Natural History Illustration: On the Strandline

Overview

The Strand Line is a fascinating area of discovery, where waves carry objects, plants, and creatures on to the shore. A wealth of species call it home and we’re going to delve into what you can find there.

This 5-credit module is suitable for beginners in watercolour and drawing techniques within Natural History Illustration and for students who wish to hone their observational drawing and painting skills and create accurate paintings with fine detail and accurate colours.

Programme

The module will cover drawing with pencil and watercolour to depict the amazing range of plant and animal species that live within the Strand Line with accurate colours and techniques. There will also be colour mixing and form drawing techniques with ideas for composition. There will be presentations and discussions on the importance of the ecosystem of the Strand Line and the implications on the whole of the shoreline. You will be introduced to illustrators and artists who have depicted species within the Strand Line, both contemporary and historical, to be used for inspiration and to show a variety of techniques and compositions.

Each unit will enable you to practice technique, develop your ideas, reflect upon what you have learnt and conduct research to complement your study to extend your learning. Students should aim to complete at least 50 hours of study to get the most out of this module and to fulfil the criteria for the course. All module content is accessed through our online learning portal; you need access to a computer, camera/phone camera and to be proficient in using email.

You will need access to a beach/tidal area for research purposes, as this is an ongoing research project you will need to repeatedly photograph and draw the area so, please be aware of this before joining the course.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students should be able to:   

1. Demonstrate an ability to draw a variety of species types that are found within the Strand Line both plant and animal examples, directly from observation with accuracy and detail, with attention to their textures and tonal contrasts.
2. Demonstrate the painting techniques shown and an understanding of applying these techniques.
3. Show evidence of knowledge of the artwork of historical and contemporary artists who have painted the Strand Line and how that is relevant to the artwork produced.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the Ecosystem of the Strand Line as a whole and demonstrate this within the work produced.

Assessments

1. To produce a visual diary/sketchbook with evidence of all study, exercises, collated images with research and body of artwork for 90% of marks.
2. A 500 maximum word written piece on your work through the module and the challenges/discoveries that you encountered for 10% of marks.

Reading Suggestions

Reading suggestions will be offered throughout the course.

Entry Requirements

This course is for everyone. No previous experience is needed and there are no formal entry requirements.

What Do I Need?

A list of materials, not included in the course fees, will be available prior to the course start date.