Skull, Head, & Features: A Path to Portraiture  CEXTN41-202640

Skull, Head, and Features: a Path to Portraiture

2/19-3/12/2026, Thursdays, 6:30-9:30pm

Location: Ocean Campus, VM102

Instructor: Linda Hope

Explore the foundations of drawing that will open a path to portraiture in this condensed 4-week workshop. Exercises will include studies of the features of the face individually, their placement and appearance as determined by the structure and position of the skull. Additionally, universal value patterns, scale, placement, media, and personal editorial decisions that contribute to creating an expressive statement will also be addressed. Some longer poses will allow for individual study, exploration, or experimentation.

Materials:

•  Rough Newsprint Tablet - 18" x 24" (Be sure it says Rough on the cover) OR “Sketch” Tablet - 18 x 24” (Paper is higher quality and whiter, usually 50-65 lb.)

•  Compressed Charcoal pack with #2B, #4B, and #6B sticks 

•  Vine Charcoal (softest available - 10 to 12 sticks of various sizes. Try to get thick sticks because they are easier to hold)

•  Charcoal pencils  #4B and #6B (Try to get the peel down variety because they are easier to “sharpen.”

•   6B Graphite drawing pencil or Ebony pencil or general soft "Sketching" pencil

•   Conte crayon #2B (or softest) one or two sticks

•   Kneaded eraser

•   Plastic eraser

OPTIONAL

•  Graphite Drawing pack with #2B, #4B, and #6B sticks

•  Sketch book for detailed studies 11 x 14” or 9 x 12”

Instructor Bio: Linda Hope is a visual artist living and working in San Francisco, California, and has maintained a working studio on Hunters Point Shipyard for 40 years. Hope has been an instructor of painting and drawing from the live model for 29 years and has developed a unique approach to teaching. She incorporates demonstrations with guided and timed exercises in drawing from life or from the model, that are designed to expand and improve methods of observation. She is a strong advocate of observational and responsive drawing, always with the intention of guiding each student individually toward their own stylistic visual language.