Royal Drawing School

Drawing from life. For life.

Welcome to the Royal Drawing School. We are an artist-led, not-for-profit, home of observational drawing. The place to learn to draw, discover emerging artists, and advance the practice of drawing.
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Online Drawing Development Year

Applications open

Our year-long online programme designed to develop your drawing and studio practice. Find out more on one of our open days.

Sign up to an open day
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The one surface I draw on seldomly is paper. I am much happier with found surfaces, surfaces with a history. Around the time I made Nefertiti, I was painting small interventions in white gouache on postcards and photographs from my collection. I was also working on a series, which I named ‘petramorphic works’: seeing human or animal form in rocks and stones. The women in this postcard, intentionally or unintentionally, appear to have delineated, or made visible with their rope and walking stick, the perfect head in profile of Nefertiti.”

Tacita Dean

25 leading artists and creatives on drawing
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Nefertiti, 2013. Gouache on found postcard.

Tacita Dean

Inspire

Our Drawing Year students create hundreds of drawings each year. Explore our archive and be inspired...

Explore over 2500 artworks
Always in search of something

Always in search of something

Natalie Charles

I long for a reflection

I long for a reflection

Akilah Chambers

Pear Tree Island

Pear Tree Island

Lucy Bruce-Gardner

Eku farabale (I celebrate you, for calming [your body] down)

Eku farabale (I celebrate you, for calming [your body] down)

Barbara Majek

Atlantic

Atlantic

Jordan Cook

Morale du Joujou

Morale du Joujou

Phoebe Howard

Roman Head

Roman Head

Michelle Cioccoloni

Two Pattern Headed Figures

Two Pattern Headed Figures

Chi Park

About us

We are the independent, artist-led and not-for-profit home of observational drawing. We exist to ensure artists and creatives everywhere can access world-leading skills-based drawing tuition regardless of background, age or circumstances; to bring new audiences to drawing; to champion our practice for this generation and the next.

Learn more
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Support us

As a charity, we believe everyone, whatever their financial circumstance, should be able to access our teaching. That’s why all our courses come with a wide range of bursaries and scholarships. Help us sustain and grow these programmes.

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