Drawing Seaweed Workshop: A Celebration of Portobello's Coast with Annie Lord

Join artist Annie Lord for a mixed media drawing workshop exploring seaweed. This is a chance to explore Edinburgh’s coast, beginning with a session of outdoor sketching on Portobello Beach before moving inside for some focused drawing. In this workshop you will learn the close observational techniques of botanical illustration as well as expressive drawing techniques, shining a light on the exquisite structures and colours of seaweed. Experiment with inky washes, creative mark-making and layered imagery to capture the fluidity and transparency of seaweed.

All materials will be provided but feel free to bring along your favourite pencils, sketchbooks etc. Suitable for artists of all levels; from beginners through to those looking for a creative refresh.

A light lunch including plant-based homemade soup, and bread is included. 

Please make us aware of any access requirements you have, and we’ll do our best to advise and accommodate where possible. This workshop will take place both outdoors and inside. Please dress for the weather. In the event of heavy rain, we’ll bring our seaweed inside and sketch from there. Portobello Beach is around a five-minute walk from the Art Walk Projects office. We will be walking on pavements, sand and some rough ground.

About Annie Lord

Annie Lord is an artist, writer and facilitator. Her work explores how we interact with the physical world – transforming plants, animals and minerals into objects of artistic, scientific and domestic value. In 2024-25 she was the Connecting Threads Artist in Residence in Berwick-upon-Tweed, creating work to honour the 400th anniversary of Berwick Bridge.

The Neighbouring Orchard, a major ongoing artwork by Annie commissioned by Art Walk Projects, has seen a community of 200 apple trees planted out across Edinburgh’s coastal suburbs. The orchard marked its fifth anniversary in 2025. As a writer, Annie has written a book about The Neighbouring Orchard (published in 2022 by Art Walk Press) and completed her Masters in Creative Non-Fiction at Manchester Writing School. She was shortlisted for the 2023 Nan Shepherd Prize for underrepresented voices in nature writing and is currently developing her award-nominated manuscript, Morphoses.

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Booking Notes

Full tickets are priced at £85.

Please note we have two concessionary places available at £65 as part of this workshop, allocated to those on a low income, a student or unemployed.

Art Walk Friends' members are also entitled to a 10% discount when booking. As are those booking for both workshops with Annie Lord & Zoe Hamill. Please select the discounted rate when booking. If you intend to book for both workshops you do need to book places via each separate booking page. Should you be interested in signing up as an Art Walk Friend prior to booking please read more here

Please also read our cancellation policy in advance of booking. We can only offer full refunds for cancellations made at least 10 days in advance of the workshop date. Any other questions you have about this workshop including accessibility or dietary needs please email us at info@artwalkprojects.co.uk