Group Drawing Lessons

This is a small class, capped at 8 students. We will start the course with short introductions and share our artistic goals. No prior experience with drawing is required to enroll in this course.

During each lesson, students will practice short exercises aimed at retraining the brain to evaluate shapes and angles more accurately. Most of these exercises will be based on what is taught in Betty Edwards’ book, Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. The book teaches drawing in an innovative way, and it is worthwhile for any artist to familiarize themselves with it. While the idea of the left brain being logical and the right brain being creative has been disproven, it is true that the way we think about drawing is enormously important.

Drawing is hard work, especially when you are fighting against your instinct to draw objects/figures from memory! I will do my best to keep students excited and motivated throughout class. Snacks, tea, and coffee are available in the kitchen.

Lesson 1:

• Read the Preface of Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain, pages X-XIII, along with the Introduction, pages XVII-XXV.  
• Understand why most people struggle learning how to draw realistically. Distinguish between drawing based your idea of the object and drawing without labeling the object. Practice using exercises from Betty Edwards’ book.

Lesson 2:

• Continue with the next two chapters of Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. Read Chapter 1, Drawing and the Art of Bicycle Riding, pages 1-9, along with Chapter 2, The Drawing Exercises: One Step at a Time, pages 10-25.
• Create; as shown on page 13 of Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. Repeat perception of edges exercise and perception of spaces exercise.

Lesson 3:

• Continue with the next two chapters of Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. Read Chapter 3, Your Brain: The Right and Left of It, pages 27-48, along with Chapter 4, Crossing Over: Experiencing the Shift from Left to Right, pages 49-66.
• Practice perception of relationships and perception of lights and shadows.

Lesson 4:

• Read Chapter 5, Drawing on Memories: Your History as an Artist, pages 67-86, along with Chapter 6, Getting Around Your Symbol System: Meeting Edges and Contours, pages 87-114.
• The perception of the whole, or Gestalt exercises. Learn to draw objects as simplified shapes, rather than how we see them.

Lesson 5:

• Read Chapter 7, Perceiving the Shape of a Space: The Positive Aspects of Negative Space, pages 115-136, along with Chapter 8, Relationships in a New Mode: Putting Sighting in Perspective, pages 137-160.
• Understand neuroscience behind detail-processing vs. wholistic processing, and why the exercises tie in to retraining our brains.

Lesson 6: 

• Read Chapter 9, Facing Forward: Portrait Drawing with Ease, pages 161-192, along with Chapter 10, The Value of Logical Lights and Shadows, pages 193-228.
• How we can continue practicing our drawing skills by the way we look around and perceive things. Explain difference between lazy perception and thoughtful perception.

The final two chapters, 11 and 12, focus on drawing with color as well as drawing from imagination, which are not the focuses of this course. 

The course will begin on February 26th, 2026 and last a total of 6 weeks. Classes will be held on Thursdays at 7:30pm-9:00pm.

Classes will take place at The Commons, in Meeting Room B, as pictured. The Commons is a coworking space located at 157 East 86th St, New York, NY, 10028.