Sight-Size – Life Drawing

Ages: 18+
Term: Spring
Length: 10 weeks

Overview

This course is perfectly suited to artists looking to build upon their existing skills or want to advance their educational journey in accurate representation from eye and seek further qualifications.

To book your place today, simply click Book Now to be taken to AUB's secure online store, where you can complete your booking. You can also sign up to our newsletter for short course updates.

About this course

Sight-size drawing is an effective way of training the artist's eye, whereby the artist stands back from the easel to compare artwork with the subject at the same scale. This method of teaching has been used in Florence since the Renaissance period.

This unique 10-week part time programme has been developed in collaboration with Dhanraz Ramdharry, an established artist/tutor who previously trained with sight-size specialists Nicholas Beer and Anastasia Pollard. Dhanraz will introduce you to the essential skills and knowledge that underpin all elements of portraiture and life drawing, and will nurture and develop your foundational knowledge and experience in furthering your future success. 

This course will help you develop your skills in knowledge of anatomy; not only covering the principles of gesture and values but also teaching you how to accurately represent your sitter. The course will focus on portraiture and life drawing with live models and long poses. You'll learn how to plan and develop your understanding of colour theory; in particular flesh tones using a limited palette, how to achieve consistent results, and how to develop your creative visual voice and personal style.

Historical overview of sight-sized techniques and relevant artists.
How to accurately represent human form.
Materials, charcoal, oil paint (limited palette – full details given on enrolment)
Colour theory
Drawing from life
Sketchbook development (recording the process)
Talk about your ideas and get constructive feedback

At the end of the course you'll:

Experiment with charcoal and oil paint to accurately represent life
Understand different observational drawing processes
Define and determine which areas of life drawing you wish to pursue

All students with 100% course attendance will be issued with an official AUB Academy Certificate of Attendance detailing course contents

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 

Monday 11 January – 15 March 2027 (10 Monday evenings, 18.00–21.00)

Age

Suitable for adults aged 18+.

Level

Beginners with basic life drawing knowledge, or anyone with some experience who want to refresh or develop their skills further.

Experience or qualifications required

There are no formal entry requirements, but ideally you'll have previous experience in life drawing and/or portraiture. You'll be expected to conduct some self-study and additional project work between course sessions to fully benefit and support learning development throughout the course.

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.

£389

Any additional costs

You may need to purchase some items for this course – please refer to 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.

A1 Canson drawing paper (white) 
A2 cartridge paper (white) 
Sugar paper 
Drawing pencils 2B-6B 
Plastic type eraser 
Putty type eraser (preferably Lyra or Faber Castell) 
White and coloured chalk 
Nitram charcoal sticks (HB and B): your tutor will advise on your first session
Soft graphite sticks/crayons 
Oil paints: your tutor will advise on your first session

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.

Meet your tutor

Dhanraz Ramdharry

Dhanraz Ramdharry is a Bournemouth-based artist, specialising in portraits, classically trained in sight-sized techniques.

Book your place today

Book now

Life drawing gallery

Painting of a man with a bard wearing a brown and white fleece and white T-shirt, holding a sword in one hand, the blade leant on his shoulder.

Close-up of a portrait of a man with a beard and a fleece jacket being painted. The model is visible on the left.

An artist in the middle of painting a full-length portrait of G Farquhar.

Full-length colour portrait of Mayor G Farquhar sitting in a chair next to a dog. The background of the portrait is a line drawing only.

Portrait of a young woman in Medieval-style costume petting a dog and holding the pommel of a sword.

An artist viewed from the back in the process of drawing a woman's face. The model is visible in the background.

A framed portrait of a woman wearing a white blouse holding a tea cup and saucer, and the model sitting next to it.

Man in navy suit with purple tie standing in ornate room with dark dog, framed paintings on white walls, decorative furniture.

Nude figure drawing in charcoal and pastels showing seated woman with curly hair against dark background, pale flesh tones on cream paper.

Oil painting of nude female figure standing centrally on muted grey-beige background with soft purple and pink tones.

Charcoal drawing of nude woman with curly hair seated on draped fabric, rendered in grey tones on light paper.

Painted nude figure study with pink flesh tones against muted grey-green background, standing pose with hand on hip.

Classical oil painting of nude male figure holding white skull, standing against grey-brown background with stone ledge.

Bearded man in dark suit sits on chair beside large portrait painting of similarly posed bearded figure, ornate room with patterned wallpaper.

Beyond the course

This could just be the start of your creative journey! After this course, you could further your artistic 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.