Ref: S4D43440
How can you draw the space around you? How do you experience interior spaces (your own home, or places you visit)? How can you fit a large three-dimensional space onto a 2 dimensional surface? Drawing inspiration from the atmospheric architecture and furnishings of West Dean College, this course will encourage a mindful, sensitive and expressive approach to your drawings. Working at a large scale (1.5m x 1.5m), you will be in the studio each day following short exploratory visits around the house. Mindful movement (Qigong), memory and meditation exercises will also be offered to reinforce the relationship between body and breath, the process of drawing, and how our body remembers and experiences the spaces we inhabit.
Around the house, you will make study notes as research - written and drawn (in a mini home made field diary) You will observe with all of your senses - light and shadow, textures and touch, shapes of furniture and objects, noticing tiny details, and listening to everyday sounds of the house. You will look for repetition and patterns, form and placement and experiment with marks and ways of drawing.
Back in the studio, you will be guided through warm up drawing exercises each day, using gesture, rhythm and repetition to get the drawings started in a more abstract way. From here the drawings can develop as you allow your memory, and your research notes, to inform the drawing.
You will be drawing with charcoal and other dry materials (pencil, graphite, chalks), layering and changing the drawings over the three days. You can expect to go home with a finished large scale drawing (1.5m x 1.5m), alongside additional studies (including A1 and smaller). These may be works in their own right or studies for a painting. This course is ideal for anyone who is fascinated with drawing from interiors, or the subject of memory. The approaches would transfer to painting, printmaking and other projects you might work on in the future.
Mindful Making week is an opportunity to immerse yourself in your chosen craft and discover the simple pleasure of making, giving yourself time and space to slow down and focus on learning or improving your skills. There will be several courses running in parallel this week where you can discover what else is happening in other studios plus a session of short, inspirational talks by tutors on Tuesday evening starting at 5.30pm – 6.30pm. There will be the opportunity to join a sound bowl session during the week.
On this course, the College will supply all of the materials, including a large roll of cartridge paper to share amongst the group, masking tape, A1 cartridge paper, charcoal and charcoal powder, eraser, pencil, graphite powder, rags, fixative and Pritt stick.
Notebook and pen/pencil
A variety of art and craft materials are available from the Gardens Gatehouse Shop
Please wear appropriate clothing/aprons for the workshop or studio, this includes stout covered footwear - no open-toes or sandals.
Arrival day - first date of course
Residential students can arrive from 4pm, non-residential students to arrive by 6.45pm for registration
Student welcome, followed by dinner: 6.45pm (dinner included)
Teaching session: 8pm-9pm (attendance is essential)
Daily timetable
Course teaching: 9.15am-5pm
Morning session: 9.15am-12.45pm including coffee/tea break
Lunch break: 12.45pm-2pm (lunch included)
Afternoon session: 2pm-5pm including coffee/tea break
Teaching finishes: 5pm
Evening working: students may have access to workshops until 9pm, but only with permission from the tutor and provided any health and safety guidelines are observed.
Departure day - last date of course
Course teaching: 9.15am-3pm (lunch included)
Teaching finishes: 3pm
Residential students will need to check out of rooms by 10am.
Please note, the tutor may make slight variations to the daily timetable as required.
Katie studied Anthropology and Fine Art. She teaches freelance and in 2014 she received an Arts Council Award for a residency at Turner's House. Working in charcoal and oils, her work has been shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize, the Lynne Painter Stainers Prize and the RA Summer Show.
Residential option available. Find out accommodation costs and how to book here.
Take the next step in your creative practice, with foundation level to Masters in Fine Art study.
Depending on your experience, start with an Online Foundation Certificate in Art and Design (one year, part-time), a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design made up of 10 short courses taken over two years (part-time) or advance your learning with our BA (Hons) Art and Contemporary Craft: Materials, Making, and Place (six years part-time). All will help you develop core skills, find direction in your practice and build an impressive portfolio in preparation for artist opportunities or higher-level study. See all degree and diploma courses.
Our winter short course brochure is filled with inspiring opportunities to get creative in the months ahead. From pottery and printmaking to textiles and more, find your next creative experience.
