The Image as Thought: Drawing Workshop

Come and explore drawing in a new light with this unique workshop, a session that is part personal reflection, part critical inquiry, and part hands-on exploration of drawing as a form of knowledge, perception, and cultural expression. This activity moves beyond a technical 'how-to'; instead, it opens up drawing practice as a space for questioning: What does it mean to draw 'well'? Is beauty subjective – or can it be taught? Why do some images resonate so deeply while others pass by unnoticed?Through a stimulating blend of theory, history, and drawing exercises, you will learn how to challenge the common notion that artistic skill is an innate gift or purely subjective. Instead, we’ll explore how perception is shaped by cognitive patterns, cultural codes, and visual systems – from Gestalt laws to aesthetic paradigms, and from prehistoric cave drawings to Bauhaus formalism. You will discover new ways of seeing and understanding the visual world.Ideal For:

• Artists and designers looking to reconnect with the 'why' behind their practice.
• Educators and students of art who want to explore aesthetics beyond technique.
• Anyone curious about how we see, interpret, and assign meaning to images.

Format:

• The workshop includes a short lecture, visual analysis exercises, guided drawing sessions, and open discussion.
• No prior drawing experience is required – just bring your curiosity and openness.

You’ll leave this workshop with a revitalised understanding of drawing, seeing it not just as a skill but as a profound method of inquiry, perception, and cultural expression, changing the way you engage with images.Instructor: Paula VitalePaula is an illustrator, graphic designer, and educator with over 10 years of experience in art education and visual communication. She holds a BA in Fine Arts from the Universidad Nacional de La Plata and a UX Design Certificate from Google. Her teaching blends technical skill with critical thinking, with a focus on making visual knowledge accessible to everyone.

• What you'll learn:
• Why drawing is not about "right" or "wrong" but about what the brain can read.
• How images function in society: from myth to advertising to digital media.
• Key concepts in visual perception, including Gestalt theory and Arnheim’s principles.
• An introduction to formal language in drawing: shape, space, value, and colour.
• Why geometric forms, perspective, and tonal value matter—and how they affect what we feel.
• How artistic "canons" are socially constructed—and why many forms of drawing are excluded.
• The role of drawing in non-human animals and why art may not be as uniquely human as we think.

Read more details