8-Week Pencil Sketching Series - Beginners Portraiture

This is an 8-week series. Class meets once every week.
Students will learn to use the principles of anatomy to approach each stage of drawing a portrait, from the initial head structure to the parts of the face and shading of the finished work. This class will start with the Andrew Loomis method of head construction to explore facial proportions. Students will then be introduced to, Head Mapping, Facial Structures, Expressions, and Perspectives, they will understand how these concepts can be applied, adapted and manipulated to capture a realistic rendering of a human face. They will learn how to utilize the structure of the eyes, nose, mouth, ears and hair in subsequent weeks and finish the series with a realistic drawing of a human face. Throughout the course, various pencil shading techniques will be taught to render tones, shadows and highlights to give their portraits photorealistic qualities.
Once they build a solid foundation and keep practicing, they will be able to sketch a multitude of portraits with confidence. Classes are highly interactive and students will have the opportunity to socialize and share their ideas in a fun and upbeat environment.

Schedule
Week 1 - Facial Proportions
Students will understand the fundamentals of basic head constructions and facial mapping using the Loomis method.
Week 2 – Head Angles
Students will learn how to envision the human head, to draw its structure accurately from any perspective keeping the volume and shape consistent with the position of the head.
Week 3 – Eye Construction & Perspectives
Students will use the concept of a sphere to organize and interpret the perspectives of the eye and accurately portray the soft structures around it.
Week 4 – Nose Construction & Perspectives
Students will start with geometric forms, adding spheres for the nostrils, and then make the form realistic using shading to render tone and form.
Week 5 – Mouth Construction and Expressions
Students will start with understanding the basic shapes that make up the lips, how to manipulate them to capture their expressions and they will make them realistic through the use of shading to render tone and form.
Week 6 – Ear & Hair Construction and Perspectives
Students will return to the form of the head, locating the ears, understanding its forms from different angles. They will explore how hair is added and touch upon the shading needed to render lighting and texture.
Week 7 – Anatomy of Expressions
Students will use the Reilly Method to locate the planes of muscle in the face, and then adjust them to properly create a variety of expressions. They will draw a full portrait.
Week 8 – Portrait Study
Students will encapsulate all of the knowledge learned in the prior weeks to draw a portrait with a realistic expression.
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Please read below for frequently-asked questions on our policies:

Mandatory Viedo Check-In
Video check-in is mandatory for safety purposes per Outschool policy. Students are required to have their cameras on to allow the teacher to check in and verify each learner. After check-in, students have the option of either turning off their camera or leaving it on, whatever is their preference. Younger learners are highly encouraged to leave their cameras on.

Missed Classes & Refunds
All our classes are backed by the ‘Limited’ refund policy. Parents may withdraw up to a week before class starts with a full refund OR within 24 hours of purchase. In the event a learner misses a class, recordings are made available in each classroom. Students are more than welcomed to reach out for any questions and share their work in the classroom.

Late/ Missed Class
All classes will begin on time as long as one learner is in the classroom. In the event that no students are in the classroom at the assigned class time, the teacher will leave a message in the classroom and exit after ten minutes of waiting per Outschool policy.

Minimum Enrollment & Class Cancellation
A minimum of two learners is required for every class to run. In the event that we have to cancel a class, parents will be notified within 24 hours of class. Learners will have the option of either transferring to a more populated section of the same class or receiving a full refund, whichever is preferred.

Technical Difficulties
In the event of class delay/ cancellations due to unforeseeable technical issues, all families will be notified and a make-up section will be posted, or a refund will be issued if a make-up class cannot be scheduled.