The foundation year is made up of two half-years and deals with all the basic principles. By working on specific assignments you investigate all the elements of an image. There are lessons from different tutors, each of whom teaches in a block of six lessons and deals with a particular aspect, such as form, composition, colour and space. How, for example, to get the right proportions or shape onto your paper? How to work with light and shade in a drawing? What are the colour possibilities in a painting or how to create the suggestion of spatial perspective?

In this course you’ll learn all this and also be introduced to various materials such as charcoal, pastels, acrylics and Indian ink.

The foundation course starts twice a year, in February and again mid-September. After you have completed the first half-year, you can begin the second half-year to complete the other lessons of the foundation year, continuing on the same time/day of the week.

Courses are initially only offered on the website as a complete curriculum. You can then register for the complete lesson program of 18 to 19 lessons per February or mid-September. This gives you priority on the available spots and guarantees that you have a spot for all lessons. If you miss a lesson once, there will be no refund.

From two weeks before the start of the course it is possible to book the available spots as separate lessons. You can then buy a Prepaid package to book 10 lessons of your choice. You can also occasionally book a single lesson.

Short course painting: ‘Determining composition’
Monday 19.30-22.00
Number of weeks: 6
Data: from 08/02/2021 till 15/03/2021
Art teacher: Paul Nassenstein

Short course Proportion, Measurement, Tone: ‘Draw Like a Sculptor’
Tuesday 19.30-22.00
Number of weeks: 6
Data: from 09/02/2021 till 16/03/2021
Art teacher: Cathelijn van Goor

Short course drawing and painting texture: ’Under the skin’ (main language English)
Wednesday 19.30-22.00
Number of weeks: 6
Data: from 10/02/2021 till 17/03/2021
Art teacher: Cathelijn van Goor

Short course Portrait drawing
Saturday 10.00-12.30
Number of weeks: 6
Data: from 13/02/2021 till 20/03/2021
Art teacher: Tatyana Yassievich

Short painting course: ‘A variety of colors’
Saturday 10.00-12.30
Number of weeks: 6
Data: from 13/02/2021 till 20/03/2021
Art teacher: Willem Moeselaar en Cathelijn van Goor

At the bottom of this page is an overview with data. Here you can find more specific information about the schedule by clicking the ‘Info’ button and signing up with the ‘Book’ button.

Draw Like a Sculptor
In a straightforward fashion, you learn how to successfully arrive at the right form and size of an object. Drawing like a sculptor, you’ll start by ‘hacking out’ the rough shape of your subject. Using more refined techniques you’ll arrive at the right proportions and an accurate impression of a still-life. You also learn how to work with light and shade on paper to create the impression of a 3-dimensional object. You work with charcoal and ink on white paper as well as with white chalk on black paper. The focus here is:- measure and compare. 

Determining composition
This block is about how and where to position forms, objects and colours in your work. You’ll make studies of geometric figures in charcoal, pastels and collage. Then using objects you’ve chosen or brought with you, you’ll arrange your own still-life, based on the theory of underlying composition. Once you’ve determined how you want to frame the still-life on your paper, you set to work with pastels. The focus here is:- composition. 

The use of colour
In this block, you’ll be learning about colour – the basic techniques of mixing colours and the effect of the surroundings on colours. Through various assignments you discover what makes up a colour. You’ll not only be mixing cool and warm colours, but also investigate colour contrast and colour tones. As well as making colour charts, you will paint a still-life with acrylic paint – in colour of course! The focus here is:- mixing colours. 

Under the skin
How do you express the texture of fabric or other materials? That is what we’ll be dealing with in this section. The scaly skin of a fish, for example, will need to be treated differently than the bark of a tree trunk or a bird’s feathers. Using pencil and acrylic paint you’ll investigate how to express a suggestion of various different surfaces. The focus here is:- texture. 

Use of space
In this section, you’ll learn how to reproduce the space around you on paper. The basic principles of perspective – such as overlapping, linear perspective, multiple-point perspective and atmospheric perspective – will be dealt with extensively. In these lessons, we’ll be working with pencil and ink as well as collage. The focus here is: perspective. 

The figure in 3-D
In this section, you’ll get to grips with reproducing the human figure on a flat surface. In four lessons, we working on the head-to-toe human figure and in two lessons we concentrate on making a head and shoulders portrait.
The basic principles such as proportion, foreshortening, creating lines and the toning of colour will be dealt with in various studies. We work with a live model, both while drawing as well as when painting. For this block, a 30 euro contribution towards the  model’s fee is included in the purchase price of the fixed course. The focus here is:- proportions of the figure.

In the scheme below two buttons are shown:

• The button Classes shows an overview of the lessons this week of this specific course. (so not all courses)
• The button Courses only shows the start dates of this specific course. Per startdate you can click tje button Info to get information of the time schedule, teachers, models and what studio location.

Due the corona policies the studios are laid out by fixed working spots , marked on the floor and walking routes to guaranty the 1,5 meters rule. This studio lay-out gives 14 working paces on the studio entered by the canal-side and 11 working-spots in the studio with the entrance on the street side. Every working place/spot has its own ezel, table, chairs etc. It is mandatory to reserve your sport on forehand by our online booking system.

For more covid-19 policy information: Click here