Berlin Drawing Room Blog: art lessons

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Summer 2013 Workshops: Watercolor and Life Drawing

Here are the dates for the Summer Workshops offered at the Berlin Drawing Room. For detailed course descriptions, just click on the link for each Workshop. Hope to see you at an upcoming workshop! For any questions or to sign up, CONTACT.

Student work from Spring Watercolor Workshop

Watercolor Workshop: July 31 - August 28

Discover the Berlin landscape through plein-air painting!

7 meetings: Wednesday 6-9pm, Saturday 12-3pm

4 x on Wedneday in the studio from 6-9 pm (July 31, August 7, 14, 28) note that we skip August 21 3 x on Saturday in the field from 12-3 pm. (August 3, 10, 17)

120 Euros for the complete Workshop.

Materials are not included. Here is a link to the supply list.

Painting in the Berlin Drawing Room garden!

Life Drawing in August

Draw from a live nude model!

August 1, 8, 15
Thursday 6-9 pm
40 Euro for all 3 classes (with advance registration)
- or- 15 Euro for individual classes

Life Drawing with charcoal!

Life Drawing in August 2013

Current dates: HERE This is an old post! :)
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Join us for Life Drawing with a nude model at the new Berlin Drawing Room!
Come check out our brand new renovated classroom! The Berlin Drawing Room never looked lovelier!

Thursday 6-9 pm : August 1, 8, 15. 2013
50 Euro for all 3 classes
- or- 20 Euro for individual classes

I kindly request that you sign up in advance so that I have an estimate of how many people are coming. This helps me with booking the model and arranging the classroom. Sign up by sending me a message at miraob@gmail.com

Freshly renovated Berlin Drawing Room

Draw from a live nude model! We start out with a warm up drawing excercise, such as blind contour drawing. Then we do a series of short gestural poses - always interesting because our models are typically dancers and performers! We end the session with a few longer 20 minute poses. The instructor will suggest themes to focus on such as "the exploratory line" or "negative space". Personal instruction and critique will be geared to the level of each participant. These classes are suitable for beginners as well as the more advanced who want to practice drawing from a model.

What to bring: sketch-book/ paper minimum A3 size, some pencils, any other drawings materials you want to use such as charcoal, conte crayons, ....

Gesture Drawings: 1 minute poses

Watercolor Workshop: July 31 - August 28

Sign up now to reserve your place by writing to miraob@gmail.com!
Summer Watercolor Workshop:

the Berlin Landscape

Treptower Park, Spring 2013

In this Workshop we will use the landscape of Berlin as a subject for learning the subtle medium of watercolor. Basic color theory will also be covered. We will learn how to layer transparent colors to create the effect of cool shadows and warm sunlight, how to control the paint flow for fine detail as well as smooth backgrounds, and how to use the brush for different types of texture.

The Workshop will take place twice per week, first in the studio and then outdoors. The classes held in Berlin Drawing Room studio will focus on technique, which can then be applied in the field. We will meet every Saturday in a new location, and paint plein-air. See pictures below for some examples of past plein-air sites.

No experience required! This class is perfect for beginners as well as more advanced students who want to improve their skills or just discover interesting landscape locations with fellow painters!

Tiergarten (Spring 2013)

July 31 - August 28

7 meetings: 4 x on Wedneday in the studio
from 6-9 pm
(July 31, August 7, 14, 28)
**note that we skip August 21**
and 3 x on Saturday in the field from 12-3 pm. (August 3, 10, 17)
cost: 120 Euros

(materials are not included, find the supply list here)

This Workshop is limited to 10 students.

To sign up contact miraob@gmail.com and you will receive a registration form and payment instructions.

"Thanks to Mira's lessons in just a few weeks my understanding of watercolours is light years ahead of where it was. She gave us some great tips and coaching and I now feel like I have a really firm grasp of the basics of colours and watercolours and a great skill for life." Testimonial from Spring 2013, scroll down for full text.

Work from the Spring 2013 Watercolor Workshop

To see more examples of student work from the Spring 2013 Watercolor Workshop, clickHERE.

The lovely garden at the Berlin Drawing Room.

Painting in the Berlin Drawing Room studio

Painting an unusual landscape at Gleisdreiecke (Summer 2012)

Plein Air Painting (Summer 2012)

Some reviews:

Wayne ChamanJune 19, 2012 at 12:08 PM

After the Life Drawing workshop with Mira, drawing has become so important in my life. Its like a diary of my days. And so meditative being some minutes daily completely in the "here and now" with my pencil and really "seeing" what is there before me. I am 64 yrs old and never could draw. But now, I can and love it.....A new and important way to be myself and witness my world. Thanks, Mira.
Wayne Mcknight
Greg RubenFebruary 23, 2013 at 12:53 AM

I took the watercolor class last summer and would recommend it to anyone regardless of skill level. I had no experience with watercolors, and really hardly any experience with painting when I took the class. Mira is an extremely patient/open/encouraging teacher and the plein air days are a lot of fun (if the rain doesn't put a damper on things!). She introduced me to a new way of looking at things, of seeing and understanding color in the world around us. Do it!
keirossJune 17, 2013 at 7:09 PM

I took this course in Spring 2013 and if you're considering it, here's my take starting with a bit about my background:

I have always enjoyed being creative but I had neglected painting since I was a kid. Although I tried a few times in the past, I was never able to get my head around watercolours or use them effectively. Anything I tried always turned into a frustrating mess.

Thanks to Mira's lessons in just a few weeks my understanding of watercolours is light years ahead of where it was. She gave us some great tips and coaching and I now feel like I have a really firm grasp of the basics of colours and watercolours and a great skill for life.

When I picked up a brush to start the course, all my paintings turned into a big wet mess and the paper got all messed up but now I am able to produce stuff that I'm pretty pleased with. Here's some of the stuff I painted following the course: https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/960194_10151402306597100_1264159431_n.jpg

Also, the classes are relaxed and fun - there's no pressure at all and the trips with the class made it easier to start painting outside.

Spring Drawing Workshop and Watercolor Workshop start in April!!

Registration is now open for the Spring Drawing Workshop and the Spring Watercolor Workshop!
Class size is limited, so sign up now by writing to instructor and coordinator Mira O'Brien at miraob@gmail.com. You will receive a registration form and payment instructions.

Spring Drawing Workshop: April 8 - May 13

This class introduces basic techniques in drawing, with a focus on drawing from observation. Exercises explore technique, medium and strategies in visual thinking. The class is a perfect introduction for beginners, with some new skills to be learned for the more experienced.

Each class is structured around a formal topic (contour lines, tonality, negative space...), with examples from art-history and a brief discussion. We will build technique through a series of guided exercises, followed by time for experimentation and longer drawings. We will draw from a live model and from still life creations.

We will make an excursion to draw the ready-made still-lives of Berlin’s Natural History Museum, including dinosaur bones and exotic taxidermy. This class will take the form of a "Drawing Scavenger Hunt"!

Schedule: 7 meetings. 6 x Monday 6-9 pm and one field-trip.

- Field-Trip to the Natural History Museum on Sunday, April 28, 12-3 pm.

Cost: 120 Euro
SUPPLY LIST

Spring Watercolor Workshop: April 24 - May 15

In this Workshop we will use the landscape of Berlin as a subject for learning the subtle medium of watercolor. We will learn how to layer transparent colors to create the effect of cool shadows and warm sunlight, how to control the paint flow for fine detail as well as smooth backgrounds, and how to use the brush for different types of texture.

The Workshop will take place twice per week, first in the studio and then outdoors. The class held in Berlin Drawing Room studio will focus on technique, which can then be applied in the field. We will meet every Saturday in a new location, and paint plein-air.

No experience required! This class is perfect for beginners as well as more advanced students who want to improve their skills or just discover interesting landscape locations with fellow painters!

Schedule: 7 meetings: 4 x on Wedneday in the studio from 6-9 pm and 3 x on Saturday in the field from 12-3 pm.

Cost: 120 Euro
SUPPLY LIST

Drawing Workshop starts July 23

New class starts July 23! Sign up now to reserve your place!

Contact

We will make several excursions to draw out in the field, including the ready-made still lives of Berlin’s Natural History Museum, the statues in the Pergamon Museum, and a plein air site. This workshop is also suitable for teenagers! Inquire for more details.

Location: Berlin Drawing Room in Kreuzberg

Schedule: Monday 6-9pm and Wednesday 6-9pm

- the field-trip will be scheduled at a different time

Summer Drawing Workshop is July 23 - August 15, 2012

Cost: 135 Euro for the complete Workshop (8 classes plus 1 field-trip)

- recommended for beginners

or 20 Euro per individual class

To sign up contact:

miraob@gmail.com

Link to the drawing supply list and where to buy your drawing supplies HERE

A selection of Student Work from the Fall Drawing Workshop

"Excellent for first-timers! Challenging for slightly more experienced! Stimulating for experienced artists too. You've got nothing to loose. Mira's Life drawing class was our highlight of the past summer."

- Marta Hanson, Visiting Scholar, Max Plank Institute for the History of Science

(participant in the Summer Drawing Workshop, 2011)

Watercolor Location: Sunday July 15

For the last plein-air painting session of the Watercolor Workshop, we will meet in a quite unique and interesting location. It is a train yard in the Gleisdreieck area, and the good news is that we can hide under the old train tracks in case it rains.

Since it is a little bit hard to find, we will meet at the Bülowstrasse U-Bahn station (under the station at the west-most end - ground level). But just in case you come late and want to try finding the way yourself, here are directions:

From Bülowstrasse on: go down the stairs to get out of the station; orient yourself towards the church (picture 1) and walk straight towards it 500m; then to the left of the church (picture 2), cross the curve of the street and go on 100m (picture 3). You'll see a little skatepark to your left. At the end of the pathway, you'll see a small door (picture 4), seeming to lead to private gardens (also noticeable : the sign for "beach61". Climb the stairs, to the left 10m, and you're there!

Here are some images of the site, thanks to Alexandre Dupuis.

Watercolor Artists: approaches

To get some ideas on how to start a watercolor painting, we looked at art history. What strategies have watercolor artists used in the past?

Some artists started with a drawing, and stuck to this drawing as an outline. Other artists started with color and brushstrokes.

We broke this down into two main strategies: the drawing approach and the painterly approach. Look through these images and see if you can identify the approach!