Figure drawings…

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably seen at least one of my son’s Lunch Posts. So you should be as impressed by I am by these drawings, proof of the teaching ability of Matt Held. He’s taken on a task that seems almost heroic (masochistic?): teaching life drawing to elementary school kids, ages 7–10. Held is a serious painter, who gained considerable notoriety for his Facebook Portraits project. Unlike most other children’s art classes I’ve ever experienced, Held runs his life drawing class as he would one for teenagers or adults. The kids are given a tour of a half-scale human skeleton and are led in techniques from speedy gesture drawings to analysis of proportions to lengthy poses (each kid poses for the class in turn).