Throughout the year short courses are offered to give students the opportunity to experience an overview of atelier training. Classes are limited to fourteen students, and an instructor works alongside giving daily critiques. It is recommended that those with no prior experience of the sight‑size method begin with one of our drawing courses.
Drawing Courses
From the beginning, students draw daily from the figure model and casts using the sight‑size method. Figure drawing in pencil is crucial for the understanding of line, contour and modelling. Emphasis is placed on seeing the drawing as a whole, rather than as a composite of separate details. Cast drawing in charcoal enables the student to analyze shape and proportion in relation to the effects of light and shade. During the final week of each course students progress from the cast to sight‑size portrait drawing. Instructors work alongside the students in both the figure and cast drawing classes.
| Course | Dates | Hours | Tuition(€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4-week | 7th July – 1st August 2025 | 120 hours | €2950 |
| | | | |
| 2-week | 7th July – 18th July 2025 | 60 hours | €1850 |
| | 21st July – 1st August 2025 | 60 hours | €1850 |
| | | | |
| 2-week | 15th September – 26th September 2025 | 60 hours | €2000 |
Sessions are held from 9 am-noon and 1-4 pm weekdays. There is a sketch class each Tuesday from 6:00-8:00 pm. All of our short courses also include the cost of individual portrait models.
Portrait Painting Courses
During the first week students are introduced to the fundamentals of portraiture through sight‑size cast and portrait drawing. Those with more experience, but who are new to the method, first draw sight‑size before moving on to portrait painting. Each project is painted to the scale of life using a limited flesh palette. Students are taught the handgrinding of oil paints and the making and use of mediums. Poses are sustained over a number of sessions so that students have ample time to study shape, colour and modelling. Instructors work with the class to demonstrate by example in addition to giving individual critiques.
| Course | Dates | Hours | Tuition(€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-week | 31st March – 11th April 2025 | 60 hours | €2250 |
| | | | |
| 4-week | 7th July – 1st August 2025 | 120 hours | €3600 |
| | | | |
Sessions are held from 9 am-noon and 1-4 pm weekdays. There is a sketch class each Tuesday from 6:00-8:00 pm. All of our short courses also include the cost of individual portrait models.
British Institute of Florence
In collaboration with the British Institute of Florence we offer part-time evening courses as an introduction to the sight‑size method. For further details and applications please visit their website: www.britishinstitute.it