Our Live Lizard Draw-along Art Retreat Special Replay
Monday 24th February 6.30pm GMT
Edit: Please find the reference photos and replay below
Dear Reader,
Watch to find out more about the Lizard and hear from our guests Susan and Geoff Negus of Penmenner House and Rona/Elsa Amiss of Tregullas Farm who will be sharing their experiences of living and working in this beautiful wild landscape.
They also will be helping to host our Lizard art retreat which is happening at the end of April and I thought this would be a great opportunity to chat with them further and come with any questions you have regarding the retreat.
Update: Our retreat is now open to day visitors to see pricing please visit here.
The structure of the event will be to introduce you to the area, chat with our guests about what they do, what brought them here whilst I lead you through a series of drawing exercises to capture elements of the Lizard landscape including aspects of what you’d expect to see if you joined us on retreat.
The recording of the event will be available to watch for 7 days before going into the paid archives.
Photo References
Lizard Lighthouse Lizard Lighthouse was built by private entrepreneur Thomas Fonnereau in 1752, marking the most southerly point of mainland Britain. Read more here.
Lloyds Signal Station opened in 1872 to pass messages to ships arriving in the English Channel, with removed the need for ships to call at Falmouth. Read more about it here.
The Marconi huts at Bass point in January 1901, were simple wooden huts, where Marconi received a transmission from the Isle of Wight over 180 miles away, proving that radio would work over the horizon – something that many scientists thought impossible. Read more here.
This Old Lifeboat house is the third one built at Polpeor Cove and like the others before closed due to the severity of the storms and waves in this area. A RNLI lifeboat station is now stationed a mile or so up the coast in the more sheltered cove of Kilcobben.
Share you sketches on Instagram and tag us in- @penmennerhouse @tregullasfarm @melanie_chadwick
PS. Our Art Retreat is now open for day visitors click the link to find out more.
The dates, time and place
22nd-25th April 2025
Arrival 3pm Tuesday 22nd April
Departure after lunch on Friday 25th April
Penmenner House Lizard, Cornwall
Here is what you can expect from the stay:
Luxury en-suite accommodation with stunning sea views from the house
Cream tea on arrival day
Cooked or continental breakfast every morning
3 Light lunches
3 Evening meals with local produce and talks
Walks everyday
Art Technique sessions and time to sketch both in and out of your sketchbooks with a mix of media
One to one time with Mel and art feedback and encouragement
4 Sketch walks with handmade sketchbooks
Opportunity to explore, connect, understand and capture the Lizard landscape within a small intimate group
Penmenner House is run by Lizard based couple Susan and Geoff and over the last 8 years they have created a beautiful, calming space to retreat to. They are literally nose to nose with the sea making it the perfect spot to adventure from and be inspired by.
They will be providing all the en-suite accommodation for your stay, a cream tea on arrival and the first evening meal using locally sourced produce. Each morning they will cook your breakfast and will be providing light lunches for each day. Tea, coffee and refreshments will be made available throughout your stay.
Accommodation limited to 5 rooms -4 double and 1 twin. Guests are welcome to bring non-sketching partners for a room supplement and join for meals and evening talks.
See the choice of rooms here.
Spaces are limited and provided on a first come, first served basis. Susan and Geoff will deal with all your accommodation and dietary enquiries directly.
Day passes are now available to purchase if you are local and prefer to drive in each day- please get in touch directly with me to ask about prices and what’s included.
Robin Bates a local writer will be our guest speaker at our first meal of the retreat. Robin has authored many local books on the area and walks around the area. He has seasoned knowledge on tales, legends and history of the Lizard and is fascinating to listen to.
The group loved listening to his stories last time that we just had to book him again!
Tregullas Farm is run by the Amiss family and they manage the National Trust farmland all around Lizard point. They will be hosting us for our second evening meal, providing a hearty dinner using their own grass fed lamb/beef produce. You’ll get to hear about their farming methods, products and how they steward the most southerly farm on the Lizard peninsula. We ate in the barn which had been strung up with fairy lights and we could watch the visiting swallows coming in to nest as we ate.
The final evening meal will be held in another local establishment and we’ll be celebrating and toasting the time and work that has been created over the retreat and getting chance to catch up with everyone and relax.
Melanie Chadwick - that’s me- artist and illustrator and lover of sketching on location around the Lizard Peninsula. I will be leading you in daily sketch walks (either morning or afternoon), art techniques and demos. I’ll be bringing a range of materials for you to try and we will be making work both inside and outside of our sketchbooks.
