Introduction to Drawing
January 14 – February 4, 2025 | 1:30–3:30 p.m.
Location: High Museum of Art, Red Workshop, Greene Family Education Center
Registration Required
Not a member? Join today!
The registration fee includes all materials, weekly access to world-class art on view in the museum’s galleries and special exhibitions, hours of expert instruction, and additional access to a Friday afternoon Open Studio during the run of the class.
The registration fee includes all materials, weekly access to world-class art on view in the museum’s galleries and special exhibitions, hours of expert instruction, and additional access to a Friday afternoon Open Studio during the run of the class.
Explore a wide variety of techniques and materials in this exciting, comprehensive introduction to drawing. Experiment with lines, mark making, shapes, texture, tone, and composition to create drawings from observation, imagination, and memory, and learn how to use the principles of design to support your compositions.
Incorporating the teachings of Betty Edwards, author of Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain (1979), build skills through exercises in contour drawing and depictions of negative space. Enjoy the opportunity to draw from still life props and photo references under the guidance of a professional teaching artist.
Week 1: Begin with an introduction to the class and an outline of the drawing materials and techniques that will be explored. Then, experiment with contour drawings, lines, and mark making.
Week 2: Explore the significance of shape and value, strengthening your understanding of negative space.
Week 3: Create visual texture and experiment with composition while working on drawings from observation, imagination, and memory.
Week 4: Complete final drawings using a combination of the previously explored techniques. We will conclude our time together with a discussion about our work and a reflection on what we have learned.
About Studio Classes
Studio Classes enable you to expand your art-making skills through guided, step-by-step instruction with expert teaching artists. Over multiple weeks, you will learn alongside other creative adults and delve deeply into the artistic process, explore new techniques, and build your practice.
This is an introductory-level Studio Class; it is designed to accommodate all levels of skill and talent. If you have never taken a drawing class before, this is a great place to start. You will learn new skills that you can carry forward and build on in your artistic practice.
The registration fee includes all materials, weekly access to world-class art on view in the museum’s galleries and special exhibitions, hours of expert instruction, and additional access to a Friday afternoon Open Studio during the run of the class.
About Your Instructor
Jaffia Royes is a visual artist and art educator who lived and worked in New York City for seventeen years. As an educator, she has worked with various art organizations, museums, and schools and has taught artists of all ages, including portfolio development for those entering art and design colleges and universities. While Jaffia’s primary medium for over two decades has been oil painting, she began developing a body of work in clay a few years ago as a creative way to house her ever-growing plant collection. Her passions for art and plant life allow space for her to practice mindfulness, serenity, and self-care, which she brings into the classroom and hopes to encourage through her teaching.
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