The experience of drawing a portrait is a vital expression of personal observation and creativity – and it’s really fun! More than capturing a likeness, every finished portrait has a story hidden inside. New to portraits, or drawing from life? This is the perfect workshop to introduce yourself to drawing portraits in charcoal, drawing portraits from life, or to sharpen your skills at more advanced portrait techniques! This is also a great refresher workshop if you plan to take a more extended journey into drawing portraits.
On the first day we will focus on skill building: learn or sharpen your skills at drawing features and the proportions of the face, how to see shape rather than detail, practice creativity in a fun introduction to drawing from life, and finally - enjoy drawing portraits from excellent photographic references!
On the second day, we will continue learning more advanced techniques, and enjoy drawing from live models! Explore why and how both life drawing and photographic references are vital to creating insightful portraits. Learn or advance your skills at making compositional choices, creating shapes by measuring precisely, identifying values, and defining forms with shading, shadows, and light. Practice using lines to enhance the drawing, but not as the focus. Demonstrations throughout the workshop will illustrate a variety of expressive charcoal drawing techniques to incorporate dimension, emotion, painterly aesthetics, and unique textures.
Model fees will be collected by the instructor on the first day. All materials- compressed and vine charcoal, charcoal pencils, paper, boards, and more- will be provided. We will take a break each day, so bring a drink and a snack. Come enjoy this opportunity to improve your portrait skills and express yourself creatively in a fun, relaxed environment- all levels welcome!