Drawing: questioning the visible

Every drawing is an invitation to question the visible – and, in that attentive gesture, to broaden our perception and our understanding of the world we belong to. Learning to draw is closely bound up with learning to observe. Observing is bound up with our senses, and these, in turn, shape the way we draw.

Over sixteen sessions, this course explores the many dimensions and possibilities of drawing, both through direct observation of the works of art in the Museum galleries and from objects in the studio. After a brief historical introduction to the works in the Gulbenkian collection, the sessions are built around exercises in a range of techniques and themes, among them: the conscious experience of drawing; what we provisionally capture through drawing, seeking ways to convey the weight and lightness of things; and the balance of the composition – in other words, the relationship between the elements drawn.

The course is not accredited. Participants should bring their own drawing materials.