Simply Drawing!

Ages: 18+
Term: Spring
Length: 10 weeks

Overview

In today’s fast-paced digital world, traditional drawing remains one of the most powerful and grounding creative skills you can develop. Far from being obsolete, observational hand-drawing sharpens the eye, strengthens focus, and builds a deep understanding of form, light and space.

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About this course

This course is dedicated to slowing down and truly learning to draw what you see. Working with pencil, pen and charcoal, you’ll explore the foundations of observational drawing in a calm, supportive and structured environment.

There’s no magic formula to drawing, but with the right guidance, anyone can learn. Whether you’re a complete beginner or returning to drawing after time away, this course will support you step by step as you build confidence and technical skills.

You’ll begin with the essentials: mark-making, line quality, shading, contrast and tone. You’ll learn how to create the illusion of 3D forms, explore light sources, experiment with composition, and gain an introduction to depth and basic perspective.

As the course progresses, you’ll develop a wider range of drawing techniques and approaches through varied observational projects. You'll have the unique opportunity to draw selected objects from AUB’s Museum of Design in Plastics (MoDiP), offering fascinating and unusual subject matter to inspire your work.

By the end of the course, you’ll not only see measurable improvement in your drawing ability, but also experience the focus and satisfaction that comes from sustained, careful observation.

A structured introduction to traditional observational drawing
Drawing selected objects from MoDiP
Guidance from an experienced practising artist with a background in illustration, technical drawing and animation
A calm, supportive studio environment where you'll learn by doing
Handouts and weekly informative emails
Suggested between-session exercises to help consolidate skills

By the end of the course, you'll:

Demonstrate increased confidence and control in observational drawing
Understand and apply core drawing principles including tone, light and perspective
Participate in supportive group sharing at the end of each session to encourage reflection and development

Students may request a certificate of attendance if 100% attendance has been achieved by the end of the course. To request a certificate, please email academy@aub.ac.uk with your student name and course completed.

Will I be assessed?

No, there's no formal assessment. You’ll group share your work at the end of each session with the intention to support, inspire and encourage each other’s learning. 

As the course progresses your tutor will measure your overall performance and offer essential guidance and feedback, so you know how you're getting on.

What you need to know

Spring term 2027

Tuesday 12 January – 16 March 2027 (10 Tuesday evenings, 18.00–21.00)

Age

Suitable for adults aged 18+.

Level

Beginners or anyone with some experience who want to refresh or develop their skills further.

Experience or qualifications required

None – this is an introductory course. We have no formal academic entry requirements for our short courses.

If you'd like to discuss if this course is suitable for you, get in touch with us: academy@aub.ac.uk or 01202 363222.

£375

Any additional costs

You may need to purchase some materials for this course – please see the ‘What to bring to class’ section for more information.

Additional materials and resources will be provided by AUB and is included in your course fee.

A3 Sketchbook
Drawing materials (pencil, eraser, sharpener)
Notebook for note-taking
Enthusiasm and willingness to practise

A student stands painting two cherries in a sketch book.

Suggested Suppliers

Information about resourcing specialist materials/consumables that you may need to bring these with you

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AUB Academy FAQs – Evening and Weekend and Saturday Art School

If you have any questions about our Evening and Saturday Short Courses, you may find the answers in here.

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AUB Academy booking T&Cs

Please read our Terms and Conditions carefully before booking onto our Evening and Weekend courses.

Book your place today

Book now

Drawing gallery

Examples of different mark making techniques

Beyond the course

This could just be the start of your creative journey! After this course, you could further your sketching skills with another short course or look to the future and explore our creative qualifications that can prepare you to further your current career, enable you to retrain to an alternative career path or prepare you for future creative arts studies.