FIGURE & GESTURE DRAWING COURSE FOR BEGINNERS

This beginner-friendly course introduces foundational techniques for figure and gesture drawing. Designed to help students understand the structure of the human body and how to capture movement, the course covers how to set up your page, proper drawing technique, proportion, shadow shapes and capturing dynamic gesture—all essential for creating expressive and accurate figure drawings.

Over fives classes, students will develop skills to both observe and interpret the human form, learning how to quickly capture poses and refine their understanding of light and shadow and porportion.

COURSE FORMAT

Dates: Tuesday Evenings, January 27 - February 24

Time: Arrive at 5:45pm to set up, class runs 6:00 - 9:00pm

Location:
Upstairs first door on the left at Hive Art Gallery
Unit 23/5 Coghill Dr, Currumbin Waters QLD 4223

Fee: $475

Model:
A live model will be present for all sessions.

Facilities:
The Gallery is air-conditioned and there is plenty of street parking available.

Bring your own Materials:

• A2 Cartridge Paper

• Pencils: 2H, HB, 2B, 6B

• Small box cutter knife for pencil sharpening

• Kneadable Eraser

• Willow Charcoal

Note:
Easels, drawing boards, and clips provided.
This course is limited to 10 students.

COURSE OUTLINE

1. Blocking
Learn how to break the figure down into basic shapes and lines to establish proportion and form. This process simplifies the complexity of the human body, making it more approachable. We'll also introduce chiaroscuro (light-dark), a foundational principle for understanding volume through light.

2. Measuring
Building on blocking, this session explores contouring and shading to create volume and depth. We’ll touch briefly on anatomy and introduce the "pencil as ruler" technique for accurate proportion measurement.

3. Gesture & Line
We will be exploring gesture—those fluid, expressive lines that bring the figure to life. Understanding gesture is essential for capturing emotion, movement, and energy. We'll revisit chiaroscuro in greater depth, applying it to dynamic poses.

4. Practice
For the second half of the last three sessions, we will work on a single pose. This is your opportunity to bring everything together—blocking, measuring, gesture, and shading—to complete one final, fully developed drawing.

About Rebecca Cunningham

Rebecca Cunningham is a Gold Coast–based artist whose practice centres on figure drawing and the human form. She was first introduced to life drawing in 2013 while studying at RMIT Tafe in Melbourne, where she completed a Diploma of Visual Arts. This formative experience laid the foundation for her ongoing dedication to observational drawing.

From this passion, Rebecca founded the now well-known Life Drawing Sessions, which began as a small hobby group 11 years ago and has since grown into a thriving program running regularly across the Gold Coast, Brisbane, and the Sunshine Coast. These sessions have become a valued space for artists of all levels to develop their skills within a supportive and dynamic environment.

More recently, Rebecca spent time in Sydney studying at the Julian Ashton Art School, where she further refined her practice through traditional realism drawing and painting techniques.

Rebecca is the recipient of the 2019 Dean Cogle Portrait Prize, has exhibited multiple times at the SWELL Sculpture Festival, and has held two solo exhibitions at Dust Temple Gallery. Her work reflects a deep respect for the human form and classical drawing traditions, combined with a contemporary approach to art practice.

Terms & Conditions – Workshop Enrolment

Please consider your availability carefully before booking. Ensure you have checked your dates and confirmed any work or personal commitments.

All courses have a strict no-refund policy.

If you are unable to attend, a credit may be offered provided we receive at least 7 days’ notice prior to the course commencement date. This allows time for us to offer your place to another student. Credits are not available for late cancellations or non-attendance.

If you change your mind or are no longer able to attend, you may transfer or gift your enrolment to another person, however the original booking will otherwise be forfeited.

Life Drawing Sessions reserves the right to cancel or reschedule classes due to insufficient enrolments or venue unavailability. In the event that a class is cancelled by the organiser, all enrolled students will receive a full refund for that class.

By booking, you acknowledge and agree to these Terms & Conditions.