Pre-College Virtual Course: Portrait Drawing and Painting

Grades 9 – 12
Studio Art, Art Making, Painting, Portfolio Development

Learn to do excellent portraits, understand portrait structure and how to get a likeness.

About the Course:

The instructor will guide students through understanding the anatomy and proportions of the head, how to draw the features, learn how to get a likeness and how to build portrait drawings and paintings for your portfolio. An overview of the history of portraits and portrait styles will be included as well as the materials of making a portrait.
Step by Step photo and video demonstrations will be provided, as well as regular live Zoom meetings for group discussion and critique. Additional demonstrations will include a portrait in acrylic and oil, pastel and self portrait. Students will work in the media of their choice. Projects will range from sketchbook exercises to fully finished works. The online, user friendly platform, Canvas, will be used.

Expected Outcomes:

Studio Art, Art Making, Painting, Portfolio Development
High School (Grades 9-12)
6 – 25 Students
July 12 – 16, 2021
Monday – Friday
10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts:

The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) is the first and oldest museum and art school in the United States. It offers undergraduate, graduate, continuing education, pre-college, and youth and family programs for artists and art lovers of all ages and skill levels who want to learn about and make art.

About the Educator: Al Gury

He is a recipient of the Cresson Travel Scholarship and numerous grants and awards for painting and arts education, and was designated a master teacher by both The University of the Arts in Philadelphia as well as American Artist Magazine.
A painter of the figure, landscape, still life and portraits, Gury is represented by F.A.N. Gallery in Philadelphia. His paintings have been exhibited at the National Academy of Design in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the National Capitol in Washington DC, Washington and Lee University, the University of Pennsylvania and at galleries across the country.
He is a contributing editor for Per Contra: The International Journal of the Arts, Literature and Ideas, a contributor to a variety of publications internationally and has written two books on the history of color in painting and the history of painting techniques.
Gury teaches Life Painting, Life Drawing and Portraiture in the Certificate/BFA program. He is the Program Director of the After-School Studio Art Program for Philadelphia High School Students at PAFA. He also teaches courses in the Continuing Education program.