Life Drawing Skills Class with Ralph Nel

Join Ralph Nel for a special six-part course, learning new techniques and refining them during the course.

Session 1 – Friday 3rd July, 2pm - 4pm

The basics: including getting set up effectively, tips to do this and considering where you would like to be located in the room. We’ll explore effective ‘mapping out’ of our drawings and using a straight edge to help make accurate mapped drawings.

Session 2 - Friday 7th August, 2pm - 4pm

Building upon the mapping out from Session 1, we’ll look at breaking down the figure into basic shapes, ‘negative space’ or the spaces between and around the figure.

Session 3 - Friday 4th September, 2pm - 4pm

Units of measurement: we'll take an in-depth look at units of measurement, and the process for identifying and applying them accurately.

Session 4 - Friday 2nd October, 2pm - 4pm

Process: this session will explore how we weave together what we’ve learned into a step-by-step process. We'll look at where we might apply one technique, or another, and how that benefits our drawing.

Session 5 - Friday 6th November, 2pm - 4pm

Refinement: we'll consciously review the techniques and tips from the previous sessions and aim to combine them during our drawing process.

Session 6 - Friday 4th December, 2pm - 4pm

Refinement: a long-form pose. This session will apply everything we’ve learned to drawing a single, long-form pose. The model will have periodic breaks for rest, but other than that we will have time to apply and refine the use of mapping, shape identification, and units of measurement to complete an accurate rendering of our model.

Materials will be provided but you are welcome to bring your own if you have a preferred method. Tickets are non-refundable. Classes are for adults only.

Ralph Nel is a Plymouth-based artist and drawing teacher with over 10 years of experience. They specialise in historical drawing methods, a range of drawing techniques, and believe that anyone can draw. There is no such thing as a 'good' drawing, simply a good chance to learn something new or expand on a skill you enjoy.