Don’t miss Jan’s newest series, Art Tips with Jan Bower!

Jan Bower of Drawing Success provides weekly video demonstrations with step-by-step instructions for students on SchoolhouseTeachers.com who want to develop or improve their drawing skills. Showing the how-tos of creating realistic drawings, these four-lesson units/projects will give students an opportunity to draw a variety of objects, each with a different texture, using pencil, charcoal, and colored pencil. Students will experience the joy of producing superb results with minimal supplies. Each unit is a stand-alone project, though the four weekly lessons should be done in order for the unit(s) chosen. A student can earn one-quarter credit by completing one full year of lessons. As always, please check your own state’s academic requirements.

Have you ever tried to draw an object that you couldn’t quite get to look the way you wanted? Something was missing, but what? Or maybe you knew where you were trying to go with your drawing, but just didn’t know how to get there.

Like most developing artists, you probably have more art aptitude than you realize. But raw talent needs guidance, practice, and encouragement to excel. Drawing with Realism will give you all three. Many creative people are visual learners, so watching a step-by-step video demonstration as you draw along with your instructor is a wonderful way to learn and grow to really understand techniques that can help you draw with amazing realism.

Each month we’ll enjoy a new four-week challenge, with every new subject an object or creature that features an interesting texture (e.g. furry, reflective, prickly, leathery, slippery, etc.). You will be able to download the image to draw from, but you can also apply the techniques you learn to similarly textured objects of your choice. The video enables you to go back and watch any portion of the lesson as many times as you like to see how to achieve the desired result.

You will never regret taking on the challenge of learning to draw well.  Some skip drawing lessons altogether (often because of fear, thinking they can’t even draw a stick figure), and want to get right to the “fun” stuff. But drawing is very fun-incredibly fun once the artist learns the secrets of drawing well. You won’t feel like hiding your work from curious eyes; you’ll gain confidence at your ability to draw with excellence. Your drawing skill will be an indispensable tool in your artistic toolbox that will continue to enhance your work in every other medium throughout your artistic career.

You can develop your artistic skills and understanding even further with my new in-depth DVD course,Drawing Success. This systematic progression of 36 lessons gives fabulous insights into creating beautiful art that communicates powerfully.  Drawing Success contains over 1200 minutes of video instruction on 10 DVDs, a thorough lesson book, and more.  You can see a short video about Drawing Success below or enjoy Jan Bower’s artistic devotionals (called Drawing Closer), at www.JanBower.com.