WELCOME
Hi, I'm Erica Beade, an illustrator and educator offering observational drawing classes in and around Cambridge, MA. View a full list of my classes or learn a little more about me and my approach. Thanks for visiting!

CLASSES
- Creature Creators • The most recent session has ended, check back for Fall 2013.
- "Capturing Animals with Pencil and Paper" Series • Check back for Fall 2013. >> view full details
- Sketching Plants and Flowers • May 11, 2013 • >> view full details
- Sketching Trees • May 18, 2013 • >> view full details
- Drawing the Animals • The most recent session has ended - please check back for Fall 2013. >> view full details
- Available for both adults and kids - please contact me for more information. I can be reached via e-mail, at: sketchclassATverizonDOTnet (please substitute "@" for "AT" and a period for "DOT" in the address - trying to avoid spam!)
DRAWING ANIMALS • Three Saturdays, Next Session: Fall 2013
Adults • 3 sessions | Drawing is a great way to connect with our natural world, and close study of museum specimens can be an inspiring way to develop your drawing skills. Join us for a three-session course in observational drawing—a chance to explore the museum's zoological collections from a new perspective. Taught by artist and educator Erica Beade, this course introduces students to basic techniques that they can continue to expand on their own. The first half of each session will be spent in the classroom practicing techniques such as shading, working from general shapes to details, and capturing movement. The second half will be devoted to drawing animal specimens in the galleries, with support and feedback from the course instructor.
Time and location
3 Saturdays from 9:30am to 12:00pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge
Registration and cancellations
Class sizes are limited and advance registration is required. Register online or call the HMNH Education Office 617.495.2341 or e-mail reservations@oeb.harvard.edu.
THE ART OF BOTANICAL DRAWING • None currently scheduled, but please check back in the fall.
Adults • 3 Sessions | Join us as we explore the beauty and variety of plant forms using pencil and paper. Taught by an artist and educator, this half-day workshop will introduce botanical drawing techniques through close observation and practice with contour, gesture, foreshortening and shading. All skill levels are welcome.
Time and location
3 Saturdays from 9:30am to 12:00pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge
Registration and cancellations
Class sizes are limited and advance registration is required. Call the HMNH Education Office 617.495.2341 or e-mail reservations@oeb.harvard.edu.
ANIMAL ARTISTS • 6 Tuesdays • 3:40pm–5:00pm • None currently scheduled, please check back in the Fall.
Kids • 6 sessions • | This club is designed for kids who love animals and art. Sketch face-to-face with a zebra, ostrich, tiger, or moose as we learn to draw animals from the museum's zoological collections. With materials that we provide, students focus on different animal groups each week and practice using different media. Young artists will enjoy seeing their talents emerge while monitoring their progress with a portfolio of weekly drawings. By the end of this six-week course, students will have gained greater confidence in their expressive skills as well as a new appreciation for the animal world.
Time and location
6 Tuesdays, 3:40 – 5:00pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge.
Registration and cancellations
Class sizes are limited and advance registration is required. Call the HMNH Education Office 617.495.2341 or e-mail reservations@oeb.harvard.edu.
CREATURE CREATORS • 6 Wednesdays • 3:40pm–5:00pm. • Please check back in the Fall.
Kids • 6 sessions • | Do you ever wonder how artists create imaginary creatures like the ones in Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, or Monsters, Inc.? They study and draw real animals and then let their imaginations fly! In this 6-week drawing class we will take a close look at real animals in the museum, examining teeth, talons, wings and tails, and apply what we have seen to invent completely new creatures. The sky’s the limit!
Time and location
6 Wednesdays, 3:40 – 5:00pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge.
Registration and cancellations
For more information, visit the HMNH website. Class sizes are limited and advance registration is required. Fees: $120 nonmembers / $108 members. Register online by February 27, 2013. For info, call the HMNH Education Office 617.495.2341 or e-mail reservations@oeb.harvard.edu.
"CAPTURING ANIMALS WITH PENCIL AND PAPER" SERIES • 1 Saturday per month. Fall 2013.
Kids • 1 session • | In a series of individual classes, we explore different groups of animals and drawing techniques.
Past topics have included fish, birds of prey, forest animals, marine animals, insects, big cats & dogs, imaginary creatures, and others.
Time and location
One Saturday, 2:00pm to 3:30pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge.
Registration and cancellations
Class sizes are limited and advance registration is required. Call the HMNH Education Office 617.495.2341 or e-mail reservations@oeb.harvard.edu.
SKETCHING WORKSHOPS - TO BE OFFERED SUMMER 2013 - DETAILS TBA.
Past topics have included: sketching plants & flowers, trees, landscape, and general observational sketching techniques.
Time and location
9:00am to 11:00am at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge. In some cases we may move to the Harvard Museum of Natural History if the weather is uncooperative for outdoor sketching.
Details TBA, If you're interested, please sign up for my email mailing list by going to the "Contact" page, or check back here towards the end of June for more information.
HMNH OUTDOOR SKETCHING WORKSHOPS - MAY 2013 - MT. AUBURN CEMETERY
Sketching Plants & Flowers • Saturday, May 11, 2013 • 9:00am to 11:00am • Mt. Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge.
Learn to capture the beauty of flower and plant forms in your drawings with artist and educator Erica Beade. We will meet at Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, which provides a beautiful and peaceful place to sit and draw, surrounded by botanical treasures. We will explore drawing techniques such as contour, gesture, foreshortening and shading. All skill levels are welcome. Cost: Non-members $40/Members $35.
Sketching Trees • Saturday, May 18, 2013 • 9:00am to 11:00am • Mt. Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge.
Explore an amazing variety of tree forms using pencil and paper in Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge. We will focus on capturing the shapes and volume of trunks and branches, and techniques for drawing foliage. All skill levels are welcome. Cost: Non-members $40/Members $35.
Time and location
9:00am to 11:00am at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge. Rain cancels.
Registration is via the Harvard Museum of Natural History Website.
A BIT ABOUT ME
I'm an illustrator specializing in science, health and nature subjects, and I've been teaching observational drawing for the past 10 years. I've always loved to draw, and really enjoy sharing that enthusiasm when I teach. Observational drawing is a fun way to connect to the world around you – to record your experiences, respond to nature, think through a problem, express yourself. If you're interested, but new to drawing, or want to build on your current skills, please check out my classes, which work well for people at all skill levels. Classes are located at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, Arlington Center for the Arts and Maud Morgan Visual Arts Center. I also hold private classes and workshops for individuals and groups.
If you'd like to check out some of my illustrations, visit my freelance illustration website: www.mbcgraphics.com; and you can see more of my work (and work by lots of other amazing artists) at the Science-Art.Com website. I also have an online store for nature-related prints and gifts at: www.cafepress.com/mbcgraphics
For inquiries about current classes, or to receive e-mails about upcoming classes and workshops, please contact me.
Thanks for checking in!
-Erica Beade