Landscape Abstracts in Acrylics for Beginners - Southwell Library - Adult Learning

Whether you're a beginner or looking to explore a more intuitive, personal way of painting, this course will help you discover the freedom and creativity of landscape abstraction in acrylics.

Move beyond realistic representation and discover a more contemporary approach to landscape painting in this inspiring acrylic painting course. Using colour, texture, expressive brushwork, and simplified forms, you'll learn how to capture the essence and atmosphere of a landscape rather than every detail.

Through demonstrations, practical exercises, and guided projects, you'll explore abstract landscape techniques while developing your own creative style and confidence. This course is suitable for learners who want to loosen their approach, experiment with new ideas, and create bold, expressive landscape paintings. You’ll explore ways to loosen up your approach to painting, using brushwork, layering and mark-making to express mood, energy, and emotion on the canvas.

Each week will focus on a different theme or technique—from bold colour palettes and dynamic compositions to exploring contrast, rhythm, and surface texture. You'll be encouraged to try new methods and take creative risks in a supportive, relaxed environment.

Resources Required:

Acrylic or watercolour paper A3 pad

White acrylic gesso

40x 50cm or A4 stretched canvas

Acrylic paint (Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine Blue, Cobalt Blue, Magenta, Cadmium Red, Titanium White)

Synthetic brushes

Funding and Fees

If you receive certain benefits, you may be able to take the course for free.
If money is stopping you from enrolling, please visit our funding page to see what help is available.

Living in England

To book and join one of our courses, you must live in England permanently and either:

• Live inside the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) area (Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire)

or

• Live outside the devolved areas listed below

You cannot enrol if you live in these devolved areas:

•    Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)
•    Liverpool City Region Combined Authority

• Greater London Authority
•    North East Combined Authority
•    South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
•    Tees Valley Combined Authority
•    West Midlands Combined Authority
•    West of England Combined Authority
•    West Yorkshire Combined Authority
•    Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority
•    York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority
•    Hull and East Yorkshire
•    Greater Lincolnshire
•    Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority
•    Cornwall Council
•    Lancashire Combined County Authority
•    Buckinghamshire

• Warwickshire

• Surrey

Residency Requirements (Additional Information)

If you live in the UK on a visa, we’ll need evidence of your visa to confirm funding. You can upload this when applying, and you’ll need to complete a short questionnaire.

Some exceptions include:

• Your visa must last until after your course ends.

• Asylum seekers must have lived in the UK for at least 6 months while their claim is being processed.

• You are supported by your local authority under Section 23C or 23CA of the Children Act 1989, or under the Care Act 2014.

Anyone who does not meet the funding criteria would need to pay full course fees.