Capture the active life of the city and its rich architecture. This is an excellent workshop for anyone who wants to learn to sketch on the bus or train, in cafés and public parks, or while traveling abroad. Topics include perspective, gauging proportions by eye, gesture figure drawing, and methods for simplifying form. All levels welcome.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan
Cost: $115
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Join Colleen O'Donnell for a "day-in-the-clay" and learn to sculpt the human figure. Learn the techniques and tools of figure sculpture through demonstration and hands-on sculpting from the model. Explore anatomy, proportion, design and expression with air-dry clay (no armature required). Expressive possibilities will emerge as your skills develop.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Colleen O'Donnell
Cost: $150
Sponsor: Cerulean Arts Gallery and Studio
Website, email, 1-267-514-8647

Join Janet in this beautiful setting at the Connecticut River Valley Inn, in historical Glastonbury, CT. Fresh flowers will greet you in the studio as we paint together and progress to interpreting the head and figure in a loose and expressive style. Janet is a true "hands-on" national instructor!!! All levels are welcome! Sign up at Artists Rising Creativity Retreats.
 
Location: Glastonbury, Connecticut
Instructor: Janet Rogers, AWS
Sponsor: Artists Rising Creativity Retreats
Website, email, 386-451-8441

Join award-winning artist Janet Rogers at the picturesque Connecticut River Valley Inn in historic Glastonbury, CT. Experience hands-on instruction, inspiration, and camaraderie in a dynamic workshop. Beginning with fresh flowers as inspiration, progress to capturing the head and figure. Through engaging drawing and painting exercises, develop a loose, natural approach for more spontaneous and expressive paintings. Learn to depict translucent flesh tones and capture the gesture of the person, including painting children. All levels welcome! Explore more about this workshop and our beautiful property and register now by clicking the link below. Limited spots available!
 
Location: Glastonbury, Connecticut
Instructor: Janet Rogers
Cost: $975+
Sponsor: Artists Rising Creativity Retreats
Website, email, 860-633-7374

Work independently in the drawing medium of your choice! This monitored studio is designed to give students the opportunity to work from live nude models without instruction, allowing you time to explore and experiment. Just as in any life drawing session the poses will range from short gestures gradually building to longer poses at the end. This is an extraordinary opportunity for you to develop and extend your drawing skills.
 
Location: Wayne, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Leslie Bowen, Monitor
Cost: $200
Sponsor: Wayne Art Center
Website, email, 610-688-3553

We will start out the first day doing still life study out of doors which will prepare us to tackle the landscape. Second day we will be on location painting the landscape. I will be teaching the structure of the landscape—what is important to include as well as what to leave out. On the last day we will do color studies of the figure. We will concentrate on the development of strong starts, and focus on expressing the big masses, light key and aerial perspective with color. I will be doing demos throughout the workshop. You will do a color study before lunch, followed by one or two color studies in the afternoon.
 
Location: Franklin, Tennessee
Instructor: Camille Przewodek
Cost: $550 plus a model fee
Sponsor: On Track Studios
Website, email

This comprehensive figure-focused class offers an open atelier structure in which students of all levels may pursue personal work from models in their choice of drawing or painting media. Concepts of proportion, anatomy, gesture, and light and shade will be discussed and critiqued individually, depending on the student’s experience. Model set-ups will range from croquis (short poses) to extended poses. All media are welcome for students with prior experience; drawing recommended for beginners. Note: Tuition includes a $35 models fee.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: John Horn
Cost: $330
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Painting the human form from observation is one of the cornerstones of PAFA's long tradition of rigorous instruction. Working from the nude model, investigate color mixing, proportion, and composition using oil paint as a medium. Focusing on alla prima painting techniques and a limited flesh-tone palette, learn to model the human form through gesture, shape, volume, and temperature – excellent for painted sketches and preparatory studies, foundations for extended work, or an introduction/refresher to figure painting. Intended for all skill levels, this course also offers the valuable opportunity for more advanced students to continue to hone their skills to deepen their understanding of the language of painting. Instruction will be geared toward oil, but students may draw-only, or use other appropriate media.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: David Wilson
Cost: $330
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Don’t miss this opportunity to work with renowned artist, educator and author Roberto Osti! Gain confidence in your ability to render the human form and handling of materials. Proportions, anatomy and methods of measuring will be emphasized as you draw with the instructor from a live model. Media and techniques include graphite on white paper, charcoal on white paper, charcoal and chalk on toned paper.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Cost: $215
Sponsor: Cerulean Arts Gallery and Studio
Website, email, 1-267-514-8647

Draw on your experience to create graphic renderings of your life. Ajuan shares the works of several comic creators, showing how this diverse group of individuals draw themselves. Students compare the artists’ self portraits with the artists’ press photos, while Ajuan discusses the strategies veteran comic creators use to create a character to represent themselves on the page. Participants will then use the same strategies to create drawings of themselves, and using a handful of autobiographical writing prompts, create a 4- to 6-panel autobiographical comic.
 
Location: Key West, Florida
Instructor: Ajuan Mance
Cost: $85 / $70 for members
Sponsor: The Studios of Key West
Website, email, (305) 296-0458

Modeling the portrait in clay is a foundational skill of traditional sculpture. Working from a model, learn to create a portrait from composition to completed sculpture. Instruction for this uniquely comprehensive course will encompass learning to build an armature, modeling the form in clay, and casting in plaster to preserve the finished artwork. Topics of study will include proportion, composition, structure, and simplified sculptural form.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Morgan Dummitt
Cost: $590
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Develop your ability to render the human form through the time-honored combination of anatomical study and life drawing with noted artist and author Roberto Osti.  Learn the methods and technical skills traditionally associated with beautiful figure drawing, such as measuring, tonal rendering, anatomical structuring, and establishing the effects of light on the figure, using graphite on white paper, charcoal and chalk on toned paper, reduction techniques, and the trois crayons technique. Through the instructor’s in-depth anatomical drawing demonstrations and work from the life model, learn the structural aspects of the human form: basic landmarks, essential volumes, and proportional relationships. Progress to the main muscle groups to identify their surface effects and aesthetic characteristics, and how they influence mass and movement.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Cost: $590
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Paint portraits from a variety of models using the direct painting method. Examine the proportions and volumes of the head, as well as the placement, structure, and characteristics of the facial features, through preliminary drawings and demonstrations. Develop color using a limited palette to understand how to use chroma, temperature, value, tint, and tone. Instruction will address materials, composition, paint handling, and color mixing, blending, and theory. Homework assignments working from photos, Masterworks, or oneself/others will encourage students to learn to make personal aesthetic and technical choices and to practice concepts addressed in class. Open to all levels, this course is excellent for beginners as well as experienced students who want to review fundamental techniques or who simply enjoy painting portraits from life.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Cost: $590
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Paint from a life model in a single pose for the entire course. Extended time with a single subject allows students to work with the instructor to tailor exercises that address their individual interests, including the development of one large image or several smaller studies. The first session will include time for gestural and thumbnail drawings in preparation for the model’s final placement. Instruction will cover a variety of topics including glazing, broken color, surface texture, composition and design, the relationship of the figure to the environment, the creation of atmosphere and color harmony, disrupted realism, and open- versus closed-form painting. All levels welcome. Students are welcome to draw-only, or use other appropriate media, if they wish.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: David Wilson
Cost: $330
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Using inexpensive materials, this hands-on workshop will introduce the concepts and methods needed to create a strong sense of dimension and likeness in your portrait drawings. Explore the proportions and planes of the head, neck and shoulders. Learn how to create a structural foundation and how to easily manage anatomy by breaking down forms into simple geometric shapes. Instruction will address different strategies for creating a finished tonal portrait as well as tips and tricks that will help you draw like a pro! Note: Tuition includes a $10 models fee.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: RA Friedman
Cost: $205
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Dianne Hebbert leads a portrait painting workshop. Students are invited to bring in a printed or digital copy of a photograph they would like to translate into a painting. The class begins with the drawing and moves into developing the acrylic painting, going over the grid method, under paintings, and finally, how to add personal details to finalize your painting. Regardless of skill level, there’s something for everyone to learn. Dianne Hebbert is a Nicaraguan-American artist based in New York. She works primarily in painting, printmaking and installation art. As a Miami native she attended New World School of the Arts before she earned her BFA in Painting and Drawing from Purchase College and her MFA in Printmaking from Brooklyn College.
 
Location: Key West, Florida
Instructor: Dianne Hebbert
Cost: $110 / $85 for members
Sponsor: The Studios of Key West
Website, email, (305) 296-0458

If you’ve never drawn before, or your skills are a little rusty, then this class is for you. Learn to draw what you see with confidence. Work from still life arrangements, interior spaces, and the human figure to master the drawing elements: shape, contour line, composition, light and shadow, texture and perspective. Instruction will guide students through sight-drawing and measuring techniques, use of materials, shading methods, and ways of defining form and space. This course is excellent as a foundation for future study, including for painting and other disciplines. Note: Tuition includes a $35 models fee.
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Phyllis Laver
Cost: $485
Sponsor: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Website, email, 215-972-7632

Learn how to draw figures, and how to make expressive drawings by participating in this 2-day intense workshop with Mashiul. Students will have the opportunity to learn from short dynamic gestural poses to long poses of a life model.
 
Location: Marietta, Pennsylvania
Instructor: Mashiul Chowdhury
Cost: $275
Sponsor: Susquehanna Art Workshops
Website, email, 717-314-9551

Do you have moments of complete frustration with your work? We all do. In this course Melinda will help you to embrace those moments and learn to work with the idea of Chaos and ‘The Uglies’ in your paintings in order to achieve rich work with history and lasting interest. Are you looking for more personal expression? We will look at setting Creative and Conceptual Intentions in order to create meaningful, individual work. We will focus on the importance of contrast in our work by looking at the Elements of Design which will give you concrete ideas in abstraction. These Elements, mixed with several approaches to Figurative Abstraction will spark your creativity and give you lots to work on going forward.
 
Location: Glastonbury, Connecticut
Instructor: Melinda Cootsona
Cost: $975+
Sponsor: Artists Rising Creativity Retreats
Website, email, 860-633-7374

In this 1-Day workshop, Karen will lead students through her process of drawing the portrait from the initial measurements to the final stages of refining. Using a photo reference, she will begin with teaching strategies to accurately draw the head, place the features and indicate the major light and shadow shapes. Karen will demonstrate how to define the shadow and light regions which give the illusion of form. She will show how she compresses values for a strong design and how she makes corrections throughout, achieving an unmistakable likeness of her subject. Students also have the option to sign up for Karen’s 3-Day follow-up workshop, Painting the Portrait in Pastel.
 
Location: Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Instructor: Karen Wilharm
Cost: $175
Sponsor: Art League of Hilton Head
Website, email, (843) 842-5738

Karen will lead students through her process of painting the pastel portrait. She will begin with teaching strategies to accurately draw the head, place the features and indicate the major light and shadow shapes. Karen will then demonstrate how to identify and lay in "average colors" of the shadow and light regions. She will show how she adjusts her general color notes by mixing and layering to "turn the color dials" on hue, value, temperature and chroma to achieve the desired relationships. During the final phase of the portrait, she will introduce techniques such as scumbling, glazing and hatching as she carefully makes corrections, refines edges and creates subtle nuances to bring the portrait to a polished finish.
 
Location: Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Instructor: Karen Wilharm
Cost: $480
Sponsor: Art League of Hilton Head
Website, email, (843) 842-5738