Why week one is all about the value scale
Ten boxes, one pencil, and the reason every drawing course starts there (sample).
Learn to draw, one week at a time
Northlight Art School (sample) runs small evening and Saturday classes in drawing and painting for complete beginners and for people picking up a brush again. Twelve easels a class, materials included.
Week 1
Line and mark
Week 2
Measuring by eye
Week 3
Shapes and spaces
Week 4
Tone with pencil
Week 5
Light on a still life
Week 6
Form and volume
Week 7
Charcoal and texture
Week 8
Space and depth
Week 9
The figure
Week 10
Your own drawing
Foundation drawing, Mondays 19:00–21:00, ten weeks from 12 January (sample). $240 a term, Example prices.
4 places left
Classes this term
Each strip is one course: a box for every session, lightest first. The longer the strip, the longer the course.
Terms and places (sample). Example prices; all materials are included except for oil painting, where you buy your own paints after week one.
What happens at your first class
Classes are twelve people at most, so the tutor gets round every easel more than once. Nobody is asked to show their work to the room, and nobody is expected to be good yet.
What to bring
- Nothing for drawing and watercolour: paper, pencils, paints and brushes are provided
- Clothes you do not mind getting paint or charcoal on
- A sketchbook if you have one, to keep your notes and the week's studies
The week at the studio
Evening classes start at 19:00 so you can come straight from work. The studio opens half an hour before.
Monday
19:00–21:00
Foundation drawing
Beginners
4 places left
Tuesday
10:00–12:30
Watercolour for beginners
Beginners
2 places left
Wednesday
19:00–21:30
Oil painting
Some drawing helps
5 places left
Thursday
18:30–20:30
Acrylics
All levels
Full
Thursday
19:00–20:00
Free taster class
New students
Book ahead
Friday
19:00–21:00
Life drawing, drop in
Untutored, model booked
Pay on the night
Saturday
10:00–13:30
Kids and teens classes
Ages 7 to 16
3 places left
Timetable for the spring term (sample).
Saturday classes for kids and teens
Two groups, kept small: ages 7 to 11 paint and draw from 10:00 to 11:30, ages 12 to 16 from 12:00 to 14:00. Teens can build a portfolio for school art courses in the summer term.
- Every tutor working with children has a background check (sample)
- Aprons, paper and paints provided
- Parents can wait in the café next door; pick-up is at the studio door
Term fees
Foundation drawing, 10 weeks
$240
Watercolour for beginners, 6 weeks
$180
Oil painting, 8 weeks
Paints are your own after week one; we give you the list
$280
Acrylics, 6 weeks
$170
Life drawing, drop in
Five-session card $60
$14
Kids, 10 Saturdays
Teens $190
$150
Example prices. Pay in two instalments if you prefer; ask about a reduced fee.
Gift vouchers
A voucher for any amount from $25, valid for a year on any course, workshop or drop-in session. We post it on thick cartridge paper or email it the same day.
From the sketchbook
A short shopping list for oil painters
Four colours, two brushes and a rag: what to buy after week one of the oil course (sample).
Graded washes: the watercolour exercise worth repeating
From full strength to clear water in one stroke after another (sample).
Finding the studio
Northlight Art School
4 Foundry Yard, Springfield (sample)
- First floor, north-facing windows, step-free by the lift in the yard
- Bus 6 and 31 stop at Foundry Yard
- Paid parking behind Mill Row, free after 18:00
- Office open Monday to Friday, 10:00–16:00
Try a free taster class first
Every Thursday at 19:00 a tutor runs a one-hour drawing class for new students. Paper, pencils and tea are on us; you only need to turn up.