Craft Work (From Crewe Guardian)

Craft Work

10:25am Wednesday 9th April 2008 in Lifestyle By Gina Bebbington

IT IS a craft that has been handed down through the generations. But despite dying out elsewhere, it is still alive and well on the canals of mid Cheshire. Take a stroll along the waterways and you will see the distinctive bright motifs of canal art that have been used by barge owners for more than 150 years.

Sharon Richardson has been teaching the techniques to budding artists at Sir John Deane's College for seven years.

She said: "I very much like the fact that it's a traditional craft passed down for hundreds of years and I like the colours.

"It's a dying art and I like the fact I can keep it going."

Often, the focus for the art is floral designs such as roses, daisies, leaves and other embellishments and the technique itself is fairly straightforward.

The painting is done in stages, from simple circle shapes for the flowers and teardrop shapes for the leaves to sweeping brush strokes to define petals and leaf veins and the correct colour combinations are vital.

"There is always that moment in a class when everyone looks at one another and thinks ‘we’re not going to be able to do that’"

The three colours of rose are red, yellow and white and each has its corresponding background colour, which you use for the initial circle stage.

So each red rose begins with a brown circle, yellow roses with an orange circle and white roses with a pink circle.

Once the first layer of paint has dried completely you build up shading and then finally add the sweeping petals in the main colour and yellow stamen.

Sharon said: "There's always that moment in a class when people first come and you show them what they're going to do and everyone looks at each other and thinks we know we're not going to be able to do that'.

"But because you build up stage by stage you build confidence - you start by painting a circle or a teardrop so people become more confident with the brushes and paints and everyone is pleased with the results."

The earliest written reference to narrowboat painting is in 1858 and it is thought that it began in or around Manchester.

There are a number of suggestions as to how it started and one of the most popular is that boat owners used floral motifs because they could not have a real garden while they were afloat.

Some join the class because they are narrowboat owners themselves and want to learn more.

Student Philip Renshaw said: "I have two boats and always intended to have a go at this by myself.

"But the course is much better and I've learned more doing this than playing about at it at home.

"You feel yourself getting better and I'll certainly be decorating my boats now."