During the winter I teach a ten week course, thirty hours, of drawing. We meet for three hours once a week. There is a process
for teaching drawing, an approach that I have developed over many years. My feeling is anyone can learn how to draw. Maybe not like Da Vinci but in
a way that allows for some satisfying work. We begin with various approaches to line and work toward a focused and solid rendering of form with shadow and light. Our primary subjects are still life and the figure. We explore various black and
white media during the program including graphite, charcoal, black wash, conté, and the participants can experiment with colour if they chose. I thought it would be informative to post some of the work that has been done recently.
Just yesterday, during a still life class, we talked about
how a bowl, a timeless form, holding a few pears can still be lovely and challenging to draw. Drawing itself
is a timeless practice and one that can reward the participant with the kind of
relaxation that comes from being totally focused on a task at hand and for a while
forgetting and letting go of all the noise that occupies the busy urban mind. And over
time, seeing one’s skills develop and looking at the fine drawings one has made
gives the participants a sense of accomplishment and pride in the hard work they have done
to achieve what once seemed like a goal that was out of reach.
