Class Description:

Discover your strengths and explore your passion by building the essential skills to draw with confidence and unleash your creative potential.

This class aims to clarify and demystify drawing as a practice that, while complex, is accessible to beginners. It offers a structured environment to introduce the core elements of drawing, including observation, conceptualization, stylization, and material handling. Students will identify their initial strengths and interests while developing the foundational skills needed to pursue drawing with greater confidence. From exploring basic drawing tools such as graphite, ink, and ballpoint pens, to gaining an introductory understanding of rendering techniques and using light to depict form and space, students will leave with a solid starting point. Though this brief course won’t make them expert draftsmen, it will provide the necessary building blocks to approach future artistic endeavors with clarity and enthusiasm. *NOTE: All basic supplies for this class are provided and included in the cost of tuition.

Fall I Dates:

Scheduled occurrences for the next semester of this class are as follows:

Week
Date
Time
Week 1:
9/08/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 2:
9/15/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 3:
9/22/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 4:
9/29/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 5:
10/06/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 6:
10/13/2026
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET


  1. Before Class - Welcome & How to Prepare for Class

  2. Week 1 - Class Introduction

  3. Week 2 - Using Angles and Axes

  4. Week 3 - Sculpting with Light

  5. Week 4- Hatching, Cross-Hatching, and Cross-Contours

  6. Week 5 - Long vs. Short Drawing Sessions

  • $355.00
  • In-Person
  • 6 Weeks
  • Beginner to Intermediate

Meet Your Instructor

Nicola Russell

Instructor

Nicola Russell is an American-Canadian artist based in New York City. She holds an MFA from the New York Academy of Art and specializes in oil and watercolor painting, focusing on portraiture, the human figure, and landscape. Having painted in watercolor since childhood, Nicola brings a lifetime of experience and passion to the medium. Alongside her studio work, Nicola shares her passion for painting with a global audience through her popular social media channel, @vangoghandloveyourself, on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, where she creates art-centered content and watercolor portraits celebrating inspiring figures from history.

Achieve your artistic potential

Join us to discover traditional skills and contemporary practice