Portrait course
On request of the students who followed the annual drawing program, we continued the process during an extra portrait drawing course....
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Courses Modeldrawing 2024-2025
DEEPEN OBSERVATION & MASTER DRAWING-CONCEPTS
Are you a beginning student and wish to improve your drawing skills? Or do you already have extensive experience with drawing and painting and wish to deepen your knowledge of classical drawing techniques? You are welcome to participate in our program.
Just like great masters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo, we focus on model drawing. The human body is one of the most complex subjects to master. It challenges us to study drawing concepts, such as the correct rendering of proportions and tonality, but it also trains our perception. Therefor the lessons you learn are universal and can later be applied to other genres, such as landscape or portrait.
In recent years, we have had the opportunity to mentor many students and have seen inexperienced draughtsman grow into college-level students. This has strengthened our confidence in our course offerings. So it is with great enthusiasm that we start the new academic year.
THE PROGRAM
Our program consists of a first year (model drawing) and a second year (portrait drawing), divided in three courses each. Experience shows that students achieve significant progress when they follow the program in chronological order. However, if you wish to attend only a part of the program, this is also possible (with the exception of the first two portrait courses).
THE ANNUAL PROGRAM: MODEL
1. ‘Seeing the big shape: learn to draw the human figure better’
September-December 2024
Drawing the figure can be an overwhelming experience. After all, there are so many elements to consider! That's why we start with the most important concept of our model drawing classes: make sure the big shape works before adding information such as facial features, fingers and so on.
2. ‘Model drawing, lessons from the masters '
January-April 2025
Now that we know how to put a convincing figure on paper in line, we will explore the second stage of the drawing process: working with tonal values.
3. 'Open Atelier'
Mei-June 2025
This course is designed to give students the opportunity to practice with the knowledge they gained. Every class there will be a model present and we will spend the whole session drawing the nude. You are free to choose your own technique. For example: if you want to practice with values, you can take charcoal as a basic material. If you need to practice more with proportions, you can work with pencil.
New students are also welcome to join. It is a great way to get to know us, the program and become familiar with our classical way of working.
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THE ANNUAL PROGRAM: PORTRAIT
Students who finished the annual program 'model drawing' wanted to continue. Therefor we designed a second year, focussing on portrait drawing. Are you a student who finished the program on model drawing and want to continue your training? Feel welcome to join!
During the annual program on portrait drawing, we will learn how to create a portrait, focusing on likeness. We pay attention to the correct translation of proportions, tonal values and expression of the model.
The first part (September to December) will consist of the analysis of the large shape of the head and the features of the face. During the second part (January through April) of the course, model sessions are scheduled primarily so that we have plenty of time to practice.
A large part of the course we will engage in sculpting. Knowledge of how the structures of the head are oriented in space will benefit our drawing skills and visa versa.
The year ends with the ‘open studio portrait’. During these lessons there is plenty of time to practice.
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TESTIMONIALS
“We practice a step by step approach and
Ilse instinctively knows when you’re ready for the next step”
- Mieke Noël
“Lessons from Ilse are always interesting and fun. She is a really good mentor that each time teaches you ways to improve your drawings. Ilse is able to inspire and motivate groups of 10+ students. Nobody is left behind, she does not hesitate to point out areas in your drawing that can be improved but this is always done in an respectful manner and in combination with a review of the good parts of the drawing. Ilse is fun to be around with and creates a very pleasant atmosphere in her groups”.
-Godard Hazeu
"Lessons from Ilse are very inspiring! She is very enthusiastic and teaches exactly that part of craftsmanship that I missed while studying at the academy of Arts. Learning to see and learning to draw in a way the classical master painters worked has slowly been fading away since the start of the 20th century. It is really great that this is now possible in our community. Ilse has a positive mindset and always knows to discover a nice area or piece in your drawings. She stimulates you to push through no matter what level you are working at. Lessons are well prepared in advance with good examples and clear instructions. Bottom line: lessons from Ilse are a must for anyone who wishes to improve his or her drawing skills."
-Paul van Mil
"I really enjoyed these model drawing courses. The lessons are of high quality and unique in the Netherlands: while art academies are focusing on conceptual art mainly, this is a place where the classical drawing technique is re-thought! I was so inspired by these teachings that I decided to do a follow-up course at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy. Ilse’s lessons proved to be an ideal preparation for this program. "
-Joyce
"First you draw what you see.
Next, you draw what you know, and only then
will you know what it is that you see."
-Robert Beverly Hale
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