From cast to life: life drawing in the RA Schools
Five-week practical evening course
6 November 2019 6.30 - 9.30pm13 November 2019 6.30 - 9.30pm20 November 2019 6.30 - 9.30pm27 November 2019 6.30 - 9.30pm4 December 2019 6.30 - 9.30pm
The Life Room, Royal Academy Schools
£480. Includes all materials, light refreshments and a wine reception at the end of the final session.
Terms and conditions
This five-week course invites participants to take a step back in time to when drawing from casts and life models was essential training for any aspiring artist and a keystone of the RA Schools.
In this exciting new course led by practicing artist Julia Hawkins, you will be introduced to a method of drawing used to teach artists from the 17th century onwards, given an exclusive opportunity to work from a selection of plaster casts and drawings from the RA’s extraordinary collection, as well as professional life models.
The aim of using plaster casts is to train the eye to draw first from idealised human forms in order to then take on what was considered the greater challenge of the depiction of the human figure from life. You will undergo step-by-step guidance in how to draw the cast head, progressing in the second week to the full cast figure. In the remaining three weeks, you will have the chance to draw from professional and graceful life models.
You will learn how to look at the subject as a whole, to constantly check the relationship between different parts of your drawing and to understand how form is built with the use of tone. This traditional method produced excellent results in the past and is still relevant today. It aims to equip the artist with vital principles which can be used time and time again, calmly and easily in the artist’s individual drawing practice.
The course, taking place in the extraordinary setting of the Royal Academy’s Cast Hall and Life Drawing Room, will be of interest to artists of all levels who wish to improve and deepen their drawing skills
About the course
During this five-week course, participants will first focus on the plaster casts and artworks. You will then learn how to draw the entire human figure, working under different light conditions, using different materials (in black and white as well as in colour), and drawing a variety of short and long poses.
The last three sessions will be clearly defined by how structure and anatomy influence a particular series of poses with male and female models.
There will be opportunity for informal discussion and one-to-one feedback with the tutor throughout the sessions.
Participants are advised to bring something to carry their work home in, as there are no storage facilities available.
This course is suitable for all levels, but participants will ideally have some prior experience of drawing, painting or creative practice in general.
This course is for you if:
• You have an interest in drawing or some prior knowledge and would like to improve on existing skills
• You would like a new perspective in your approach to drawing from sculpture and life drawing
• You would like to work within a small group in the historic setting of the Royal Academy’s Life Room, with one-on-one teaching and expert-led guidance
• You have no prior experience of life drawing but have an interest in the theory, practice and history of art and/or drawing from life
Minimum age 18
Please let us know if you have any accessibility needs.
The number of participants is strictly limited to enable detailed feedback from the course tutor.
£480 for full course
Wednesday 6 November - Wednesday 4 December
6:30pm - 9:30pm
• An introduction to the RA with particular reference to works in the Collection
• The opportunity to work from both male and female professional life models throughout the course
• All specialist practical art materials
• Course learning materials and handouts
• Light refreshments at the beginning of each session
• A drinks reception at the end of the final session
• A certificate of participation upon course completion
About the tutor
Julia Hawkins
Julia Hawkins is an award-winning contemporary figurative artist based in Surrey, where she teaches drawing and painting.
She completed an MA in Graphics and Illustration at the Latvian Academy of Arts and studied drawing at the Riga studios of Russian Professor Vitaly Karkunov.
Elected an Associate Member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in 2017, Julia is a regular exhibitor at the Mall Galleries in London with the ROI and other groups, such as the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, New English Art Club and the Society of Women Artists. Her work has also been selected for the prestigious Lynn Painter-Stainers Prize and Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize exhibitions.
As an artist, Julia's work combines painting and gallery commitments, teaching practice and her work with Chelsea Art Society, where she sits on the Society’s Council.
Our courses and classes programme
Our varied programme of short courses and classes provides an opportunity to explore subjects ranging from life drawing to the history of exhibitions and arts management, led by expert tutors and practising artists. These courses introduce traditional art-making processes, as well as perspectives on art history, theory and business.
Give this course as a gift
All of our courses can be purchased as a gift for a friend or family member – giving the gift of education and a remarkable experience. To arrange a personalised Gift Voucher, please contact Anna Pojer, Academic Programmes Manager, by calling 020 7300 5684 or email anna.pojer@royalacademy.org.uk