Gaston Draws: The Figure Series
Join us for free figure drawing sessions in 2026!
Museum Launching Free Figure Drawing Series
*Image courtesy of artist Lisa Livengood, 2025
Dallas, NC – The Gaston County Museum of Art & History is hosting a year-long series of live-model figure drawing sessions starting Wednesday, January 7, in the Anne Biggers Furr Learning Station, 205 W. Main St., Dallas.
“Gaston Draws: The Figure Series” is made possible by a grant from the Gaston Arts Council, with support from the North Carolina Arts Council. Sessions are free and open to the public.
Registration is required for each session, below:
Adult Session
Open Call
Portrait Session
“Figure drawing spans the entire history of humanity beginning with the earliest cave drawings in the Paleolithic era and becoming the foundation of artistic training in the Renaissance,” says Alexandrea Pizza, director of the Art & History Museum.
“Some of the world’s most cherished works of art, such as Leonardo’s “Mona Lisa” and Michaelangelo’s “The Creation of Adam” on the Sistine Chapel ceiling were born from years of the artists’ studying the human form through figure drawing, painting, and sculpting. Today, artists continue to study the human figure through the anatomy and movement of live models. Figure drawing remains one of the most historically important practices in the history of art,” she says.
“Figure drawing sessions, unlike traditional art classes, are not instructor-led,” says Alexander Brooks, Community Engagement Manager for the Art & History Museum. “Participants focus on their own style, although a facilitator is on site to guide the models through poses and keep the session on schedule.”
Three different options are offered throughout the series: Open Call, which is open to artists 13 and older and features clothed models; Adult, which is open to anyone 18 and older and features nude models; and Portrait, which is open to those 13 and older.
“During the Open Call and Adult sessions, the models change poses on a timed schedule, either one, three or five minutes, prompted by the facilitator, while the models in the Portrait sessions maintain a single pose for the duration of the session,” Brooks explains.
Artists of all skill levels are welcome to attend, must bring their own art supplies, and will be expected to sign a contract which outlines strict policies regarding model privacy and artist conduct.
Sessions will be held on the following dates from 6:00-8:00 pm:
Adult Sessions will be held on the first Wednesday of every month in 2026:
January 7, February 4, March 4, April 1, May 6, June 3, July 1, August 5, September 2, October 7, November 4, December 2.
Open Call Sessions will be held on the third Wednesday of every month of 2026:
January 21, February 18, March 18, April 15, May 20, June 17, July 15, August 19, September 16, October 21, November 18, December 16.
Portrait Sessions will be held on the last Wednesday of every other month in 2026:
February 25, April 29, June 24, August 26, October 28, December 30.
For more information, please call the Museum at 704-922-7681 or visit the website at www.gastoncountymuseum.org.
Admission to the Museum is free. Hours are Tuesday-Friday, 10:00am-5:00pm and Saturday 11:00am – 4:00pm. For more information, visit www.gastoncountymuseum.org.