Studio Courses with Rebecca
I have now relocated these courses to my local village hall so that we can spread out and have lots of space around us.
Days are grouped together to give people who travel a long way the chance to stay in local B & Bs.
Venue: Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High St, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
Tutor: Rebecca de Mendonca
Times: 10 to 4
Price: £90 per day
This includes materials, teas, coffee and biscuits but not lunch. There is a friendly community-run pub next to the hall, which provides hot and cold lunches, or you could bring your own packed lunch.
‘The art was most enjoyable and I feel that I have learnt a great deal, all credit to Rebecca for teaching me a totally new medium, and giving me the confidence to try new things.’ Angela of Cheam.
Please join my mailing list if you would like to hear about other courses. You can do that here.
Portraits in Pastels
One-day pastel course
Saturday 25th October 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
Portraits are such a joy to draw and paint, especially in pastels. They are complex but rewarding. It’s more than just drawing the features, there is a personality to discover within, and a mood to convey.
Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels for painting portraits, including lots of tips for drawing the structure, features, and finding the personality and mood. You will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
NB; we will be working from photographs on this day
You can bring your own reference, or Rebecca has a great selection of portrait reference available to use.
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities but NOT complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, pastel pencils, Pan pastels, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
You can book a place on this course HERE
Horses in Pastels
One-day pastel course
Sunday 26th October 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
Pastels are the perfect medium for drawing and painting horses. They lend themselves to loose work, capturing textures and movement.
Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels for painting portraits of horses, including lots of tips for drawing the structure, and finding the personality and mood. You will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
You can bring your own reference, or Rebecca will have a selection of reference available to use. Rebecca also has a few ‘kits’ that include reference, and a tracing to help you draw out the horse quickly, and a suggested colour palette. This can speed up what is a complicated process!
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities but NOT complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, pastel pencils, Pan pastels, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
You can book a place on this course HERE
The Coastal Path
One-day pastel course
Saturday 8th November 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
We have such a wonderful coastline, with so much to inspire us,
from the view up on the cliffs to the waves on the beach. On this course we will explore how to draw and paint the sea, cliffs, rocks or beaches. We will also look at composition and view-points.
Reference and materials will be provided but please bring your own reference if you have some.Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels for seascape paintings and coastal paintings, and then you will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities apart from complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
You can book a place on this course HERE
Figures in the Landscape
One-day pastel course
Sunday 9th November 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
We all know how enjoyable it is to go for a walk with great views, and we can capture our love of the landscape in our work. Putting figures in landscapes and street scenes is a great way to give our paintings a sense of scale, and to help people connect with our work.
Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels to create depth in landscape work, and also show lots of techniques for sketching figures loosely, and setting them within the landscapes. We will also look at putting figures in street scenes.
Then you will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
You can bring your own reference, or Rebecca will have a selection of reference available to use.
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities apart from complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
You can book a place on this course HERE
Light in the Landscape
One-day pastel course
Saturday 7th June 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
Soft pastels are a fantastic medium to capture light, atmosphere and tonal recession in the landscape. From bright sparkling summer days, to subtle winter light, and misty woodlands, this will be a day to really enjoy looking for the light.
Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels for landscape work, and then you will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
You can bring your own reference, or Rebecca will have a selection of reference available to use.
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities apart from complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
This course is now sold out, but please get in touch with Rebecca if you would like to go on the waiting list rebeccademendonca@gmail.com
Full of Energy – Animals in Pastels
One-day pastel course
Sunday 8th June 2025
10am to 4pm
Stoke Canon Jubilee Hall, High Street, Stoke Canon, EX5 4AP
It is an absolute joy to draw and paint animals with soft pastels. Textures, movement, personality, and form are such fun to capture. Pastels lend themselves to work that is full of looseness and energy, more than just a copy of a photograph!
Rebecca will start the day with a demonstration of how she uses pastels for animal work, focussing on dogs, although you are welcome to draw whatever animal inspires you. You will spend the rest of the day working on one or two pieces of your own, with continued help and examples from Rebecca.
You can bring your own reference, or Rebecca will have a selection of reference available to use.
This will be a course to suit all drawing abilities apart from complete beginners. Everyone can progress at a pace they are happy with.
Materials are included in the course fee. We will be using Unison Pastels, charcoal, and a variety of surfaces. You are welcome to bring your own materials if you prefer to use them. We will have plenty of room to spread out in the hall.
Photographic reference Please bring your own reference photographs to work from, but don’t worry if you do not have any, as I have quite a lot to choose from!
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided during the day , but lunch is not provided on this course.
Price £90, including materials.
This course is now sold out, but please get in touch with Rebecca if you would like to go on the waiting list rebeccademendonca@gmail.com
Tailor made days
If there are a group of up to 6 of you, you can arrange a day to suit yourselves, either with a specific theme, or for people to develop their skills with the subject matter to suit each one.
Price £390 per day for the group, including materials, if you supply the venue.
Please email or call Rebecca rebeccademendonca@gmail.com if you have any questions