Artists & Illustrators is the UK’s best-selling magazine for artists and art lovers, providing advice and inspiration every month. Published for almost 25 years, each issue of Artists & Illustrators contains a colourful palette of profiles and features, together with valuable practical ideas, expert technical advice and useful product tests. Whether you favour oils or watercolours, portraits or landscapes, abstract art or botanical illustration, Artists & Illustrators brings a refreshing blend of creativity and advice every four weeks throughout the year.

Welcome • AN ARTIST'S STUDIO IS WHERE MAGIC HAPPENS

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Exhibitions • FEBRUARY'S BEST ART SHOWS

SCREEN TEST • AINE DIVINE suggests six things to consider when booking an online art course

SKETCHBOOK SKETCHBOOK

Fresh Paint • Inspiring new artworks, straight off the easel

PORTFOLIO PLUS

MASTERS at work • Exploring the workspaces of Old Masters and modern artists is a great way to learn about their lives and their craft. We picked out 12 of the best that you can visit

CARVING OUT A NICHE • THREE GREAT SCULPTORS’ STUDIOS TO EXPLORE

TOOLS OF THE TRADE • ARTIST PAUL RAFFERTY ON WHY HE COLLECTS PALETTES AND EASELS USED BY THE MASTERS

The Working Artist • Taking commissions can be fun, challenging and lucrative. Our columnist LAURA BOSWELL shares her tips for making them run smoothly

MARY NEWCOMB • This self-confessed “country artist” developed a cult following for her post-war paintings of everyday life. KATIE MCCABE revisits the inspirations behind her art

THE VIKING CRUISES BRITISH ART PRIZE 2021 • ENTER THIS MAJOR NEW OPEN ART COMPETITION WITH PRIZES WORTH MORE THAN £10,000

ENTER FOR FREE • Members of Portfolio Plus can enter the British Art Prize 2021 free of charge

Mark Entwisle • REBECCA BRADBURY about being a frustrated oil painter and working in his “man cave” garden studio

LIGHT and SHADE • Finding variety in repeated forms is the key to creating interesting pictures. FABIO CEMBRANELLI shows you how with a gorgeous wisteria-covered doorway in France

Fabio’s materials

Reflections • Shiny and see-through surfaces are a daunting challenge to replicate, so the Pastel Society’s LIZ BALKWILL has set an exercise that will help you simplify the process

TELLING STORIES • Urban sketcher ISABEL CARMONA ANDREU shows how adding texts and setting themes can improve the usefulness of your drawings

Drawing FUR • Wildlife artist JASON MORGAN has spent more than 20 years perfecting his technique for rendering animal fur. Discover his simple, three-stage approach with stunning results

REFERENCE IMAGES

1. LANDSCAPE painting • In the first of a three-part series on composing paintings, AL GURY begins by introducing a more responsive approach to landscapes with his 15-step guide to success

WATERCOLOUR TEXTURES • ROB DUDLEY shows you how to build up a vocabulary of painting techniques to describe the textures found in wintry British landscapes

FINAL PAINTING • UP ON THE BEACON, WATERCOLOUR ON TWO RIVERS ROUGH 300GSM PAPER, 45X25CM

BACK TO the future • Short of inspiration during lockdown, MATT JEANES needed a new challenge. He turned to vintage photographs and tried to add some fresh colour to forgotten images of the past

FFIONA LEWIS • A new studio has brought new challenges and big opportunities for this architect-turned-artist as she scales up to make her largest and most ambitious paintings yet

Tom HOVEY • The Great British Bake Off illustrator on drawing for TV, laughing at cakes and his three inspirations.