Artists learn their true colours

Lending colour: Students weren't afraid to get messy during the Colour: An art workshop course.

Paul Birchall's five-day Summer School course focuses on perhaps the most important medium in art: colour.

Colour: An art workshop, which runs from 17 to 21 January, is a practical course aimed at giving students a greater understanding of the nature of colour, how the brain perceives it and how artists can use this to enhance their work.

"Colour judgement is among the most difficult challenges for any artist," says Birchall. "Whether it be Picasso's blue period or Jackson Pollock's black and white paintings, throughout art history artists have favoured particular colours and developed personal signatures with their palettes."

The course is almost entirely hands-on, and students use a variety of techniques and methods, with particular attention paid to balance and composition. Designed for artists from beginner to expert, the course leaves students with a greater understanding of the subtleties of mixing colour, using harmonic colour palettes and discordant juxtapositions.