Summer School 2023
Summer School takes place throughout July 2023, from our Shoreditch studios and online. For the first time since 2019, we are also delighted to announce the return of The Drawing Marathon to our Shoreditch studios! Read on to find out more...
Drawing by Car Arfon Bellis
Summer School 2023
3rd - 28th July
Summer School offers the opportunity to immerse yourself in a medium; from drawing, illustration and painting to sculpture and printmaking. These 5-day courses are designed for all levels, from the complete beginner wanting to try something new, to the practicing artist looking to enliven their practice.
Shoreditch studios
In the studio, there are many courses which will allow for close examination of the figure including Drawing the Human Anatomy and Life Painting. One Week One Pose allows students to have the time to fully explore their response to the figure, and experiment with different ways of committing those responses to paper/canvas. Take an even closer look and focus in on facial features in Painting a Head, with sustained poses allowing for considered development of colour mixing skills, and understanding how the colours and tones of the model relate to their surroundings.
In the print room, The Etching Week will introduce students to the main intaglio methods of etching, aquatint, sugar lift and dry point. From exploring the dynamic sensitivities of the intaglio marks to experimenting with colours and layers; Working on metal is inspiring and its technical complexity stimulates our imagination with greater flexibility.
Out of house
Painting in the Park will explore the practice of drawing and painting in London’s green spaces. Painting outdoors presents many challenges; the aim of this course is to equip students with the confidence and practical knowledge to go out and work in any environment that inspires them.
Online
Our online courses are taught live via Zoom, and are an excellent way to learn with us if you live outside of London, have access needs or just prefer to paint and draw from your own home.
Evening Flux and Flow: Watercolour and Ink will encourage students to develop strategies for handling and harnessing its fluid, unpredictable nature; learning to collaborate with the medium and bring discovery and the unexpected into their work.
Investigate the infinite possibilities of Children's Book Illustration through a mix of discussion, quick exercises and structured experiments, alongside working on a personal project throughout the week. In Drawing and Painting: The Contemporary Portrait, students will explore the many facets of the drawn and painted portrait through enquiry, revision and experimentation that seeks to develop both perceptual skills and a personal language in response to the sitter.
Make the move into the three-dimensional realm in one-week course Sculpture: Mythology and the Minotaur. The extraordinary and intriguing subject of The Minotaur derives from classical Greek mythology, but what it means and symbolises has evolved, changed, and continues to be culturally significant. As well as examining this rich and diverse subject, students also gain practical skills and finish the week with their own sculpture, beginners welcome!
See the full list of Summer School courses
10th - 14th July and 17th - 21st July
The Drawing Marathon is for anybody who wants to immerse themselves in the collective energy of an intensive drawing course and significantly improve their drawing skills. The course is taught by over 20 different members of the Royal Drawing School’s faculty and students will be able to curate their own programme of drawing sessions.
Draw from life models, dancers and acrobats in the studio, in sketchbooks on the streets of London, and from art in galleries and museums. Students will also have the opportunity to explore printmaking and its relationship to drawing both in the studio and our intaglio print room. Students can sign up to the first or second week of The Drawing Marathon or choose to do the full two-week course.
Challenge the way you see and draw on our intensive Drawing Marathon.
Book Week 1 | 10 - 14 July
Book Week 2 | 17 - 21 July
Book Weeks 1 & 2 | 10 - 21 July