If you’d like to bring your pet’s character to life on paper, or you fancy honing your drawing skills, Kitty Forbes’s one-off online workshop on learning to draw animals in pencil could well be the cat’s whiskers. “I have always loved drawing animals,” says the London-based illustrator. “Each one brings a new challenge and facial expression.”
During the relaxed and friendly two-hour class, participants will explore different methods of sketching, line and shading with coloured pencils, and create a small portfolio of animal drawings, both in single colour and multi-coloured. Attendees will learn to draw fur, feathers and body shapes in a way that brings out the personality of the animal in question.
“We will be focusing on drawing classic English animals,” explains Forbes, “such as badgers, foxes, sheep, cows, and a few more favourites.”
“I’m excited to teach my students how to get character into each animal’s face”
Forbes specialises in drawing dogs by hand, both as commissions and for her own range of art prints and cards. Using watercolour and pencil, she brings out the unique features and identities of her subjects. “I’m excited to teach my students how to get character into each animal’s face,” she says. “This can make the whole drawing come to life.”
Those attending the online class will also learn more about proportion and linear perspective, the significance of the colour palette in a multi-coloured drawing, and will examine the technical properties of coloured pencils.
Forbes is a graduate of Leeds College of Arts and has a love of aesthetic detail. She believes that an artist should display passion, patience and dedication. “It is OK to take things slowly and really work out what you want to create and share with the world,” she says. “This will evolve as you go. Just believe in yourself.”
You don’t have to be an experienced artist to get the most out of Forbes’s workshop. If you’re completely new to drawing, stencils will be provided. If you’re considering this as your first Elephant Academy course, don’t forget that a bundle of appropriate art materials can also be purchased as part of the ticket, so you don’t need to worry about not having the correct things on the night.
“Just believe in yourself. Hopefully my students will be surprised by how good their own work is!”
Forbes’s positive encouragement will undoubtedly spur on both novices and experienced artists. “Hopefully my students will be surprised by how good their own work is!” she says.
Find out more about this online workshop here as well as the many others on offer at Elephant Academy.
