Drawing and mindfulness
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
Course Code: VM640
Choose a start date
Duration: 4 sessions (over 4 weeks)
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Center for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
An opportunity to explore mindfulness in the context of drawing from both observation and the imagination. Explore how the two disciplines complement each other, leading to new ways of seeing, increased connection and responsiveness to your materials & subject matter as well as play and enjoyment in the process of drawing.
This course offers a great introduction to mindful drawing or a way for you to further integrate mindfulness into your drawing. Suitable for enthusiastic beginners to drawing as well as those with experience in drawing or mindfulness who wish to re-fresh their practice and stimulate new directions. A practical drawing course, inspired by the world around us and the imagination.
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 course we will explore a variety of ways to stimulate a fresh response to drawing. There will be a series of guided drawing exercises exploring: the role of body awareness, feeling, perception, sensitivity and aliveness to your materials and subject matter and the importance of play and enrichment in drawing.
Discover the value of both analytical and experimental approaches and the relationship between them in the drawing process. Explore what supports you to connect to your inspiration and investigate a range of mindfulness and drawing practices to help you identify creative blocks and let go of them.
There will be opportunities to explore a range of media and subject matter with reference to a variety of artists work, which will serve as inspiration for expressing shape, volume, line and tone directly and freely in your drawings. Group discussion and one-to-one guidance is available throughout the course.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Employ a toolkit of drawing and mindfulness methods and approaches to stimulate, inspire or refresh your drawing.
• Discover the value of both analytical and experimental approaches and the relationship between them in the drawing process.
• Identify what supports you to connect to your inspiration and employ a range of mindfulness and drawing practices to help you identify creative blocks and let go of them
• Explore new ways of seeing, increased connection & responsiveness to your materials & subject matter, and enjoyment in the process of drawing
• Demonstrate an ability to engage a variety of drawing approaches with reference to artists’ work.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
Suitable for beginners as well as those with experience in mindfulness and drawing who wish to re-fresh their practice or stimulate new directions
You should be able to follow simple written and verbal instructions, demonstrations 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 practices
- Demonstration of drawing methods
- Practical drawing exercises
- One to one tutoring
- Pair and group discussion
- Personal research tasks
- Slideshows, hand-outs and other practical learning resources.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
All basic materials included.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
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.
