Winged Thoughts of the Divine Mind: Angels in a Mystical Landscape

About this course

The course examines angelic imagery from ancient, medieval and early Renaissance art alongside Cecil Collins’s personal vision, considering wings, sacred space and the relationship between earthly and spiritual realms. Participants develop an imaginative landscape through guided two-handed drawing studies and music, then introduce a winged form into the composition. The finished drawing is transferred to a gesso panel for painting in translucent egg tempera, with precise detail work and colour harmony studies informed by Collins’s teaching.

What you'll learn

• Analyse selected historical and modern representations of angels in relation to sacred space
• Develop an imaginative landscape through guided drawing and mark-making studies
• Transfer a drawing onto a gesso panel for further development
• Apply translucent egg tempera and precise marks to build a finished painting
• Explore colour relationships through harmony studies

Is this course right for you?

The course is listed as suitable for all levels. It combines guided studies with personal interpretation of landscape and winged forms, making it relevant to learners willing to engage with imaginative and symbolic subject matter.

• Includes both structured guidance and individual visual interpretation
• Engages with spiritual, symbolic and art-historical ideas alongside practical painting

Before you go

• Course work uses quill and reed pens, Chinese brushes, ink, Conte red crayon, charcoal and pencils.
• The painting process involves a gesso panel and translucent egg tempera.