I’ve always enjoyed drawing, but with all the other pressures of life at home and professionally it wasn’t always a high priority. I have some pencil drawings of my children made when they were very young, but years went by with little being produced.
Then about 15 years ago I decided to be more serious about drawing, and to learn more about it. I didn’t go to art school, but Rembrandt, Raphael, Blake and many others whose works are freely available to study in our great museums, all provided silent tuition. The museums will even give you a chair to sit on while you try to copy some of the greatest art the world has produced. Living in west London I’ve been spoilt for choice, and have spent time drawing in many of the city’s great museums:
The National Gallery: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/
The British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/
The Victoria and Albert Museum: https://www.vam.ac.uk/
Tate Britain: https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain
The Wallace Collection: https://www.wallacecollection.org/
I also regularly attend life-drawing groups. Drawing the human form is one of the hardest drawing challenges you can face, but also one of the most rewarding when you get it right.
The Royal Drawing School: https://www.royaldrawingschool.org/
London Drawing: https://londondrawing.com/
Then I found there are lots of people who like to draw out on the streets. The Urban Sketchers movement is international, with groups meeting regularly in cities all round the world. I’ve been especially busy with the London group, but there are many others in the UK.
International Urban Sketchers: https://urbansketchers.org/
London Urban Sketchers: http://urbansketchers-london.blogspot.com/
If I was to list all the artists who I admire it would be a very long list, but here are a few, ancient and modern:
George Butler
Felix Scheinberger
Quentin Blake
Gerald Scarfe
Ralph Steadman
William Blake
Edward Lear
JMW Turner
Daumier
Rembrandt
Raphael
Drawing is a cheap activity to take up. Sure, there are plenty of people that suggest you’ll never succeed unless you stock up on vast quantities of kit, but it’s not true. A decent pencil and sketchbook will get you started. And when you get it right, it’s a great feeling.
Then about 15 years ago I decided to be more serious about drawing, and to learn more about it. I didn’t go to art school, but Rembrandt, Raphael, Blake and many others whose works are freely available to study in our great museums, all provided silent tuition. The museums will even give you a chair to sit on while you try to copy some of the greatest art the world has produced. Living in west London I’ve been spoilt for choice, and have spent time drawing in many of the city’s great museums:
The National Gallery: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/
The British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/
The Victoria and Albert Museum: https://www.vam.ac.uk/
Tate Britain: https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain
The Wallace Collection: https://www.wallacecollection.org/
I also regularly attend life-drawing groups. Drawing the human form is one of the hardest drawing challenges you can face, but also one of the most rewarding when you get it right.
The Royal Drawing School: https://www.royaldrawingschool.org/
London Drawing: https://londondrawing.com/
Then I found there are lots of people who like to draw out on the streets. The Urban Sketchers movement is international, with groups meeting regularly in cities all round the world. I’ve been especially busy with the London group, but there are many others in the UK.
International Urban Sketchers: https://urbansketchers.org/
London Urban Sketchers: http://urbansketchers-london.blogspot.com/
If I was to list all the artists who I admire it would be a very long list, but here are a few, ancient and modern:
George Butler
Felix Scheinberger
Quentin Blake
Gerald Scarfe
Ralph Steadman
William Blake
Edward Lear
JMW Turner
Daumier
Rembrandt
Raphael
Drawing is a cheap activity to take up. Sure, there are plenty of people that suggest you’ll never succeed unless you stock up on vast quantities of kit, but it’s not true. A decent pencil and sketchbook will get you started. And when you get it right, it’s a great feeling.