Life Drawing & Portraiture Courses - Online & London
Life drawing shows you how to see and interpret the structure and proportions of the human form through observation of the unclothed live model. It’s a fantastic discipline that can underpin all other drawing practices.
Whether you’re interested in the technical and analytical aspects of scale, volume and methods of measurement or a more intuitive, expressive approach, there are classes to suit all levels and approaches. Beginners are introduced to simple, user-friendly exercises to make the complexities of figure drawing fun and accessible to all.
If you’re a more experienced student, you can explore a more personal approach, experiment with materials and work with dynamic and challenging poses. A fascinating aspect of life drawing is the portrait, using the same skills to develop character and likeness of the individual face through focusing on structure, volume and expression.
Courses available both in-person and online
At City Lit, you can choose to study in-person or online. Our fantastic in-person courses are taught in our attractive campus, located in the heart of Covent Garden, central London. Here, our students can benefit from a variety of services and resources, including our café and state-of-the art equipment.
Our online courses are tailored to give you a social and interactive online learning experience, allowing you freedom to study from anywhere and with like-minded fellow classmates from all over the country without the need to travel. Use the Location filters on this page to choose your preferred learning method. See our guide to online learning for more information about accessing our live online courses.
For more information about courses available, please contact our Visual Arts team at visualarts@citylit.ac.uk
- Portraits 1Course start date: Mon 12 Sep 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Brian SayersThis course aims to introduce you to this fascinating genre in both drawing and painting portraits through practical experience of the basic skills and concepts involved, including structure and proportion of the head and features, tone, colour, pose and expression.Full fee £439.00 Senior fee £351.00 Concession £285.00 - Explore figure and portraitCourse start date: Mon 12 Sep 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rebecca AllenThis one day course will give you a basic introduction to sketching the figure and portrait from observation of the life model. Suitable for absolute beginners.Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £10.00 - Drawing and painting portraits: contemporary approaches and techniquesCourse start date: Wed 14 Sep 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Chris GrayExplore dynamic and some more experimental approaches to drawing and painting portraits. This course will offer opportunities to try out a range of techniques to develop portraits working from the live model.
Suitable for enthusiastic beginners as well as those wishing to refresh their practice or stimulate new ways of working.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Life drawing: an extended studyCourse start date: Thu 15 Sep 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Chris GrayThis course is suitable for those with previous life drawing experience wishing to develop their life drawing and painting skills. You will be encouraged to develop a more personal response to the life model, bringing your own ideas into observation of the life model.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Life drawing after workCourse start date: Fri 16 Sep 2022 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Joe RichardsonThis short course is a great introduction to drawing directly from the nude model. Using simple excercises, you will explore different ways to represent the human form in drawing, with encouraging, helpful guidance from an experienced tutor. Suitable for absolute beginners.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £119.00 - Life drawing for beginnersCourse start date: Sun 18 Sep 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke JonesAn introduction to the basic skills required for life drawing: how to see and interpret the proportions, line, tone and volume of the human form which can then be developed into painting from the life model. Suitable for beginners.Full fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £175.00 - Anatomical life and portrait drawingCourse start date: Tue 20 Sep 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrea VoiseyDiscover the extraordinary construction of the human body. Through direct observation of the model you will examine the fundamental anatomical structures that underlie both portrait and life drawing. For those with some drawing experience.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Anatomical portrait drawingCourse start date: Fri 30 Sep 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrea VoiseyEnhance your portraits by uncovering what lies beneath the surface. Through demonstration and direct observation of the model you will examine proportion, rotation and the key anatomical structures of the head and neck that denote likeness.Full fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £175.00 - Life drawing into life paintingCourse start date: Thu 13 Oct 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Tony HullLearn or develop skills and approaches for painting the nude figure. Including use of tone and colour selection, composition and paint handling to develop solidity, atmosphere and expression. Some experience of drawing is recommended.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Life drawing: focus on movementCourse start date: Thu 10 Nov 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This exciting short course is an introduction to the figure in movement. You will learn how to make quick responses to the life model using a variety of 'ways of seeing' and different sketching techniques.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £142.00 - Life drawing: an experimental approachCourse start date: Wed 16 Nov 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Clare Barton-HarveyExplore imaginative, dynamic approaches to drawing the figure with a variety of media: be inspired by new ways of seeing and access innovative ways of approaching your drawing.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £142.00 - Drawing and painting portraits: traditional techniquesCourse start date: Wed 18 Jan 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This course introduces traditional historic approaches to drawing portraits from observation of the model. Suitable for all levels but some previous drawing experience an advantage.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Portraits 2Course start date: Mon 23 Jan 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Brian SayersDevelop your knowledge of the technical aspects of portraiture further and build your understanding of the relationship between artist and sitter. Undertake practical projects which enable you to develop a personal approach in the latter stages of the course.Full fee £439.00 Senior fee £351.00 Concession £285.00 - Explore life drawingCourse start date: Sat 30 Jul 2022 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Chris GrayDiscover new ways of drawing the human body in a fun, fast paced session that combines practical exercises with a variety of techniques. For those with some previous experience in life drawing.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £99.00 - City Lit year of the figure and portraitCourse start date: Mon 10 Oct 2022
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rebecca Allen, Kim ScoullerCity Lit year of figure and portrait projects course explores the endlessly fascinating subject of the human form through various aspects of drawing and painting the figure and portrait. For those interested in building real progress confidence in practical skills associated with figure and portrait drawing and painting. Be informed and inspired by stimulating historical and contemporary artists' contexts that will support your creative work.Full fee £2,399.00 Senior fee £1,919.00 Concession £1,559.00
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