Successful food illustrator visits The Castle School Community Adult Art Workshop

Following in the path of local artists Joyce Pinch, Terry Culpan and Joy Moorhead, Emma Dibben gave a class at the Castle School’s Octagon art gallery for the school’s community adult art workshop. Emma has recently exhibited at the gallery along with Rupert Morley, both are young illustrators and graduates of Falmouth College of Art with their own distinctive and contrasting styles. The artist’s name may not be instantly recognizable, however, if you have visited a Waitrose supermarket recently you will almost certainly have encountered her work as it is Emma’s vibrant food illustrations that adorn the supermarket’s Essential products range not to mention their ‘bag for life’, various promotions and adverts – and it all started, she says, from an illustration of a humble beetroot at college!

Following a drawing demonstration Emma showed us her quirky use of ink and paint, something of a trademark, along with her step by step guide to the finished product. We all then 'had a go',be it a study of a prawn or a bulb of garlic, under the able tuition of Emma and the class’s regular tutor, Castle art teacher Andrea Hazlehurst, who with her patience and good humour has guided her not so youthful pupils along their own creative path!Emma in the tradition of former artists in residence has also been working with Castle pupils. Such is the popularity of the adult workshop that from the 5th November an extra class will start on Thursday evenings at the Octagon gallery from 6.00pm to 8.00pm. with tuition by local artist Shirley Sharp. There are some places remaining so if you would like to have a go in a lovely setting, and for a nominal sum on a ‘pay as you go’ basis, then why not contact the Castle school for details? 

If you missed the exhibition, examples of Emma Dibben and Rupert Morley’s work can be seen at the Nails Gallery ,entrance to St Nicholas Market, Corn Street, Bristol.