Spring 2018: SketchTribe Workshops & Meetups
Live to Draw. Draw to Live. Enjoy improving your observational drawing skills. Learn to use your sketchbook for developing ideas, organizing your thoughts, and increasing productivity.
Scroll down to view our lineup of meetups, workshops, and events. For updates subscribe to the Scribbles Institute eNewsletter.
Enjoy a fun, free-for-all night of drawing and partying…
October 5th: Fall Drawing Party Meetup
Join us for a fun-filled night of drawing and partying at our free-for-all SketchTribe Spring Drawing Parties.
Enjoy a conversation over some pencil doodles or dive into some charcoal sketches from life. We’ve got all the drawing materials you’ll need. This is a great opportunity to meet fellow sketchers. Got a sketchbook? Bring it along. A fun, creative evening for the whole family—and it’s FREE! Our SketchTribe parties are in conjunction with First Friday Santa Cruz Art Tour Where: The Scribbles Institute When: Friday, October 5th, 2018, 6-9:30pm
Join the fun! Our Santa Cruz Drawing Meetups and iPad Drawing Meetups are great for test-driving the Scribbles Institute studio. Free activities, demos, lessons, refreshments, and more!
First Friday Art Tour Info
Walking is wonderful for a healthy body and imagination. SketchTribe Sketch Walks are 2 hours of strolling and sketching in interesting urban and natural settings. Practice sketching the essence of subjects as we change locations every 20 or 30 minutes. Breathe fresh Santa Cruz air and sketch like the wind!
Coming Soon! What You’ll Practice: Quickly capture buildings, trees, and people with minimal line work. Study perspective while sketching landmark buildings (shown in above sketch). Open to adults (Basic sketchbook skills recommended). When: Coming Soon! 5:30-7:30pm Where: Meet Rob at The Scribbles Institute at 5:15pm; then we’ll walk to nearby locations for sketching. Cost: Free! Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (various ink pens are cool to try too!), portable chair or camping stool is recommended. Limited to 10 participants.
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
Coming Soon! River Walk: What You’ll Practice: Quickly capture various landscape sketches as we walk along the San Lorenzo River near the Tannery area. Open to adults (Basic sketchbook skills recommended). When: Coming Soon! 5:30-7:30pm Where: Meet Rob at The Scribbles Institute at 5:15pm; then we’ll walk to nearby locations for sketching. Cost: Free! Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (various ink pens are cool to try too!), portable chair or camping stool is recommended. Limited to 10 participants
We’ll be doing all sorts of fun Sketch Walks in the not-too-distant future! To stay in touch, subscribe to our eNewsletter.
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate?Let us know.
Spring 2018: SketchTribe Workshops
Explore! Experiment! Express! And have fun! Our SketchTribe Technique Workshops help adult and youth participants discover new ways to apply drawing skills.
April 14: Intro to Sketchbook Basics
This basic workshop is a great way to prepare for our other SketchTribe workshops. What You’ll Learn: Introduction to sketching techniques and strategies for drawing from life and imagination. Explore composition and capturing subject matter quickly. We’ll spend time in the studio for introductory lessons; then go outside to sketch architecture and trees. Open to adult beginners. Where: The Scribbles Institute When: Saturday, April 14, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (We’ve got lots of different pencils and pens for you to try.) Refreshments served. Limited to 12 participants.
April 21: Urban Sketching: Squid Row
What better thing to do the day after tax day? Go outside and sketch, of course! We’ll find some excellent vantage points to sketch the hustle and bustle of Santa Cruz. What You’ll Learn: Practice quickly capturing buildings, trees, and Surf City’s fascinating street life. Open to adult beginners. When: Saturday, April 21, 2018, 1-4pm Where: Meet with Rob at location to be announced. Cost: $45 Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (various ink pens are cool to try too!) Refreshments served. Limited to 12 participants.
May 12: Zen Pen Workshop
Grab a fist full of assorted pens and mix it up with random lines and shapes on a nice, big piece of paper! This workshop is for beginners and advanced artists.
Experiment with a variety of pens and ink, including Tombow pens, Micron pens, and Speedball tips. Explore various techniques such as stipple and cross-hatching Where: The Scribbles Institute 303 Potrero #59 Santa Cruz When: Saturday, May 12, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 (materials included) Refreshments served. Limited to 12 participants.
May 26: Wilder Ranch Field Sketching
One of our popular field sketching workshops is an afternoon at Wilder Ranch! Relax at this scenic ranch setting while exploring methods of composition and how to capture subject matter quickly while drawing historic buildings, animals, trees, and farm equipment.
Open to adults, all skill levels—especially beginners Where: Wilder Ranch State Park (Directions: Click Here). Meet Rob at the Victorian yellow house near the entrance, starting at 12:30pm. When: Saturday, May 26, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (various ink pens are cool to try too!). Portable chair or camping stool recommended. Bring a jacket just in case it gets breezy. Workshop is limited to 12 participants.
Coming Soon!
All day workshop! Join drawing coach, Rob Court for this 2-day intensive workshop. Rob will show you how to use his Block, Sketch, Draw method for drawing flowers. Learn to block in dominant shapes and angles, study and capture realistic organic form; then finish with a beautifully drawn composition.
When: Saturday, 2018, 10am-4pm Where: The Scribbles Institute Cost: $75 includes all materials Prerequisite: Level 2 or 3 Drawing Lab at the Scribbles Institute or equivalent (contact Rob if you have questions)
Seating is limited to 8, so register soon! Refreshments and healthy snacks will be served, but you may want to bring a lunch (we have a fridge).
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
Welcome the beginning of spring by getting outside and sketching, and Learn how to put the 3D world on the 2D page. We’ll find some excellent vantage points to sketch the hustle and bustle of Santa Cruz. What You’ll Learn: Practice quickly capturing buildings, trees, and Surf City’s fascinating street life. Open to adult beginners. When: Saturday, 2018, 1-4pm Where: Meet with Rob at location to be announced. Cost: $45 Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (various ink pens are cool to try too!)
Registration Available Soon!
Want to participate? Let us know.
This basic workshop is a great way to prepare for our other SketchTribe workshops. What You’ll Learn: Introduction to sketching techniques and strategies for drawing from life and imagination. Explore composition and capturing subject matter quickly. We’ll spend time in the studio for introductory lessons; then go outside to sketch architecture and trees. Open to adult beginners. Where: The Scribbles Institute When: Saturday, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 Materials needed: Sketchbook and 2B-9B drawing pencils (We’ve got lots of different pencils and pens for you to try.) Refreshments served.
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
What you’ll learn: Begin with foundational skills by learning to express yourself with lines, shapes, patterns, and rhythm. You’ll learn to draw out your inner artist and learn basic composition skills while listening to different genres of music. If you’ve taken this workshop before, Rob will have more advanced lessons for you to work on, too Where: The Scribbles Institute 303 Potrero #59 Santa Cruz, California When: Saturday, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 (materials included) Limited seating. Deadline to register: October 14, 2015
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
Adult beginners explore using Prismacolor pencils to achieve realism while drawing simple objects. What You’ll Learn: Blending colors, 3D modeling, measuring proportions. Recommended prerequisite: Level 1 Drawing Lab skills. Limited seating. Where: The Scribbles Institute 303 Potrero #59 Santa Cruz When: Saturday, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 (materials included)
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
In our popular Pastel Drawing workshop, Cathy Patton, a local artist and teacher, will be showing us basic skills in composition & blending colors. If you’ve taken this workshop before, Cathy will have more advanced lessons for you to work on, too. Limited seating. Where: The Scribbles Institute 303 Potrero #59 Santa Cruz When: Saturday, 2018, 1-4pm Cost: $45 (materials included) Refreshments served
Registration Available Soon!
Want to Participate? Let us know.
iPad Drawing Meetups & Workshops
Curious about drawing on the iPad? Have fun learning how to sketch and organize ideas with popular drawing apps at our fun and informative SketchTribe iPad Meetups and workshops.
If you’re learning to draw on your iPad, join the fun at our Summer iPad Drawing Meetup. Mingle with experienced iPad artists, enjoy refreshments with other like-minded iPad sketchers, and get creative in our friendly studio environment. All you need to bring is your iPad, stylus, and desire to learn. Recommended iPad drawing apps: Procreate and Paper 53 When: Coming Soon! Where: The Scribbles Institute Cost: FREE! (Simply sign up for our Meetup group and RSVP: Join Us!) Refreshments served. Questions? Contact Rob
Try something wild and different this summer with your iPad—night sketching! iPads are very cool for sketching the Santa Cruz nightlife. This special Meetup takes place on the bluff, overlooking the Wharf. What You’ll Practice: Use tools and features in drawing apps such as Procreate and Paper 53. iPad sketching techniques for quickly capturing vibrant lights and reflections. Where: Meet with Rob at a location to be announced. When: Coming Soon! 8:00-10:00pm Cost: FREE! (Simply sign up for our Meetup group and RSVP: Join us!) Materials needed: iPad, (recommended apps: Procreate, Paper 53) stylus, and portable chair or camping stool. Meetup is limited to 15 participants. Questions? Contact Rob
On-Location Workshops & Events
The Scribbles Institute is proud to serve the Central California Coast from our friendly little studio in Santa Cruz. We are always eager to work with important organizations such as the Homeless Garden Project, shown above. Here are some of the various workshops and events we are involved in:
Extremely Fun Drawing Skills For Absolute Beginners—Especially Adults Who Think They Can’t Draw. Rob Court enjoys doing regular workshops at the coolest art store on the planet to conduct his popular drawing workshop. Reconnect with your childhood thrill of drawing as you’re introduced to basic observational drawing skills and techniques. What you’ll learn: We’ll start by learning the overhand, underhand, and tripod pencil grips. Then we’ll begin building foundational skills by drawing with lines, shapes, and patterns. You’ll be introduced to drawing from observation and composition as you learn to measure proportions and see positive/negative space. When: Spring 2016 Where: Lenz Arts 142 River Street on the corner of North Pacific and River Street in beautiful Santa Cruz, California Cost: Free! Materials needed: Sketchbook (8.5 x 11″ preferred), Drawing pencils (4B, 6B, 9B recommended)
We’re proud to working with Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History (MAH) in engaging events for the whole family such as Art That Moves. Rob Court helps museum participants learn to draw action sports figures such as surfers, skateboarders, snowboarders, and cyclists.
Santa Cruz Celebrates the Joy of Drawing! The 7th Annual DrawFest is a Santa Cruz event promoting drawing as a way to make the world a better place. This special, nightlong event is in conjunction with the Santa Cruz First Friday Art Tour. Where: The Scribbles Institute When: Friday, October 5th, 2018, 6-9:30pm Cost: Free! Materials needed: We’ve got all the drawing materials you’ll need. All you need to bring is your desire to draw.
Our lively Sketchup gatherings have become a popular First Friday Art Tour event for anyone interested in drawing—beginners & pros alike! Share your ideas or phobias about drawing. Experiment with materials. Get some free coaching. Enjoy a conversation over some pencil doodles or dive into some charcoal sketches from life. This is a great opportunity to meet fellow sketchers. Got a sketchbook? Bring it along. A fun, creative evening for the whole family—and it’s FREE! Where: The Scribbles Institute. When: October 5th 2018 Cost: Free!
Join the fun! Our Santa Cruz Drawing Meetups and iPad Drawing Meetups are great for test-driving the Scribbles Institute studio. Meet like minded sketchy folks. Free activities, demos, lessons, refreshments, and more!
Workshops For Your School, Company, Gallery, Organization, Event
Bring Rob Court and the Scribbles Institute to your school or business. See photos of workshop participants at Santa Cruz and Monterey schools and MAH.
