2D or not 2D - Introduction to Portraiture and Personal Development

Intro Session into Portraiture and Personal Development.

"To be, or not to be, that is the question” is the famous Shakespearian quote featuring the theme of existential crisis. Digging deeper reveals a variety of concepts and meanings that apply to all human beings. The text of Hamlets opening line continues

"Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks"

This is a extra special course dedicated to personal development through portraiture and drawing with the emphasis on our shared experiences of being human.

How do you see yourself? Do you like what you see?

Learning to draw has nothing to do with what we like or dislike. It is about viewing the
image, person, object in front in an objective form. This course enables you to discover different drawing techniques in self portraiture that will take you on a personal and relational journey to break open the locks, judgments and comparison habits we harbor. Interwoven with mindfulness practices, reflective journaling techniques and authentic relating, it's aim is to offer new personal insights while embarking on a creative drawing journey.

This session on May 21st is an introduction session to the full course that will run in the Autumn of this year.

During the session you will get a taster of fun drawing warm ups, technical introduction into the various different graphite techniques, games that allow you to meet other participants through drawing. Gifting you time to space to come into self alignment through the mark making processes. Pencils, paper and sketchbooks will be available at the venue - or bring your own

Full 8 week Course Content
(8 x 3 hour evening sessions)

The first two weeks are dedicated to short processes and exercises in understanding how to loosen our opinions and minds in order to let go of expectations of the mark making process. You will learn different methods to shift perception of what you see, draw and judge (both your self and your work!) These first 6 hours are the foundations for developing the right, intuitive side of the brain and to unwind the left, labeling brain in order to create work that comes from the soul, while meeting a like-minded group of new friends.

After exploring and experimenting with basic drawing techniques the following four weeks will be dedicated to understanding the in-depth drawing techniques from learning different measuring strategies. We will start to re-frame personal narratives by turning your world upside down (literally) , be confronted with the thousands of shadows right in front of your nose using a mirror to draw and we will practice with images from childhood, meet and discover forgotten parts of ourselves that have a direct source to creativity and create a safe environment for you to meet others in the group in a profound way.

Each session will begin with light warm ups and move towards longer exercises and processes.

The final two weeks will be dedicated to completing a large self portrait which will
use the drawing skills and build into a final piece.

By the end of the course you will have a busy sketch book, have learnt and practiced 4-6 drawing techniques, having completed 2-4 individual finished drawings and a final large scale work.

During the practical elements of the course, students will be posed various questions that relate to the self, self identification, subject and objective perspectives of the self and will be guided through meditations and authentic relating principals to understand the relationship between the mind and the perception of self.

This will ultimately give you foundations in shifting to the meditative state of drawing. As our nerves in our fingertips are activated, so can we form new neural pathways in the brain that can give a person deep insights that can transform the understanding of self through the participation of the craft.

You do not need to have any previous drawing experience to join this course.