Portrait Drawing (Spring)

Suitable for beginners and those with some experience. You will draw from a clothed portrait model and work either sitting or standing at an easel.

A course which focuses on drawing the head – developing a greater understanding of proportions and capturing character.

You will learn about the architecture of the head, neck and facial features and how the underlying structure influences the surface form. By the end of the course you should be able to depict the head from different viewpoints using a selection of different materials and approaches.

Core Skills
– Proportions of head and facial features.
– Observing and drawing tilts and angles of the head.
– Plasticine sculpture to understand the form of the head from multiple angles.
– Discovering shapes and planes.
– Experimenting with pen line inspired by the work of other artists.
– Exploring different compositional strategies for a portrait.

Materials
Pencils H, HB, 2B, 4B, 6B, pencil sharpener or scalpel, 2 bulldog clips, masking tape, willow charcoal (box of mixed size/thicknesses). A pad of A3 or A4 cartridge paper, putty rubber or ordinary eraser, monozero wedge-shaped pencil eraser, 3 sheets of A3 or A2 mid-toned paper (e.g. brown, grey, beige, blue), 1 or 2 sheets of black paper, 2 (minimum) coloured pencils, 4 sheets of A3 tracing paper, conte or pastel pencil in white and black, two blocks of newplast plasticine, plastic knife or scalpel, biro, black or dark-coloured fibre-tipped drawing pens in at least 2 different nib-widths.

Optional: lighter-coloured pen, dip pen and bottle of dark-coloured ink, Conte sticks or chalk Any other personally preferred materials. Experienced students are welcome to incorporate materials of their choice.

Tutor
Emily Burton

Dates
10 weeks from 10 January 2024
10, 17, 24, 31 January 7, 21, 28 February 6, 13, 20 March