Classes

2019
Many of my classes take place in the School of Botanical Art and Illustration (SBAI) at Denver Botanic Gardens, where I have been an instructor since 1998.
For a full course schedule of the SBAI, and to see program fees and course prerequisites, please visit Denver Botanic Gardens.

Classes in the BACK TO BASICS series and other workshops are separate from the SBAI. Class locations and registrations differ by workshop.
Colored Pencil Essentials
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BASICS BOOTCAMPS 2019
Drawing workshops with
Susan Rubin & Marjorie Leggitt
Beyond the Basics: Portraits
Thursday - Friday, January 24-25
Time: 9:00 am-2:30pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

Drawing people is a challenge! Start with some basic proportional cues that will help you site the shape of a head and plot features on a face. See how to use drawing skills you already know to capture an accurate profile. Step by step we’ll work in graphite to build faces from shape and line and apply principles of light on form to flesh out a portrait from a few lines. Enjoy this fun head-on challenge and take your drawing in a fresh new direction!
Note: This class is tailored for students who have completed Drawing Challenges. Experienced artists are welcome. Contact us for more information
 
Back to Basics: Drawing with Confidence
Tuesday-Friday, March 12 - 15
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

This fun workshop returns to the basics of Line, Shading, Perspective, and Composition to bolster your drawing skills and boost your confidence. Susan and Marjorie will guide you through steps to better drawing. Understand how to "see like an artist" and activate your artistic intuition. Revisit the principles of light, form, and depth to flesh out compositions. Practice perspective to accurately portray physical and atmospheric depth. Develop composition strategies to create dynamic artwork. We'll challenge and delight you with subjects large and small, indoors and out. Instruction, exercises, practice, and individual guidance will assure that in just four days you'll firm up those shaky skills and draw anything better and faster.
NOTE: This workshop is tailored to students who have completed Into Color. 

Beyond the Basics: Finding Focus
Thursday-Friday, April 11-12
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

Back to Basics builds confidence and skills - now reach for the next level in Beyond the Basics: Finding Focus!  Expand your understanding of composition, perspective and shading with specific techniques and intriguing subject matter. Start with conscious planning to develop a completed piece, learning essential steps along the way. Two instructors and two full days of instruction and practice will hone your eye for accurate drawing and balanced composition. Beyond the Basics will expand your artistic toolbox and enhance all of your work going forward.
NOTE: Though this workshop is tailored to students who have completed Back to Basics, experienced artists are welcome. Contact us for more information.

Beyond the Basics: Into Color
Thursday-Friday, June 13-14
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

Drawing in graphite but dreaming in color?  Take two instructors and two days to accelerate your color acumen.  Before you jump into full color, learn to see in monochromatic values and trick your brain into perceiving varied hues from just one color. Now think in pairs.  We’ll access one warm and one cool color to explore the power of color mixing and temperature as we model light on form with simple subjects. By day's end on Friday you'll not only be amazed by how you look at color differently, you will create a finished piece to be proud of!
NOTE: Though this workshop is tailored to students who have completed Back to Basics and Finding Focus, experienced artists are welcome. Contact us for more information. 

Beyond the Basics: Drawing Challenges
Thursday-Friday, July 25-26
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

Let’s draw the tough stuff!  After all this practice, there are still things that stump you. That shadow in the inside of your subject seems almost impossible. Those insect wings that reflect light and show substance behind are so hard to capture. From transparency to translucency and all the folds, crinkles, spikes, hair, and reflections and more in between, we’ll meet drawing difficulties head on. Two instructors and three full days will unravel the mysteries of texture and shadow on almost any subject, large or small. Working in graphite pencil, you’ll elevate your drawings from good to great with an arsenal of tips and tricks for your drawing toolbox.
 
Though this workshop is tailored to students who have completed Back to Basics and Beyond Basics, experienced artists are welcome.


Beyond the Basics: Composing with color
Thursday - Friday, September 19-20
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

It’s time to take composition to the next level! The tried and true models for composition, like the Rule of Thirds, Notan, and balance, just got an update! Learn the basics of composing with color to add new life to your work. We’ll begin with shapes in color, discovering which colors enhance form, how to use color to push the perception of perspective, and how to create calm or chaos with your color selections. Next we’ll translate that flat mosaic to a fully rendered work, creating a color composition that tells your story precisely. In this workshop you’ll have both instructors to guide you through the process in your choice of watercolor or colored pencil. Come see what color can do!

NOTE: This workshop is tailored to students who have completed Into Color. 

Beyond the Basics: MORE Drawing Challenges
Thursday - Friday, November 7-8
9:00 am - 2:30 pm
Location: VOC, 600 S Marion Pkwy, Denver

The subjects just got tougher! We’ve unraveled some mysteries, but more challenges await. Water is a conundrum, causing distortion and reflection. How do you handle a super-shiny surface with multiple highlights and reflections . . . and what if the surface itself is complicated in form? What about water droplets in all their configurations, and what if they fall on a reflective surface? Two instructors and two full days will tackle the trials of shine, distortion and reflection Working in graphite pencil, you’ll move to the next level of observation and drawing, one challenge at a time. 
Note: This class is tailored for students who have completed Drawing Challenges. Experienced artists are welcome. Contact us for more information

Color Layering for Colored Pencil
2018
Fri-Sun, November 9-11 | Time: 9 am–2:30 pm
2019
Fri-Sun, February 15-17 | Time: 9 am–2:30 pm
Fri-Sun, April 19-21 | Time: 9 am–2:30 pm

Colored pencil presents a special challenge: mixing color directly on your drawing! Learn to use a simple color-mixing method adapted to the application of colored pencils.  Learn to determine shadow colors for vibrant results. Practice color matching with a variety of plant material as you create your own extensive color workbook to speed color selection and application for all future colored pencil drawings.

​Drawing From Your Photos
Fri - Sat June 21-22 | Time: 9am - 2:30pm
Online component until Aug 15

There are times when a live specimen is simply not an option. Discover how to work from your photographs to create a successful illustration. Start with instruction on taking effective reference photos and how to edit them for clarity. Learn techniques to interpret and alter composition, color and lighting to avoid that literal "drawing a photo" look. Create a lasting plant portrait in colored pencil.

Contrasting Color Combinations
 Fri - Sun, March 8-10 | Time: 9 am–2:30 pm

Magic or mud? If your complements are not getting compliments, it is time to delve into the effective use of color wheel opposites. See how adjacent complements create brilliance and layered complements dull and shade. Learn to discern hidden complements and put them to work for you with intention. Create a series of small studies to show off your mastery of complementary color.​

Midsummer’s Analogous Arrangements
 Fri - Sun, July 12-14 | Time: 9 am–2:30 pm

You've learned to layer colored pencil; now learn techniques to draw effectively in this medium. Apply your drawing skills and learn new methods specific to colored pencil, like layering, building and burnishing. This versatile, portable medium is perfect for field sketching and studio work.