Masterclass Series 2026: Colour and Composition with Michael Muir

Join Michael Muir for an intimate, 5-hour masterclass as he shares his unique insights, skills and distinctive approach to painting vibrant landscapes. With a focus on the elements of colour, form and composition, participants will paint their preferred landscape, it may be urban, coastal or rural.

Michael will demonstrate preliminary techniques for using gouache or acrylic and explore the simplification of shapes, harmonising colour and tone, and consider forms within the picture. Discussion will also cover aspects of composition and the various approaches possible.

Participants will be led through initial drawing and painting studies then develop their own work with the aim of completing a study in colour alongside line and tone compositional drawings.

This session will take place in the gallery alongside the exhibition, Michael Muir: The Shape of Colour .

Session includes a light lunch and tea/coffee and will be limited to 15 participants only. All levels of experience welcome. Please advise of any dietary requirements.

Please bring:

• All your own materials

• A photograph/s or printed picture/s for your reference. Images may be of your preferred landscape - perhaps something of meaning to you. It may be urban, coastal or rural and include figures.

Suggested materials:

You can work with either acrylic or gouache

·       Gouache or acrylic paint: primary colours, black and white (and other colours as you like)

·       Surface: Watercolour paper – A3 size (if using gouache). Primed canvas board (if using acrylics) 16 x 12 inch is a good size.

·       Small sketch book or loose A4 sheets of paper

·       Brushes and / or small palette knife (depending on which medium you’re working with)

·       Pencil / eraser

·       Masking tape (low tack)

Easels, boards, small palettes, water containers etc provided.

About Michael Muir

Michael Muir lives and works on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, and is known for his contemporary landscapes depicting streetscapes, architecture and plant life that are distinctly Australian. Honing his studio skills through formal studies in painting and graphic design, Muir reinterprets the landscape in a simplified manner with a distinctive perspective on geometry, landscape, and architecture. Colour, light and composition continue to be driving forces within his paintings. Muir has exhibited widely and was the winner of the Mosman Art Prize 2014 and has been a finalist in a number of awards over the past decade including the Wynne, Sulman and Fleurieu Art Prizes. His work is represented in Australia’s Artbank collection, Parliament House Art Collection and private collections throughout Australia and Internationally.

Pricing

$195.00 General

$175.50 MAG&M Society

Image: Michael Muir, Modern times (detail), 2018. Courtesy the artist.