Learning to draw is the process of learning to see. We learn how to perceive the world around us through careful and extensive observation and then translate what our eyes see into marks on a page. The art of drawing reveals to us a clearer understanding of our perception – how our brain processes and translates different marks and objects in space. The more we look, the more we learn how to see and the more we see, the more convincing the resulting drawings. At Dundas Valley School of Art, we offer some of the most complete art studios in the Hamilton/Burlington region with a range of drawing classes taught by the area’s finest artists.
GETTING STARTED
As a developing artist, drawing is the framework upon which all your work will be supported. Whether you intend to go further into portrait or architectural drawing, explore animation or graphic design or take up painting, ceramics or sculpture, basic drawing skills are essential. They will form the foundation upon which you will advance your ideas. Learning to draw also helps to spark creative thinking and your imagination, further develop one’s fine-motor skills and most importantly, offers an enjoyable and satisfying creative outlet.
Beginners’ Drawing classes at DVSA explore the 7 ways of seeing and how they relate to drawing: contour (line), gesture (movement and action), proportion (relationship in size), perspective (depth), positive-negative (subject vs. context), texture (surface) and value (light and dark).
Initial lessons might begin with a basic still-life set up consisting of cylinders, spheres and boxes. You’ll work on numerous quick ‘thumbnail’ sketches, trying out different formats (square, horizontal, vertical rectangles) and experimenting with multiple compositions. You’ll then choose one of your studies to further develop into a more complete drawing with careful observation of the behaviour of light and a deeper exploration of the seven ways of seeing.
Also covered is how to develop an interior space using 1-point perspective. Work is done in pencil or charcoal to produce monochromatic (one colour) value studies. Full colour is introduced in more advanced classes. As the course progresses, you’ll bring your new learning to a range of drawing subjects such as more still-life along with portrait and figure (life) drawing.*
Significant group and individual instruction is provided throughout and a collective exchange of ideas and knowledge is encouraged, shaping a collaborative studio experience with people from a range of backgrounds. Our instructors, all of whom are also working artists, offer continual encouragement, instruction and creative guidance.
* Drawing the human form or life drawing remains a mainstay of art schools because it’s one of the best methods for developing your drawing abilities. Everything about drawing – the 7 ways of seeing and more – come together in the complex study that is the human body. Figure/life drawing sessions at DVSA offer multiple model poses, ranging from 1-2 minutes for quick gesture warm-up sketches to longer poses for more developed studies.
NEXT STEPS
Many different avenues present themselves after a Beginners’ Drawing class. You might focus more specifically on still life, figure/life drawing, portrait or landscape drawing. As you move forward, you’ll fine tune your skills and tackle new concepts such as delineating planes on a form (detecting and noting a change of plane), developing a composition, two, three-point and atmospheric perspective, hatching and cross hatching techniques (used to create texture, value and the illusion of form and light) and further development of your artistic “eye” to better decode what you’re seeing in 3-D and render it in 2-D.
There’s also different media to explore such as pen and ink and the introduction of colour with pastels and coloured pencils. Some artists move on to try painting classes, bringing their drawing foundation to that medium.
A number of shorter drawing workshops are also provided throughout the year offering specialized instruction and refreshers in specific drawing concepts, subjects and mediums.
For those who may still feel intimidated, we offer our Drawing For The Petrified course as an option for Hamilton drawing classes. Shorter in duration, this class provides a broad overview of the basic drawing concepts covered in our full beginner classes. It is intended as a precursor to our Beginners’ Drawing classes and designed for absolute beginner artists who wish to explore if drawing is their medium, but don’t quite feel ready for a full-term drawing class.
A REWARDING PROCESS
Our drawing instructors like to tease our students with the reminder that “we do have blue boxes in the school.” The message here is learning to draw is a process. What happens in your brain is of equal importance to what happens on the paper. There will be missteps, uncertainty and challenges – but with practice and guidance you’ll move closer to observing “the truth” of what you are seeing and become increasingly skilled at drawing. It is a rewarding process and a crucial one for any artist’s development.
Learn the fundamentals of cartoon character drawing in this one-day workshop. You’ll explore how to simplify forms, exaggerate features and use basic shapes to create engaging cartoon characters. Other topics include shape language, face features, body proportions, posing and adding personality. Through guided exercises and some short drawing challenges, you’ll produce a variety of fun and original character sketches leading to at least one finished original cartoon strip drawing.
Members: $86.57 + HST, Non-Members: $89 + HST. Sunday.
For anyone looking to become an artist, basic drawing skills are considered essential. This introduction to drawing course will challenge your senses and develop your drawing and shading skills – all in a supportive and inspirational environment. Topics include perspective and composition as well as the fundamentals of learning how to see. Class demonstrations and individual instruction provided throughout. *Please note: there will be no class on October 12*
Members: $349.56 + HST, Non-Members: $359 + HST (Prices include model fees for 3 sessions – two nude life models and one portrait model). Monday.
For anyone looking to become an artist, basic drawing skills are considered essential. This introduction to drawing course will challenge your senses and develop your drawing and shading skills – all in a supportive and inspirational environment. Topics include perspective and composition as well as the fundamentals of learning how to see. Class demonstrations and individual instruction provided throughout. *Please note: there will be no class on October 12*
Members: $335.64 + HST, Non-Members: $345 + HST (Prices include model fees for 2 sessions – one nude life model and one portrait model). Monday.
Venture down the path a little further on your drawing journey. Building on concepts introduced in Beginners’ Drawing, you’ll approach tonal/value studies using various media including ink, toned papers and coloured pencils. New topics include 2-point perspective, measuring/proportion, density-controlled values and basic colour theory. You’ll further develop your observational skills and drawing ability while studying still-life set ups. Also included are three sessions with portrait models. One previous course in drawing is recommended. *Please note: there will be no class on October 12*
Members: $349.56 + HST, Non-Members: $359 + HST (Prices include model fees for 3 sessions – two nude life models and one portrait model). Monday.
Discover the rewarding experience of drawing the human subject. You’ll learn various techniques in observation and drawing using the human figure and portrait as subject matter. Concepts such as contour lines, blocking, gestures and sustained poses will be explored with a user-friendly approach. There will be 5 sessions working with the nude and costume model – the remaining sessions will be for working on self-portraits and portraits of your fellow artists. This course is designed specifically for novices – suitable for anyone who has taken Beginners’ Drawing or has some similar experience. *Please note: there will be no class on October 12*
Members: $369.61 + HST, Non-Members: $379 + HST (Prices includes model fees for 5 sessions). Monday
If you’ve always wanted to try soft pastels, but felt they were difficult to work with, this is the course for you. Learn everything needed to start playing comfortably with the vibrant, versatile colours of soft pastels. With presentations and live demonstrations, Clarence will familiarize you with the wide variety of pastels and pastel surfaces. In-class exercises will cover mark-making, under-painting techniques and layering. Plus, you’ll engage in explorations of composition, basic colour theory and more. This 6-week course is for beginners. Some drawing experience is helpful, but not necessary. Get signed up and let’s play! *Please note: there will be no class on October 12*
Members: $212.67 + HST, Non-Members: $219 + HST. Monday
Discover the rewarding and addictive medium of Pen and Ink. We'll look at classic pen and ink works and artists for inspiration as we learn a variety of strokes, how to render values and denote three-dimensional forms. There’ll be plenty of practice exercises in each session followed by a more formal drawing project at the end of the course. Students should have some previous drawing experience.
Members: $315.61 + HST, Non-Members: $325 + HST. Tuesday.
This is the perfect course for those who have always aspired to draw but may be holding back. Learning to draw is essential for all developing artists and in this absolute beginner’s class, you’ll take those first tentative steps with the encouraging handhold you’ve been looking for. Even if the idea of putting a dot on a piece of paper makes you feel a tiny bit tremulous, over four weeks, we’ll explore how to bring eye, hand and pencil to paper and expand basic lines into shaded forms, moving textures and more. After building confidence and new skills, you may just be ready for a full Beginners’ class. All materials are supplied—just show up and let it happen. *Please note: there will be no class on September 30*
Members: $160.74 + HST, Non-Members: $165 + HST (Prices include $15 material fee). Wednesday.
