Drawing and mindfulness: the art of seeing
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
Choose a start date
- Course Code: VM144
- Dates: 16/06/24 - 16/06/24
- Time: 10:00 - 17:00
- Taught: Sun, Daytime
- Duration: 1 session
- Location: Online
- Tutor: Clare Barton-Harvey
Course Code: VM144
Choose a start date
Duration: 1 session
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
An exploration of drawing and mindfulness and how the two combined can support new ways of seeing and relating to drawing.
‘The true journey of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes
but in having fresh eyes’ Marcel Proust
Through a series of guided drawing and mindfulness exercises you’ll explore a variety of ways of looking, seeing and expressing your experience through drawing. A practical drawing course engaging a variety of media and sources of inspiration, including the world around us, the imagination and artists’ work.
This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.
What will we cover?
During the day we will investigate a range of sources of inspiration for drawing, including our physical senses, the world around us, the imagination, and artists drawings.
Taking simple everyday objects as our starting point, you will be introduced to ways of exploring how your perception can change when you involve different aspects of your sensory experience, which can lead to more appreciation of your subject matter, as well as renewed meaning and purpose in drawing.
You will be introduced to a small toolkit of mindfulness and drawing approaches to help you connect to the drawing process with greater ease, simplicity and clarity. There will be opportunity to investigate a variety of drawing materials and approaches, to refresh your drawing or stimulate new directions.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Identify how mindfulness can support new ways of looking, seeing and expressing your experience through drawing.
• Draw with a variety of media and sources of inspiration including the world around you, the imagination and artists’ work.
• Practice drawing and mindfulness from observation and the imagination with increased confidence
• Connect to renewed meaning and purpose in drawing
• Engage a toolkit of methods and resources for exploring and developing mindfulness and drawing.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
Suitable for those with experience in mindfulness and/or drawing who wish to re-fresh their practice or stimulate new approaches, as well as enthusiastic beginners.
You should be able to follow simple written and verbal instructions, demonstrations and hand-outs, and will be invited to take part in group discussion.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
• Through guided mindfulness practice
• Demonstration of drawing methods
• Practical drawing exercises
• Pair and group discussion
• Slideshow, hand-outs and other practical learning resources.
This course is supported by Google Classroom as a Virtual Learning Environment. When you log on you will be able to access course material, presentations, and handouts etc.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Recommended materials:
A range of pencils (e.g. 2H, 2B, 4B, and 6B), paper, eraser, pencil sharpener, approx.. 8 sheets white cartridge paper for drawing e.g. A2 or A3, willow charcoal, putty rubber, compressed charcoal, coloured pastels, white chalk
Additional materials (optional/extra):
coloured pencils, coloured felt tip pens, graphite sticks (e.g. 6B or 9B),
City Lit students receive 10% discount off everything* from Cass Art, the UK's leading art supplies retailer.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
Drawing and Mindfulness
Drawing and Painting from the Imagination.
Clare Barton-Harvey is a full time artist and tutor/trainer living in London. In her teaching, she specialises in life drawing, drawing and mindfulness, working with colour, and painting from the imagination. She is an engaging and inspired tutor responsive to individual need and encouraging of individual growth/expression. In 2003, she studied at the Royal Drawing School, where she engaged in life drawing and the study of contemporary and historic artist’s drawings as part of the Drawing Year. In 2017 she engaged in post-graduate study with Bob and Roberta Smith (RA) and has exhibited solo and in a variety of group shows throughout the UK. You can see her work at www.cbarton-harvey.co.uk. Clare has been a practicing artist & mindfulness practitioner for over 25 years, and has taught drawing and painting for over 18 years, in a variety of locations currently including the National Gallery, British Museum, British Library, Pallant House and Hampton Court Palace. She is also co-founder of LIMINA collective (www.liminacollective.com) who specialise in mindful engagement with art in galleries and museums.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
