warm gold and brown tones with faint trees and a small tower near the center

The Artist

A member of the Lawrence Society, Simon has developed a distinctive technique for using water-mixable oil paints, which he uses for both portrait and landscape paintings.

See more of Simon's paintings on Facebook.

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