Drawing_Analysis | Ali Gillett

Drawing is a skill-set that's easy to overlook, especially when we want to dive in and get our paintings out of our heads and onto a canvas! Yet painting is drawing by another name, so if you can’t draw, how are you going to paint? 

More than that, despite being able to use projectors, tracing and grids to set an image up, how do you correct the image once the painting has started if you’re not familiar with critique and analysis?

What will I learn?

This 2-day workshop is dedicated to teaching you all of the above and so much more!  You will learn the tools that are necessary for you to relax into your artistic practice with freedom and bravery, with the awareness that you will be able to critique at each step of the way, and correct what went wrong.  Let’s face it, art is all about making mistakes and fixing them beautifully! 
Throughout the weekend you will use these skills in multiple settings, on multiple surfaces, illustrating multiple scenes. More than anything, this workshop is about you feeling confident in your ability to continue your art-making journey, filled to the brim with information.

On Day 1 we will begin by learning the terms and movements of each point of analysis, how and when to use them, and what sort of information each point can give you. Think of this as the fundamentals - if you’re drawing, you really need to be able to see and apply general shape. Following this exercise we will apply these tools in order to create and critique a portrait together as a class. We will round out the day by jumping from a 2-D image into life drawing, utilising (PG-rated!) pillow people and various props to test our ability to transfer what has been learnt into a 3-D scenario. 

On Day 2 we will dive right into working with paint, values, and even a limited palette. We will be learning how to create believable forms quickly, through expert colour mixing and temperature control, and doing it all with ease! Over the course of this day we will paint 3 images including an object, a landscape, and a portrait.

You can expect to walk away with a workbook filled with information and tools, many sketches, several paintings and an in-depth understanding of how to use your skills in both a 2-D and a 3-D setting. Most importantly, you will walk away confident and proud, because that’s what learning the foundations does!

Who is this workshop suitable for?

This is suitable for all levels of experience including absolute beginners.

What do I need to bring?

• A bucket for water
• Chux cloth x2
• Willow charcoal - thin
• A3 cartridge paper for life drawing - 10 sheets minimum
• Sketchbook/ notepad for notes with pen
• Cardboard/ small canvases to paint on (A4 minimum, A3 maximum)
• Square-edged brushes in a range of sizes (1 inch and smaller)
• Palette
• Masking tape
• Clear ruler
• Acrylic paints (napthol red light, quinacridone magenta, french ultramarine blue, cobalt turquoise light, arylamide yellow light, arylamide yellow dark, titanium white, carbon black)
• Printed workbook

What is provided

• Tea and coffee (please bring your own cup)
• A friendly, supportive and encouraging learning environment
• Connection to the Bienarté art community

About Ali Gillett

Ali Gillett founded Brave Arts to take the mystery out of art-making.

Employed at Arts Tree, a private art school on Brisbane’s bay side, Ali guides groups of adult students through the rigours of learning to paint with acrylics. She also tutors at Professional Development Workshops with Oxlades, is an Artist in Residence at schools and aged care homes throughout Brisbane, and runs private tuition with recipients of NDIS/ NDIA funding.

Ali divides the rest of her time between a studio and mural practice as well as portrait commissions and installations and strives to create celebratory abundance and awe for her audience’s viewing pleasure in all that she does.

Ali holds a BA in Fine Art from RMIT, Melbourne, 2014, a current working-with-children card, and has completed the Introduction to Disability Awareness through NDCO and ADCET, 2019.