Renaissance Drawings: A Practical Course



Overview

Learn the art of the Italian Renaissance by drawing!

The course combines a practical programme of drawing with a historical survey of Renaissance drawings and prints.

The first five weeks will be spent studying Renaissance drawings by drawing from them, using and learning a variety of media and techniques as used in the drawings being studied. 

The following four weeks will be devoted to an art historical study of Renaissance prints and drawings, consolidated by a visit to the Ashmolean Museum print room in the last week.

Please note that students will need to bring their own materials in order to participate in the course. For details on this, please refer to the 'required materials' section in the programme details below. 

Programme details

Course starts Thursday 23 April 2026

This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Thursdays, 2-4pm.

A: Practical drawing

  • Week 1: Introduction: the materials, methods and purpose of drawing in the Renaissance. Trying out materials.
  • Week 2: Leonardo, Dürer, Holbein: contour, empiricism, enquiry, disegno.
  • Week 3: Michelangelo, Raphael: expression, mass, posture
  • Week 4: Titian, Tintoretto: Composition, spatial dynamics, expression of form.
  • Week 5: Students choose two contrasting drawings from the period to study using a medium of choice. 

B: History of Renaissance drawing

  • Week 6: Early Renaissance drawing
  • Week 7: High Renaissance drawing
  • Week 8: Renaissance woodcuts
  • Week 9: Renaissance engravings and etchings
  • Week 10: Visit to the Ashmolean Museum print room

Required materials

To partake in this course, students are required to bring the following materials:

Certification

Academic credit

Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme (CATS Points)

Please note, students who do not register for assessment and accreditation during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun. If you wish to gain credit from completing this course you must register to do so before the course starts.

Only those who have registered for assessment and accreditation will be awarded CATS points for completing work to the required standard. Please note that assignments are not graded but are marked either pass or fail.

Learn more about the Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme.

If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee for assessment and accreditation.

Digital certificate of completion 

Students who are registered for assessment and accreditation and pass their final assignment will also be eligible for a digital Certificate of Completion. Information on how to access the digital certificate will be emailed to you after the end of the course. The certificate will show your name, the course title and the dates of the course attended. You will be able to download the certificate and share it on social media if you choose to do so.

Fees

Description Costs
Course fee (with no assessment) £300.00
Assessment and Accreditation fee £60.00

Funding

If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. See details of our concessionary fees for short courses.

Tutors

Mr Patrick Doorly

Patrick was educated at St John's College, Oxford; Stockholm University; and the Courtauld Institute of Art. He was Acting Director of Studies for Art History at the Department for Continuing Education in 2001-02. His book The Truth about Art: Reclaiming quality was published by Zero Books in 2013.  www.thetruthaboutart.org.uk

 

Mr Oliver Gosling

Oliver Gosling

Oliver Gosling is a painter. He studied at the Royal College of Art and since graduating in 1985 has been exhibiting nationally and internationally; latterly in China, where he lived for nearly eight years. He is a senior lecturer in BA Hons Fine Art Painting at the University of Brighton. He also runs a module annually for the Certificate in the History of Art on the materials and techniques of Western painting, historical to contemporary.   

Patrick Doorly

Patrick Doorly is an art historian who taught in a school of art and design before joining the Department for Continuing Education in 2001. He wrote the entries on old master prints for the British Museum’s original website. His book The Truth about Art: Reclaiming Quality was published in 2013.

Course aims

To acquire some appreciation of the various techniques, functions, and styles of Renaissance prints and drawings.

Course objectives

  • To examine the different roles fulfilled by drawing in the Renaissance.
  • To appreciate how different media met the needs of artists. 
  • To gain an understanding of the way artists think through drawing.
  • To observe how rivalry between artists can drive stylistic change.

Teaching methods

The first five weeks of the course are primarily practical. Students will be guided in the use of various drawing media used by Renaissance artists, and will be helped to draw from drawings. Previous experience is helpful but not necessary.

The second five weeks will be spent examining Renaissance prints and drawings historically. Each week will start with an illustrated talk, after which students will be encouraged to discuss images among themselves.

The course will work from slides in the classroom for four weeks, then end with a visit to the Department of Prints and Drawings at the Ashmolean Museum.

Learning outcomes

Students will be given the opportunity to learn how to:

  • Identify the use and purpose of different drawing materials.
  • Assess the role of drawing in the Renaissance for devising form and composition.
  • Appreciate the way artists think through drawing.
  • Build on the historical framework they have acquired to explore the websites of the Royal Collection, British Museum, and other major collections of drawings and prints.

 

Assessment methods

Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.

Assessment

Students will be asked to write an essay of 1500 words. Students will also be able to submit a 500 word formative assignment during the course.

 

Application

How to enrol

Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form.

How to register for accreditation and assessment

To be able to submit coursework and to earn credit (CATS points) for this course, if you wish to do so, you will need to register and pay an additional £60 fee. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online. 

Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun.

If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.

Level and demands

No prior knowledge of drawing or Renaissance art is required.

Please note that students will need to bring their own materials in order to participate in the course. For details on this, please refer to 'Programme Details' above. 

The Department's Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, ie first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.

Selection criteria

 

Terms & conditions for applicants and students

Information on financial support