Drawing can be scary

As a teacher one of the first things I often hear from year 7 pupils is "I cannot draw I am no good at art", unfortunately this perception of drawing and art is something that is all too common. I am pleased to say that the participants of my drawing for Beginners workshop all came with an open mind and were keen to learn. Having gone through some of the values of the different grades of pencils we made mini books, exploring tone and negative spaces. The last 30 minutes were spent really looking at shells and translating the light and dark shapes that were found.