***Special one-off demo: speed-painting on a giant scale, inspired by local history and legend***

Lois Cordelia will return to Colchester on Saturday 28th May 2016 (10.00 am - 4.00 pm) to present a special all-day live speed-painting demo, inspired by the legendary Celtic Iceni warrior queen Boudicca (alternatively known as Boadicea).

Boudicca famously led a powerful uprising against the Roman occupying forces, which came close to forcing them to withdraw from Britain. The Romans had ignored her deceased husband's will, annexed her people's lands, raped her daughters and had her flogged in public. In AD 60 or 61, she led an army of the Iceni and other tribes in revolt. They marched on Camulodunum (modern day Colchester, which the Romans had previously taken over and made into a settlement), and destroyed it. They went on to destroy Londinium (London) and Verulamium (St Alban's), before the Roman governor Suetonius was eventually able to regroup his forces and defeat the Iceni queen. Boudicca is thought to have taken her own life. To this day, she is celebrated for her courage and defiance in the face of violent oppression.

Lois will create a large mural-scale painting on canvas, featuring a larger-than-life size portrait inspired by Queen Boudicca. The painting will be superimposed over an existing canvas that currently features abstract geometric patterns in bold colours. Lois often paints over existing imagery, creatively exploiting its expressive potential to contribute to her new work in surprising ways. When she saw the bold patterns on the canvas to be painted over, they inspired her to tackle the dramatic subject of the defiant warrior queen, who has been a lifelong inspiration.

The portrait is not intended as an historically accurate portrayal of Boudicca, though it should capture something of her spirit. Lois's model for Boudicca will be Kaz Garrad.

The finished painting will be hung in the stairwell at Tindalls, adjacent to Lois's painting of Trinity Street (on which the art shop is located).

Intrigued? Come along and watch the painting take shape on Saturday 28th May, at Tindalls, Colchester. Drop by any time between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm, to see Lois in action, ask questions, and be inspired. Lois welcomes an audience, and is more than happy to talk while she paints.

Free entry. All warmly welcome. And don't forget to make the most of instore discounts on relevant art materials on the day!

Lois at work on a much smaller scale, painting "The Three Ages of Woman", during a painting demo at Ely in January 2016.

Venue: Tindalls Art & Graphics, 25 Trinity Street, COLCHESTER CO1 1JN. Tel 01206 579729

Date: Saturday 28th May 2016. Times: 10.00 - 16.00.

Lois Cordelia at work on her painting of Trinity Street, Colchester, November 2015, during a speed-painting demo at Tindalls art shop (which appears in the painting, at far right). The finished painting now hangs in the stairwell at the shop, where the completed Boudicca inspired canvas (twice the size of this one) will also be displayed after May 28th.