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2-Day Natural Ink Making for Life Drawing with Emily Roberts (Autumn)

£250.00

Saturday 10th - Sunday 11th October 2026

This immersive two-day workshop places the making of your own drawing and painting materials at the centre of life drawing practice. Led by Emily Roberts, participants will explore how foraged, handmade inks and pigments can transform the way we see, draw, and paint the human figure.

Working from the landscape surrounding Higher Spargo Farm, you’ll step outside the studio to gather natural materials and learn how to turn them into your own charcoal, inks, and watercolours. These handmade materials will then be used directly in life-drawing sessions, encouraging experimentation, sensitivity, and a deeper connection to mark-making.

Emily’s background in traditional oil painting, drawing, and sculpture brings a strong classical foundation to the workshop, with an emphasis on contour, tone, and form. This is balanced by a distinctly hands-on, exploratory approach that invites curiosity and play through unconventional tools and processes.

In an age of instant, ready-made art supplies, this workshop offers a slower and more intentional way of working. By making your own materials from the land itself, you’ll demystify artistic processes, reconnect with the origins of your tools, and gain a richer understanding of how materials shape the expressive possibilities of drawing and painting.

Open to all abilities.

Saturday 10th - Sunday 11th October 2026

This immersive two-day workshop places the making of your own drawing and painting materials at the centre of life drawing practice. Led by Emily Roberts, participants will explore how foraged, handmade inks and pigments can transform the way we see, draw, and paint the human figure.

Working from the landscape surrounding Higher Spargo Farm, you’ll step outside the studio to gather natural materials and learn how to turn them into your own charcoal, inks, and watercolours. These handmade materials will then be used directly in life-drawing sessions, encouraging experimentation, sensitivity, and a deeper connection to mark-making.

Emily’s background in traditional oil painting, drawing, and sculpture brings a strong classical foundation to the workshop, with an emphasis on contour, tone, and form. This is balanced by a distinctly hands-on, exploratory approach that invites curiosity and play through unconventional tools and processes.

In an age of instant, ready-made art supplies, this workshop offers a slower and more intentional way of working. By making your own materials from the land itself, you’ll demystify artistic processes, reconnect with the origins of your tools, and gain a richer understanding of how materials shape the expressive possibilities of drawing and painting.

Open to all abilities.

Over the two day course you will be guided through four fundamental areas of drawing the human figure; gesture, contour, shadow and composition. Gesture will be explored using inks, contour with pastel sticks, shadow with charcoals and composition with watercolours - each of which you will learn how to make yourself!

Each day will comprise of four hours of drawing and two hours of making materials. Additional supplementary materials and equipment will also be provided.

The workshop will start on Friday evening with a drinks reception and some designated time to start making charcoal for use the following day. Saturday and Sunday will run from 9:30am to 4.30pm.

Lunch and refreshments are provided daily.