Art Project course gallery No. 5

Art Project: Here Be Dragons…

Our starting point this week was the feast of England’s patron saint, Saint George, which was on Thursday 23 April.

Christian iconography depicts Saint George as a soldier or knight either fighting or accompanied by a dragon in line with the legend of the saint who allegedly fought and killed a dragon, later converting the locals terrorised by the beast. George is later martyred for his faith on April 23 303.

Saint George has been depicted by artists since the 5th century yet the idea of dragons exist long before and can be found in ancient and contemporary cultures and religions across the world where the creature appears in a number of variations. Whilst dragons were dreaded in some societies, in others there were worshipped and revered as mystical messengers or symbols of good fortune.

Dragons have also popped up in pop culture in a number of guises – from Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwock and Tolkein’s gold-hungry Smaug through to Peter, Paul and Mary’s 1962 hit Puff The Magic Dragon and the Hungarian Horntail in J.K. Rowling‘s Harry Potter saga. Some dragons follow convention and are shown as a large, scaled, winged reptile that breathes fire, whilst other dragons deviate from the usual depictions having human characteristics or features from other animals…

Here’s a selection of artwork and prepatory studies made by some of the Art Project course artists taking part in the project.

Look out for another gallery of work coming soon…

Lorna Howell – St George and the Covid-19 Dragon Acrylic on paper

Lorna Howell – Saint Without Boundaries – Patron Saint of 10 Countries, Beloved of Icon Painters and Tattoo Artists Alike Lino cut, acrylic and collage

Jane Goddard – St. George and the Dragon Acrylic on paper

Dieter – Georgia and the Dragon Graphite and acrylic on paper

Dieter – The Red Dragon Acrylic on paper

Jill T. – St George Slaying The Dragon Watercolour on paper

Jill T. – Celtic Dragon Ink and acrylic on paper

Tony Townshend – The Truce Acrylic on paper

Lynn Laws – God for Harry, England and St George (Henry V)
Mixed media

Lynn Laws – Riding on the Back of a Winged Dragon
Mixed media

Lynn Laws – Beware the Darkness of Dragons
(Tui T. Sutherland)
Mixed media

Maurice Prendergast – From the Red Book of Hergest,  The Mabinogion
Mixed media

Harriet – Fiddling While Rome Burns Collage: paper on paper, pen and acrylic

Harriet –  Greek Vase Dragon (after 6th Century BC Greek vase) Wax crayon, watercolour and graphite on paper

Harriet – Eyes Shut Dragon Ink on paper

Harriet – Tree Dragon Watercolour and ink on paper

Jill C. – Dragonfly Watercolour on paper

Jill C.- Dragon
Watercolour on paper

Christie Archer – Dragon Tattoo Watercolour sketch

Christie Archer – Dragon Tattoo Digital design

SRW – Yellow Dragon I (After Milen Tod) Gouache on watercolour paper

SRW – Yellow Dragon II (After Milen Tod) Gouache on watercolour paper

Chris – Draco Hybrida Watercolour and graphite on paper

Jo Melhuish – Red Dragon Ink on paper