Northern Beaches Life Drawing - Top 10 Tips
“Charcoal is a beautifully expressive medium–perfect for playing with line, shaping form, and bringing light and shadow to life. It’s all about adding, subtracting, and letting the drama unfold on the page. The best part? You don’t need hours to capture a moment–just a stick of charcoal, a sheet of paper, and a willingness to embrace the unexpected.”
Top 10 Life Drawing Tips by Holly Mahoney–Northern Beaches Artist:
Let go of perfection. Observe the model more than your paper. A great warm-up trick is to sketch multiple quick poses on a single sheet – this helps loosen up your marks and keeps you from getting too precious.
Plan your composition. Take a moment to step back and see how the model fits into the space. Use your charcoal (or pencil) to help interpret angles and lightly sketch these on the page before diving into details – this also helps with tricky foreshortening.
Create interest with line variation. Mix up your line weights, especially on curved forms, by varying from thick to thin to add depth and movement.
Break it down into simple shapes. Look for triangles, circles, and the negative spaces between them. Seeing the figure as abstract shapes makes it easier (and less intimidating) to capture a pose.
Block in shadows. This is a wonderful way to give a sense of form and weight on a 2D surface.
Negative space is your friend. Struggling with a tricky arm? Instead of forcing it, focus on the space around it – sometimes the answer lies in what’s not there.
Switch up the background. Add a splash of colour, a horizon line, or even just a strong shadow to ground your figure in the space.
Use a kneadable eraser as a drawing tool. Pressing into dark areas and lifting out highlights creates beautiful depth and contrast.
Experiment with mixed media. Try layering ink, drawing with a sponge, or sketching over a wash for interesting textures.
Struggling to connect with the pose? We’ve all been there. Shift your focus to a portrait, or zoom in on the hands or feet – there’s always something intriguing to draw.
And most importantly... remember it isn't just about what's in front of you – it's about creating something that stands on its own. Once you walk away, your drawing is what remains. Make it speak for itself.
Underground Sketch Club, Host & Founder - Holly Mahoney
The word is out!
The Underground Sketch Club has been gaining a wonderful community of like-minded creatives. It doesn’t matter if you’re a professional artist or if you have never drawn from life before, all are welcome. With limited life drawing options on the Northern Beaches, I opened my doors and founded my own life drawing series of events right here in Brookvale.
Limited Numbers / Maximum Drawing Time
The sessions are limited in numbers and held in a welcoming space underneath my artist studio. Each session focuses on maximising drawing time, so there are lots of poses and lots to capture - which is great for those who have drawn before. And if you have never drawn before, I quietly check in with you during the session and provide one-to-one tips to help you on your creative journey.
How to Book:
To find out more or to book, check out upcoming sessions here
Stay Connected
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Thanks for being part of this adventure with me. Stay tuned for more!
— Holly 💙
#hollymahoney.artist #NorthernBeachesArtist
My top ten tips for life drawing was first published on Brookvale Arts District here