The workshop starts with a lecture and demonstration Friday evening at The Atelier to discuss materials, gear, and process. Attendees will then paint twice a day, Saturday and Sunday mornings and afternoons. Richard Lack once said that if you want to learn about color you paint outside. Focus will be on recognizing the values that capture the light in a scene and the way colors recede into distance. Composition will also be discussed as well as practical tips for working quickly.

Friday evening will be at The Atelier for a lecture, demonstration and Q&A. Saturday and Sunday will be two 3-hour sessions each day: 8:30am to 11:30am and 1:30pm to 4:30pm.

Friday, 6:30pm–9:30pm, Saturday & Sunday, 8:30am–4:30pm

Experience our full-time program in a week-long workshop.

Students begin by drawing a plaster cast or still life in charcoal, developing their ability to render accurate proportions and value relationships. As students progress, they are introduced to the fundamentals of oil and/or pastel techniques, composition and color.

Experience our full-time program in a week-long workshop.

Life drawing is at the core of any serious program of fine arts. In the class, students draw from the figure in pencil. Each drawing is created over a period of several sessions, developing the student's eye for accurate proportions, gesture and anatomy.

Let your imagination fly! Get a taste of illustration during this week long workshop. We’ll work to develop a strong drawing for an imaginative piece based upon an existing story or your own idea. Topics covered will include composition, brainstorming, thumbnails, research, sketch development, and studies for value and color. Emphasis will be placed on composition, and storytelling. For the first class please bring a sketchbook, and your preferred drawing tools. If you have a laptop or other device with internet access, bring that too for reference research. If you have a specific project in mind, please contact Christine (chistine.mitzuk@theatelier.org).

Ages 11+

This workshop is for older kids who want to begin painting in watercolor or improve their skills. We will start out copying simple studies and end the week painting real objects. Learn how to layer paint, mix paint, and do some cool effects, too! Parents: You are welcome to register and learn alongside your child. Bring a Prang Oval 8 Watercolor set (please get this brand), 140-lb. watercolor pad, synthetic watercolor brushes: #4, #6, and #8 rounds.

Additional Information for Parents:

1. There are no exceptions on age limits.
2. It is warm in our studio, so please have your child dress to be comfortable.
3. Have your kids bring a water bottle and a small snack.
4. Just like a museum, The Atelier has artistic nude paintings on display.

In the 1980s, the Sistine Ceiling endured a restoration that stripped it of its history and age, a process art historian James Beck condemned as an "artistic Chernobyl." This lecture will examine the work done on Michelangelo's frescoes, discussing the historical ethics of the restoration and the repainting that followed. The sculptor's sanguine preparatory sketches will be shown alongside the frescoes, offering insight into his sculptural approach to drawing and anatomical mastery.

For ages 15+

This one-week intensive workshop introduces students to basic concepts of drawing from direct observation, rather than from a photograph. Students will draw a plaster cast in charcoal, developing their ability to render accurate proportions and value relationships. As students progress, more complex concepts and techniques will be introduced. Instruction will consist of individualized, one-on-one instruction tailored to each student's level and needs. By the end of the course, students will have an increased understanding and confidence in drawing from life.

Drawing the figure is a practice rooted in refining observation, deepening aesthetic judgement, and cultivating a profound understanding of form, light, and movement. Among the most evocative mediums in this pursuit is sanguine—a material employed for centuries by the Old Masters to capture the warmth, vitality, and structure of the human form.

This five-day workshop will explore the principles underpinning the use of sanguine in figure drawing, focusing on its role in both refined figure drawings and serving as a preferred medium for preparatory sketches in painting. We will examine key elements necessary for a successful figure drawing, including the balance between line and mass, the sculptural quality of light and shadow, and the poetic sensibility required to render the figure with elegance and conviction. Additionally, we will study the historical applications of sanguine, its popularity as a medium for preparatory drawings, as well as its continued prominence as a medium for detailed figure drawings. Practical exercises will complement these studies, helping students develop a disciplined and methodical approach to drawing.

Students will work from a live model, progressing from gesture studies to fully realized drawing. Emphasis will be placed on anatomical accuracy, proportion, and a sensitivity to the unique qualities of sanguine as a medium. By the end of the workshop, students will have achieved technical proficiency and developed a deeper understanding of the emotional depth and expressive power that sanguine brings to figure drawing.

The workshop begins with a lecture on the history and development of the academic style, with a focus on the role of sanguine. We will take a look at sanguine drawings by the artists who popularised the material—Tiepolo, Poussin, Watteau, and Rubens. This will be followed by demonstrations on fundamental figure drawing principles and the sight-size method in pencil. Finally, students will be introduced to the unique medium of sanguine, which will be provided for their use.