Learn Realistic Drawing Online at The Drawing Source
Realistic drawing can be a creative means of communication, self-exploration, and self-expression ... Or a struggle just to figure out why the left eye of your portrait drawing looks so awkward!
Of course you want to express yourself through believable, realistic drawings, with ease, enjoyment, confidence, and pride. This is entirely possible, even if you think you’re ‘not a natural.’
I wasn't born with drawing abilities (most of us aren't!), and you don't have to have been either. Drawing is a learnable skill — just like reading and writing.
That's why I created The Drawing Source — an online school of realistic drawing and how to express yourself creatively through it. Here you'll discover the foundational drawing skills that unlock every subject, organized into three learning paths that meet you at your skill level.
First, to understand how realistic drawing is actually
learned, start here — I'll show you the map.
Then, continue to one of
the three learning paths below.
Choose Your Learning Path
There
are three Learning Paths at The Drawing Source:
Foundational Skills, Portrait Drawing, and Figure Drawing
If you're new to realistic drawing — or an intermediate looking to strengthen your skills — start with the Foundational Skills Path, where you'll build the core skills that unlock every subject. From there, you'll be ready for the more advanced Portrait and Figure Drawing Paths. Explore the Learning Paths below:
What Happens When You Build Your Foundational Skills First
"Four months ago, I never would have believed this was possible. Drawing is finally the enjoyable and rewarding pursuit I always wanted it to be. This experience has been life-style altering for me. I spend my time drawing now, because I can.
Most of my real learning moments involved the most basic things — things that are now just part of the way I would draw anything. Marina taught me that the answer isn't 'it's just magic,' but rather a learnable, practicable process."
-Tepor E.
Student of the Eye Drawing Intensive, Atelier & Creative Drawing Studio
Popular Free Resources
Featured Realistic Drawing Courses
The Atelier at The Drawing Source
A structured curriculum that teaches the six foundational skills that unlock every subject.
About Marina
Hi there! I'm Marina. I'm a professional visual artist, arts educator, former tenure-track college professor of visual arts, Founder (or Drawing Source'ress!) of The Drawing Source, and lover of puns, obviously.
I love distilling complex drawing
concepts into steps that are easy to understand and apply, and consider
myself successful when you grow both your skills and your enjoyment
of the drawing process.
In my own creative practice, I create drawing installations: large-scale
drawings that transform a space, such as the one below.
This artwork, titled Omniscient Body, is entirely hand-drawn (yes, even the dark background)
and invites viewers to be enveloped in outer space,
to approach the celestial body of Mars at their own scale, to be towered over
by one of the rings of Saturn, and to look up at planet Earth and the Moon as
though from a great distance. You can read more about this immersive space drawing (and view a few timelapse videos).
My Work Has Been Featured In:
But this is now! If you're curious how I got here, you can see some of my earliest drawings and read about how I learned to draw.
Your Source for Realistic Drawing Education
Whether you're picking up a pencil for the first time, or you're ready to draw the subjects you've always wanted to — you're in the right place. I would love to help.
Happy Drawing,