7 TIPS FOR SKETCHING AND PAINTING AT THE MUSEUM

Do you sometimes feel you need a new source of inspiration or would like to get out of your comfort zone? Have museums always been places of inspiration for you and would you like to perfect your painting and drawing techniques by imitating your favorite painters or sculptors?

Drawing, sketching or painting in an inspiring environment such as a museum or in a lesson is a very efficient way of improving. As well as stimulate your imagination and your creativity, you will learn about the works of the artists exhibited. Do you dream of taking the first step? Here are our tips and advice for drawing and painting at the museum and stimulating the artist within you!

It's not unusual to see young artists and fine arts students wandering the corridors of the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay and other famous museums, sketching in their notebooks. And it's not down to chance: this widespread technique is a way of stimulating creativity and getting inspired by great artists !

Whatever your level, drawing outside of your usual environment will help develop your creativity and imagination. Take a graphite pencil, a sketchbook and a few colors with you to the museum and immerse yourself in the works of artists you love. Depending on your inspiration, you could play with shadows and light, or try sketching in the manner of Paul Cézanne or René Magritte.

Some museums organize painting and drawing classes to initiate budding artists to major artistic techniques such as watercolor, oil paints, portraiture or sculpture.

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Have you often been to a museum and left with lots of inspiring new ideas in mind that you didn't have time to set on paper?

To give you the time and opportunity to do your artwork freely during a trip to the museum, remember to bring a notebook or drawing pad and pencils. When you arrive at the museum, you will then be free to settle on a comfortable bench and immerse yourself in the creative mood.

Drawing and painting are ways of being constantly creative and developing your artistic skills and you'll be even more productive if you have the adapted supplies. In a museum, you won't have the comfort of your own creative space and can't bring all your art supplies.
 

• Bring one or several graphite pencils in various degrees of hardness, adapted to technique and paper.
• Take art supplies such as a blending stump, a kneaded art eraser, a pencil sharpener and a ruler to help you sketch.

• Bring along your favorite colors, pencils or paints, carefully stored in a set or closed box.
• Would you like to paint at the museum? Bring a dry and clean paintbrush, a selection of paints, a palette and a spray bottle of water to dampen your paintbrushes before mixing the colors.

Before they produce art in their own style, artists feel inspired by and reproduce works and techniques developed by other creators. Take a few minutes to soak in the style of the work or painting, the colors and the materials used by the artist. Carefully observe details, understand the techniques used and jot down the ideas that come to mind and that will enrich your project. When you're ready, start applying these ideas and reproduce the techniques used by your favorite artists.

Don’t feel compelled to start drawing as soon as you arrive at the museum, or you risk getting “blank page syndrome”. The trick is to take your time, to visit an exhibition, to find inspiration and create step by step. You’ll be creative when you’re ready, and let the painting or sketch take shape slowly in your mind before putting it onto paper.

In some museums, such as the Louvre in Paris, teachers specialized in sketching or history of art professors provide courses to initiate students to the techniques used in certain artistic styles. By subscribing to a course, you will learn about history and pick up tips and opinions concerning your own work. A real bonus for those who want to improve their technique!

Would you like to follow online painting and drawing classes with professional artists? Join our Creative Class and fill up on creativity.

A museum is the perfect experimenting ground to work on your perspective. Within a room, move around, turn your drawing at a precise angle and let yourself be guided by the light play which will vary according to your position.

Museums are busy places where you will find many people sitting, squatting, walking or just standing, admiring the framed artwork. Make the most of their presence as these are models who can also be a source of inspiration. You will have to take up the challenge of memorizing their features to draw your scene or portrait in the most accurate way.

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