101X Drawing I is the foundation course for all sequential courses taken at the Yale Peabody Museum. It is here that the necessary techniques in rendering light on form, value, texture, perspective, proportion, and composition are taught. Each student will be given individual assignments and critiques, along with a final project, which is due at the culmination of the course. Certificate Required Course

 

101X A Drawing I

Thursdays, January 6 to February 24, 10 am to 1 pm

Instructor:  Betsy Barry

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

 

101X B Drawing I

Wednesdays, March 2 to April 20, 1 to 4 pm

Instructor:  Kim Burris

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

 

101X C Drawing I

Saturdays, April 16 to June 11, 9 am to 12 noon (no class May 28)

Instructor:  Jan Prentice

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

 

241X Colored Pencil I

Saturdays, January 15 to March 5, 9 am to 12 pm

Instructor:  Jan Prentice

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Begin your exploration of color with this approachable medium. In our first few meetings students learn and practice key color concepts: primary and secondary color, local color, color temperature, hue, chroma and value. Armed with this information, students will then learn techniques needed to create beautiful, detailed drawings on a variety of drawing surfaces. Certificate Required Course

 

286XA Watercolor Workshop:  Painting Baby Animals in Watercolor

Mondays, January 17 to February 21, 9 am to 12 noon

Instructor:  Bivenne Staiger

$360, 6 weeks, 18 hours

Prerequisite:  244X Watercolor 1

Expand on your drawing and watercolor painting skills to paint complete portraits of baby animals in their natural settings in watercolor. We will paint a representative of as many different animal orders as possible or at least a different species each week via Zoom; one motif may carry into the second week if complex. Use a phone or document camera over the workspace if possible. Certificate Elective

 

267X Introduction to Adobe Photoshop for Natural Science Illustrators

Thursdays, January 20 to March 10, 1 to 4 pm

Instructor:  Ikumi Kayama

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

In this virtual 8-week course, students will take their completed illustrations in a traditional medium and manipulate them for publication in Adobe Photoshop.  The famously complicated and ever-changing Photoshop palettes and tools will be discussed and the tools most often used by professional scientific illustrators will be covered. After taking this workshop, the students should have a working knowledge and a basic understanding of Adobe Photoshop. Certificate Required Course

 

172X Children’s Books: Science and Art

Saturdays, January 22 to February 12, 10 am to 12 noon

Instructor: Linda Miller

$160, 4 weeks, 8 hours

We will explore some of the wonderful new books out there and have the opportunity to have a dialogue with some of the authors and illustrators. We will also learn about the process of creating children’s books by journaling and creating storyboards for our own books! Certificate Elective

 

244X Watercolor I

Sunday, February 6 to March 27, 2-5 pm

Instructor:  Dorie Petrochko

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Learn the basic techniques of watercolor painting including color theory, color mixing, washes, layering, dry versus wet, and achieving fine detail necessary for natural science subjects. Students will learn how to plan a painting and develop it carefully to capture the beauty of the medium. Certificate Required Course

 

152X Secrets of Trees in Winter:  Drawing Twigs and Buds

Saturday, February 12, 1-4 pm

Please note: Registration closes February 2, 2022

Instructor:  Susannah Graedel

$60, 1 day, 3 hours

Botanists identify trees in winter by their dormant twigs and buds.  Working from a key, students will be able to name the species of a tree from a photograph of these delicate, intricate structures.  They will make their own drawings of these special features so they can identify tree species outside in their own neighborhood.  Certificate Elective  

 

145XA How to Draw Maple Leaves

Saturday, February 19, 10 am to 12 noon

Instructor:  Linda Miller

$40, 1 day, 2 hours

Start in on the basics of observational drawing as you draw your own maple leaf. You will have the opportunity to practice gesture and contour drawing after watching a demonstration, and at the end you will be able to discuss all drawings with the group. Certificate Elective

 

284X Botanical Illustration in Colored Pencil

Tuesday, March 1 to April 5, 1 to 3 pm

Instructor:  Betsy Barry

$240, 6 weeks, 12 hours

In this course we will use colored pencil and graphite on paper to create a botanical illustration.  Emphasis will be on colored pencil technique creating color studies of the subject using sketches and transferring sketchbook work to a final piece. Certificate Elective

 

103X Field Sketching and Nature Journaling I

Thursday, March 3 to April 7, 10 am to 12 noon

Instructor:  Linda Miller

$240, 6 weeks, 12 hours

Learn the basics of observational drawing starting with simple objects so that you can sketch what you find outdoors as well as indoors. Students will be encouraged to carry their sketchbooks and journals wherever they go. There will be a balance between presentations by the instructor and actual practice followed by group critiques. Certificate Elective

 

286XB Watercolor Workshop:  Painting Creatures in Watercolor

Saturday, March 5 to April 9, 9 am to noon

Instructor:  Bivenne Staiger

$360, 6 weeks, 18 hours

Prerequisite:  244 Watercolor I

Expand on your drawing and watercolor painting skills to paint more complex portraits of various creatures in their natural settings in watercolor. We will paint a different species each week via Zoom; one motif may carry into a second week if complex. Use a phone or document camera over the workspace if possible. Certificate Elective

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205X Pen and Ink

Tuesday, March 8 to April 26, 9 am to noon

Please note: registration closes February 24, 2022

Instructor:  Susannah Graedel

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

The beauty and clarity of natural science drawings in ink have been admired for centuries.  Students will master the techniques of traditional scientific illustration using both crow quill and technical pens to depict the natural world in stipple and line.  Recommended:  Drawing II:  Advanced Graphite: Light on Form. Certificate Required Course

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201XB Drawing II:  Advanced Graphite, Light on Form

Fridays, March 11 to April 29, 2-5 pm

Instructor:  Dorie Petrochko

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Stunning artistry with a pencil!  Create silvery tonal portraits of natural science subjects and free yourself from an artificial light source.  Like artists since Renaissance times, students will learn to intuitively portray their subjects with light coming from the upper left.  Through toning in this way, students will bring their subjects to three-dimensional life in intricate detail

 

294X Marketing Your Artwork

Sunday, March 13 to May 15 10 am to 1 pm (No class April 10 and May 8)

Instructor:  Ikumi Kayama

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Students should be nearing the end of the coursework required for the NSIP Certificate.  Permission of the instructor is required.

Learn valuable techniques from professional artists and marketing experts on how to promote your artwork. Set goals, develop a portfolio, a simple website, and a brand, to target clients who will buy your work. Students will benefit from learning the legal and business aspects of sales such as copyrights, contracts, invoicing, and work for hire. Certificate Required Course

 

156X Getting Started in Colored Pencil

Tuesday, March 29 to April 12, 9 am to noon

Instructor:  Jan Prentice

$180, 3 weeks, 9 hours

Dive right into this beginner class.  Guided projects, chosen by the instructor, introduces students to essential colored pencil techniques. No experience necessary. Certificate Elective

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NSI171X: From the Inside Out: How to Illustrate a Dinosaur

6 sessions, $240

April 4 - May 9 from 6-8pm. 

Instructor: Armand Morgan

This class will guide participants through a step-by-step illustration of a well-known Peabody dinosaur, Triceratops.  We’ll begin by studying the unique characteristics of Triceratops and drawing the skeleton. We’ll add the proposed musculature over the skeleton and finally a body covering in color.  This step-by-step approach can be applied to illustrations of other prehistoric animals as well as modern vertebrates.  Materials will include drafting film and colored pencil.  Drawing experience recommended.

 

165X Birds and Their Habitats: A Sketchbook Journey

Thursday, April 7 to May 12, 2 to 5 pm

Instructor:  Dorie Petrochko

$360, 6 weeks, 18 hours

Through the eyes of a naturalist and an artist, explore the fascinating lives of birds of the Northeast, documenting their nesting, breeding, and migrating habits via a sketchbook journal. We will record and draw our observations of various common species of birds, their anatomy, and their interrelationships with plants. No previous drawing experience is necessary, but Drawing I is recommended. Open to beginners as well as experienced artists. Certificate Elective

 

104X Field Sketching and Nature Journaling II

Thursdays, April 14 to May 19, 10 am to 12 noon

Instructor:  Linda Miller

$240, 6 weeks, 12 hours

Students will explore, sketch, and journal outside and then will bring some seasonal specimens they find inside to work from. In April and May we will be searching for spring flowers, and we will welcome guest naturalists who will help us identify what we have discovered.  Learn to slow down and observe more deeply as you connect and open up to the ineffable in natural objects through the making of art. Certificate Elective

 

145XB How to Draw a Barred Owl

Sunday, April 10, 2-5 PM

Instructor:  Dorie Petrochko

$60, 1-day workshop, 3 hours

Capture the essence and beauty of a Barred Owl with simple linework

using graphite, charcoal, and carbon pencil. No previous drawing experience is necessary. Open to beginners as well as experienced artists. Certificate Elective 

 

270X Plant Morphology

Tuesday, May 3 to June 21, 9 am to 12 noon

Please note: registration closes April 21, 2021

Instructor:  Susannah Graedel

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Explore the exquisite variety of form, function and structural adaptations of flowering plants.  Each week students will draw the parts of two flowers from different families to produce an artistic botanical plate of each one. When possible, students will dissect live flowers in class.  When fresh flowers are unavailable to students, they will work from published references to produce their illustrations.  Each class will include a primer on basic botany.  Certificate Required Course

 

216X Composition and Design

Fridays, May 6 to June 24, 2 to 5 pm

Instructor: Dorie Petrochko

$480, 8 weeks, 24 hours

Learning the elements of composition and design is essential for completing successful paintings and illustrations. Exploring Notan composition, spatial relationships, the golden mean, balance, and structure, we will create dynamic studies that will serve as templates for final watercolor, colored pencil, and mixed media compositions. Certificate Required Course

Pre-Requisites: Drawing I & II, Watercolor I or Colored Pencil I

 

128X Watercolor Workshop for Beginners

Thursdays, June 2-23, 10 am -12 noon

Instructor:  Linda Miller

$160, 4 weeks, 8 hours

Get a taste of what is involved when you paint with watercolor. The traditional approach to transparent watercolor painting will be taught, with the focus on limited palettes, mixing, layering, and glazing to create luminous, beautiful colors in this special medium. Certificate Elective

 

145XC How to Paint a Blue Jay Feather

Sunday, June 5, 2-5 pm

Instructor:  Dorie Petrochko

$60, 1-day workshop, 3 hours

Learn the structure of a blue jay feather and how to authentically portray its color and detail in watercolor and colored pencil. No previous drawing/painting experience is necessary. Open to beginners as well as experienced artists. Certificate Elective 

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ALL CLASSES ARE ONLINE

All courses are open to all students provided they have satisfied the criteria for enrollment in the course.  Prerequisites for courses are included in the course listing. 

All 200-level courses require 101X, Drawing I

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