Abstract Painting and Mixed Media

Abstract Painting and Mixed Media starts at Exeter Phoenix on Thursday 12 November, a five-week course that runs through to 10 December. It's held in the Top Studio, with sessions on the 12th, 19th, 26th of November and the 3rd and 10th of December, each from 10.30am to 1pm. The whole thing is built around abstract landscape, and you'll be working with paint, charcoal, pastels and inks.

The focus is on working freely and experimenting with different materials, so it's more about the process than getting a perfect result. You'll be mixing those different media across the five weeks, moving between paint and charcoal, pastels and ink, and seeing how they play off each other. It's an abstract approach to landscape, so you're not aiming for a literal view, but for the feeling and the colour of a place.

Liese Webley leads the course. She's a practising artist whose colourful abstract paintings have been exhibited nationally, and a qualified art teacher who runs creative workshops for adults and children. She describes herself as passionate about sharing her love of colour and exploring abstraction in an informal, fun way, which sets the tone for the sessions.

Exeter Phoenix is a multi-artform venue in the city centre, hosting live music, theatre, cinema, contemporary art, dance and comedy, with a solar-powered cinema, Studio 74, and a Creative Hub for the local arts scene. Workshop attendees get 10% off food and hot drinks at the Café Bar. The course costs £135, or £115 for concessions, subject to a £1.50 ticketing system charge.