Posing Nude: Life Modelling Workshop | Learn to pose for artists

(This workshop is fully inclusive - Anyone can attend and there is no experience necessary).

Hey there! So you wanna give life modelling a shot? You've come to the right place. Most tutors prefer that their models have some experience, which is why here at All The Young Nudes we run model training workshops a couple of times a year. Learning from your peers and experienced models is a great way to go about this. After the workshop you will have a clear idea of what is involved and you can start posing for artists right away. It's also the perfect way for us to meet you face to face.

In short

This workshop will take place over 3 hours at our studio in Glasgow. When you arrive, we will spend a half hour talking about modelling and getting to know one another. We'll then look at some imagery and discuss what makes a good pose. We'll then get stretching & moving around, and doing some casual posing to music, firstly clothed. We'll stop for a tea or wine break, then we'll get back to the posing, to music - only this time you'll drop your robes! Half of the group will pose and the other half will draw, so you'll get to experience things from both sides of the easel, which really helps the learning process. (Don't worry - you dont need any drawing experience, and we provide materials).

Who We Are

ATYN offers friendly, fun and affordable weekly life drawing sessions both online and offline. We are life drawing for everyone, not just artists. Since we started 15 years ago, we have met so many of you who are keen to model with us. Thank you for putting yourself forward. Because of what you are doing, we can provide our weekly sketchers with a new fresh perspective and a varied subject matter each week.

At our model training workshop, we work closely with a small group of people, usually no more than 15. Some of you will be completely brand new to modelling nude and others will be existing life models who might want to improve. The workshop provides a great opportunity to connect and share experiences and tips with other life models. You might also just want the experience of the workshop - it's certainly an exhilirating thing to overcome!

In this session we will focus on how to make shapes with your body and how to hold interesting or dynamic positions, creating lines that artists will be gagging to sketch! We use music, images and props for inspiration at ATYN.

Our ATYN staff will work with you to suggest techniques and pointers that we think will help you get the most out of posing for sketchers. We will also encourage feedback between models in the group, which you'll find invaluable.

We will practice posing as a group and everyone will learn about their own body, their shape, and their capabilities. Everybody will do a mixture of both posing and drawing. It is hugely advantageous to view models from behind the easel, so that you can get a fuller understanding of what you are trying to create for the artists that will be drawing you. Don’t worry if you’ve never drawn before - this is purely a learning aid for the session. And it’s a lot of fun to see others’ interpretation of your poses.

You will spend some of the session clothed, some in a robe, and some posing nude - as little or as much as you are comfortable with. In the 2nd half of the evening, you will be invited to pose nude and sketch your workshop-mates.

The sessions will be led by ATYN’s founder Joanna Süsskind and one of our experienced life models/performers.

Joanna spent 4 years at The Glasgow School of Art, first studying animation and then working at the Digital Design Studio as a digital media producer. She has been drawing since she was very small. She has been working with life models across the globe for 13 years which means she can help and advise if you’re interested in taking up work as a life model beyond the workshop. ATYN staff will be on hand for the whole session to demonstrate, help and talk to you about any queries you might have.

Wear comfortable clothing that you can move around in. Bring a robe or dressing gown and some slippers. Please bring your own bottled water.

Smiling, happy, confident faces! It is always fantastic to hear the positive feedback from our workshop attendees after the session. We know it can be intimidating to take the leap - but from experience, we can tell you that your nerves will disappear once you start posing! Realising the difference between being or feeling naked and being or feeling nude, is extremely powerful. Most of our previous workshop participants have continued to model with ATYN and other life drawing groups beyond the workshop, although this is of course not a necessity. ATYN will provide all participants with a de-briefing email and a private folder with images from the evening. We will also recommend places and people to contact about life modelling work. We would be more than happy to provide references for models on request.

I look forward to meeting you all. Please don’t hesitate to be in touch if you have any more questions about any aspect of the workshop.

Big love.

Joanna, ATYN **

Instagram: @atynudes

Host or Publisher All The Young Nudes | Life Drawing Club