2026 Fall Byzantine Drawing I (online)

Description

BYZANTINE DRAWING I will teach you essential iconographic drawing skills focusing on proportion, geometry, Byzantine design principles and technique. This course begins with instruction in iconographic facial features to design a frontal face template that you will learn how to modify to become the Face of Christ, St. John the Baptist, St. George, Our Holy Mother and Christ Emmanuel.  Provides important foundational skills for drawing, scaling and adapting icons.

What Makes This Course Different

Most drawing classes teach you to draw what you see.

This course teaches you how Byzantine iconographers have designed sacred faces for over a thousand years. Rather than relying on artistic intuition or copying, you’ll learn the underlying geometric system, proportional relationships, and visual language that make an icon unmistakably Byzantine.

Step by Step Guidance Online.  Students receive the pdf instructional manual and Zoom link via email prior to class. We’ll meet live on Zoom on Tuesday afternoons. Classes are recorded and available to watch asynchronously for those who are unable to attend the live class time.

Digital Homework & Correction.  Visual homework corrections and written feedback for all students are offered digitally via Google Classroom. Competency is built on completing weekly homework assignments which is critical to your success in this class.

What You’ll Learn

By the end of the course you will be able to:

• Construct a Byzantine face from geometry rather than copying another icon.
• Understand the “Module of the Nose” proportional system used throughout the course.
• Draw authentic Byzantine eyes, noses, mouths, ears, and properly place the halo.
• Create a reusable master face template.
• Adapt that template into multiple holy figures including Christ, the Mother of God, St. John the Baptist, St. George, and Christ Emmanuel.

A Unique Teaching Method

This course combines:

• Ancient Byzantine geometric design principles
• Live instructor demonstrations
• Guided weekly practice
• Personalized digital corrections
• Recorded classes for review
• A comprehensive illustrated PDF manual developed specifically for this course

This course is ideal for:

• Beginning iconographers
• Students who have painted icons but want stronger drawing skills
• Artists interested in Byzantine design principles
• Anyone wanting to understand why icons look the way they do—not simply how to copy them

No previous iconography or formal drawing experience is required.

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