While there is no shortage of things to do in NYC, residents may find themselves looking for a fun and exciting way to spend an evening or a weekend learning new skills or participating in a new activity. CourseHorse is here to help by collecting all of the most fun and exciting classes that NYC’s many specialized training centers have to offer. There are hundreds of options available for anyone looking for a fun, part-time course in NYC, and students will have no shortage of choices whether they want to learn how to cook, dance, garden, or craft. These courses range from beginner-friendly to more advanced training seminars, but they are all inviting places to spend one or more evenings learning new skills and hobbies, meeting new people and just enjoying the kinds of activities that NYC has to offer. Whether you are interested in learning a practical skill like home cooking, a craft like leatherworking or painting, or a sociable skill like mixology, you can find the class you are looking for on CourseHorse.
Wine & Cocktail Classes at CocuSocial
CocuSocial is one of NYC’s largest public culinary training centers, and they teach a wide array of different courses for food and drink enthusiasts. Whether you want to learn how to cook specific dishes or learn specific culinary techniques, CocuSocial offers a course that fits your needs. The classes are all taught by experienced chefs, sommeliers, mixologists, and other culinary professionals, and they offer courses that are open to students of all skill levels. Some of their most popular courses include classes on wine tasting, cocktail mixing, and food pairing. These classes give attendees a chance to mingle with other students, learn practical skills that they can use to impress their friends and make their own events even more enjoyable.
Students interested in learning the art of wine tasting should consider enrolling in CocuSocial’s Wine Tasting 101 course. In this class, which is taught by an experienced sommelier, students will learn the basics of wine tasting and the terminology and history of the craft. Have you ever wanted to learn what makes different grape varieties produce different wines? Or why certain regions of the country are famous for certain styles of wine? This class will help you answer those questions. Students will learn the basics of tasting, pairing, and classifying wines, and they get practical experience appreciating wine. Everyone enrolled in the course will get to sample six different wines from across the globe, including a Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rose, Pinot Noir, Merlot, and a rotating red. By the end of the course, students will be ready to start learning more advanced wine-tasting skills and exploring the broader world of wine-tasting as a hobby.
If you are more interested in bourbon and gin than Pinot and Chardonnay, you may want to consider a class like Classic and Creative Cocktails. This course is taught by experienced mixologists ready to teach you the art and science behind a perfectly made cocktail. Students will learn what kind of supplies they need to keep a well-stocked bar and what tools are commonly used in cocktail making. Then, students will get hands-on experience mixing classic cocktails, including a Martini, a Margherita, and an Old Fashioned. Aside from learning how to mix drinks, students will also learn how to bar essentials like simple syrup and learn garnishes can radically alter the composition of a drink. If you have ever been interested in making your own craft cocktails or even experimenting with inventing your own drinks, this is the course for you.
Finally, learning how to make and appreciate drinks is often coupled with pairing those drinks with food. If you want to take your social events to the next level, consider a course like Sommelier Wine and Cheese Pairing, in which students will learn how to taste and pair fine wine and rare cheese. This course, which is taught by a professional sommelier, will give students an insight into the rich history and complicated world of both wine and cheese. Students will sample six wines, and six kinds of cheese and learn how professionals pair their flavors together to create rich tasting experiences that you can replicate in your own home. In addition to learning practical taste-testing techniques, students will also learn the science behind wine and cheesemaking to understand better why certain grapes create distinctive flavor palettes and how these flavors can be complemented with specific kinds of cheese. CocuSocial offers a similar Wine and Food Pairing for students looking to learn how to pair wine with various proteins and kinds of pasta.
Art Classes at the 92nd Street Y
Established nearly 150 years ago, the 92nd Street Y is one of the largest and most enduring cultural and community centers in NYC. The 92nd Street Y offers over 4,000 different course options for students to explore, ensuring that there are options for everyone. The Y is renowned as a space for artists and other creatives to find their inspiration and produce awe-inspiring works of art. All of the classes are taught by experienced instructors who are themselves members of the local artistic communities, meaning that they have an investment in keeping the 92nd Street Y a vibrant and inviting place for young artists to learn their crafts. Regardless of whether you are new to art or looking for a place to meet like-minded creatives, the Y offers a course that will fit your needs.
One of the Y’s most popular courses is their six-session Drawing for Beginners course. In this course, students will be introduced to the basic elements of art, including line, shape, shadow, value, tone, form and perspective. These are some of the foundational principles of representative and abstract art, and students enrolled in the course will learn how they are utilized by artists and how creatives can manipulate them to tremendous effect. This course will provide students with hands-on experience drawing 2D and 3D models, and the course will provide students with an understanding of the history of the art form. The course aims to introduce students to the world of the fine arts and prepare them for future practice and training in drawing, painting and other 2D art forms.
Students interested in painting may consider enrolling in the Y’s Oil Painting (Beginner/Intermediate) course. In this six-session course, students will learn the basic principles of oil painting and the intermediate techniques that allow painters to create complex and vibrant artistic creations. Students will learn to mix paints effectively, set up a palette and reproduce visual and photographic images on a canvas. Students will get to experiment with concepts of depth and luminosity, and they will work on a variety of different materials. The program's goal is to give students the technical skills they need to start creating evocative oil paintings on their own. Students will need to procure their own art supplies, but the Y provides students with frequently updated material lists to ensure they have the tools they need to complete the course.
Students interested in learning the plastic arts may be interested in the 92nd Street Y’s Intro to Silversmithing course. Silversmithing is a time-honored art form that sees practitioners creating jewelry and other physical objects out of sterling silver and copper. Students enrolled in this course will get hands-on access to the raw materials and infrastructure necessary to start learning this creative art form, and they will receive expert instruction in raising, sinking and forging copper and sterling silver. In this course, students will create a small silver bowl, and either a bangle or other piece of smithed jewelry, and they will be able to keep these objects as mementos of their time in the course. This course is a wonderful introduction to the world of smithing in general and talented silversmiths can even start making practical objects, like fine silverware or other dining ware. This is a great course to have fun learning a rare and storied physical art form and lets students get hands-on experience in a kind of art that would normally be inaccessible to most NYC residents.
Gardening & Horticulture Classes at the New York Botanical Gardens
Founded at the tail end of the 19th century, the New York Botanical Gardens are an oasis of nature and plant life located amidst the largest urban center in the country. As part of their commitment to preserving nature and plant-based education, the New York Botanical Gardens regularly offer over 700 different courses and lectures every year for NYC residents and tourists looking to learn more about the gardens and the plant life that they protect. The gardens teach a wide variety of courses, ranging from floral design and other plant-based art classes to horticulture and agriculture classes teaching students how to live in harmony with nature and take advantage of the earth's bounties. Students can also take classes that explore the gardens' history and the science of botany.
Students interested in learning the basics of gardening as a science should consider the New York Botanical Garden’s Fundamentals of Gardening class. This course will introduce students to all of the skills and techniques they need to plan and start their own home gardens, using the same process that the Botanical Garden uses to ensure that its work is ecologically and environmentally sustainable. Students enrolled in the course will learn the science of horticulture to ensure that they are prepared for the long process of creating a sustainable and functioning garden. Lessons will cover the science behind soil cultivation and the process of improving soil, the practices of seed sowing, propagation and planting, and important garden upkeep skills such as how to prune, water, weed, and mulch. These lessons are all designed to help students learn the practical skills and procedures they will need to start building a garden that will last for years and provide homes with everything from beautiful flowers to fresh fruits and vegetables.
Anyone looking to learn the fine art of landscaping should consider enrolling in the Garden’s Intro to Landscape Design course. Landscaping is the art of treating the natural world as a canvas upon which you can paint with plants, and this course provides students with an understanding of the terminologies and theories that go into a successful landscape design project. In this class, students will learn how to plan a landscape design project and account for the practical concerns and limitations involved in a landscape project, particularly those that arise from location and size issues. Students will participate in 2D development exercises that will see them planning out landscapes and will help them prepare their plans for future landscaping projects. Students interested in learning other aspects of landscape design may want to consider complementary advanced classes like Plants for Landscaping or Plants for Landscaping–Blended.
Students who want to learn about agriculture, but aren’t as interested in plants, can take a course like Beekeeping Basics. Beekeeping is a surprisingly accessible agricultural skill, and this course will introduce students to the basic skills needed to set up an apiary and start producing honey. Since this course is taught in NYC, students will learn how to safely and productively keep a beehive operating in a populated area. Students will learn how to care for a hive and how it should be treated as a single organism that needs care and attention. Importantly, students will learn how to harvest honey from the hive and how to prepare that honey for human consumption. If you are looking for a way to engage with nature and produce your own artisanal goods, learning beekeeping can be an exciting and inexpensive way to do a bit of farming in the big city.
Cooking Classes at Home Cooking New York
Home cooking is one of the most invaluable practical skills a person can learn, and Home Cooking New York knows and understands this. Founded in 2002, they are among New York City’s finest culinary training centers, and they offer hundreds of courses taught by professional chef-instructors in hands-on test kitchens. Classes are split between technique-driven courses that aim to teach students the basics of home cooking and food and culinary tradition-specific classes that teach students how to prepare certain foods and styles of cuisine. Whether you are looking for a course in the essentials of home cooking or a class in traditional Korean cooking, Home Cooking New York is likely to have a program built to fit your needs. In all of the courses, students will have their ingredients provided and the sessions end with a tasting of the meal that students have prepared. Students are also encouraged to bring beverages to pair with their meals and share with their classmates.
Students interested in the basics of cooking are encouraged to start in Home Cooking New York’s Six Basic Cooking Techniques course. In this class, students will receive guided instruction on the basics of home cooking, giving them the tools and skills they need to start making their own healthy and nutritious meals. The course covers basic knife skills, cooking meat, making pan sauces, roasting vegetables, blanching green vegetables, and cooking leafy greens. Students will learn these skills by making a complete meal of succulent pan-roasted chicken in a classic gravy, complemented by roasted potatoes, string beans, and a Swiss chard with lemon and garlic sauce. This course covers the kinds of skills that anyone can use in their kitchen to make pleasant, complete meals for a fraction of the price of takeout.
If you are looking to learn specific recipes and develop skills with some of your favorite foods, you may enjoy a class like Home Cooking New York’s How to Cook Fish. In this class, students will learn the technical skills they need to cook fish perfectly in almost any kitchen. The course also covers the practical process of buying fish in NYC and storing fish in smaller kitchens and apartments. Students will learn how to make solid choices when purchasing fish, and they will learn the signs they need to ensure that the fish they purchase is good for cooking. In this class, students will learn how to make a slow-roasted fish with fennel and herbs, a crispy fried fish with lemon caper butter, and an Asian braised bok choy cod.
Another fun cooking course that students may want to try out is their Ramen Workshop, wherein students will learn the techniques needed to create top-quality ramen from the comfort of their home kitchen. Students will learn how to prepare noodles, broths, proteins and other fixings, including a pair of side dishes that can help turn your bowl of ramen into a more complete meal. Students will get hands-on instruction and experience preparing a miso ramen broth, fresh noodles, a crispy pork belly to add to the ramen, and soy-marinated eggs to round out the bowl. Then, students will make Hayayako (a traditional marinated tofu dish) and a spicy cucumber salad to round out the meal. By the time they are done, students will know how to take the simple skills they developed making broth and noodles home with them to cook all kinds of delicious ramen creations.
Painting Classes at Paint Along NYC
Painting classes have become some of the most popular options for adults looking for a fun, educational art experience in NYC. Paint Along NYC offers a wide variety of different painting classes that blend social fun and artistic expression together. These classes give students the chance to learn the art of painting from experienced instructors in a friendly and inclusive environment. Most of Paint Along NYC’s students have no prior art training, so this is a wonderful place for beginners, couples, or groups of friends to introduce themselves to painting in a low-stakes space where they can have a fun evening, share some drinks, and make creative art. All of Paint Along NYC’s classes are BYOB, but they invite participants to bring drinks to share with classmates and friends for a pleasant evening of socializing, art, and fun.
Paint Along NYC’s most popular course is their BYOB Painting class, which offers students a casual introduction to the world of painting in a welcoming environment. This two-hour class allows students to take advantage of Paint Along NYC’s resources and supplies to start painting with the help of an experienced art instructor. Students will be able to use Paint Along NYC’s paints, easels, and canvases and leave the course with a completed painting they can take home with them. All students need to bring is their own creative interests and, if they desire, a bottle of wine or beer to enjoy as they paint. Paint Along NYC even provides glasses and corkscrews for students who want to savor their beverage as they learn to paint. Students looking to add dinner to their experience may want to consider Paint Along NYC’s BYOB Paint and Pizza course.
Students looking for a more accelerated beginner course may want to look into Paint Along NYC’s BYOB Painting Express Session, which gives students about an hour of studio time to introduce themselves to the world of painting through hands-on practice and demonstrations. This course has all of the amenities of the standard class compacted into an accelerated timetable for students with less time to work on their craft or who simply want to fit the class into an already-packed evening of fun. Students will still be able to use all of Paint NYC’s materials, and they will leave the course with an 8’x10’ canvas of their own work, ready for display wherever they would like. This course, like the longer version, is BYOB. Students are encouraged to relax and enjoy the process of learning to paint in an inviting and stress-free environment.
If you are a somewhat experienced painter (or are fine with a bit of experimentation) and are looking for a novel approach to a painting class, consider enrolling in Paint Along NYC’s Black Light, Paint Night—Abstract Art course. In this class, students will learn how to approach abstract art as a genre, and then, once they are comfortable with these skills, the lights will go down, and students will begin painting. Students will use glow sticks and glow-in-the-dark paint to create evocative abstract paintings under the cover of darkness. This provides students with a fun and unique artistic experience that they cannot easily replicate elsewhere. Working under black light, students will be able to experience painting as they have never experienced it before, and once the class is done, you’ll have an 8’x10’ abstract creation of your own to take home with you. Since much of this class is in the dark, students are encouraged to wear white or light-colored paint-friendly clothing.
Cooking Classes at Taste Buds Kitchen
Taste Buds Kitchen is one of the premier culinary training centers in NYC, and it was named as the space with the “Best Kids Cooking Classes” by New York Magazine. In addition to being a renowned space for children under 10 to learn how to cook, it is also a top flight space for adult cooking classes and offers a wide range of 21+ BYOB cooking courses. These classes are all fun, focused ways for students to learn practical skills through engaging and hands-on instruction. Students don’t need any cooking experience to attend classes, and the courses provide students with all the ingredients and supplies they need to start creating delicious, elaborate meals from recipes they can take home with them. Students enrolled in a BYOB course are encouraged to bring beer or wine to share as they learn the process of cooking (no hard liquor is permitted).
One of Taste Bud Kitchen’s most popular courses is their Sushi & Dumplings course, which teaches students how to hand-prepare rolls and fold dumplings using Taste Bud Kitchen’s signature techniques and recipes. Students will start the course by learning various techniques, including Uramaki, Maki and Temaki, to prepare sushi, giving them multiple different styles to choose from. All of the sushi recipes highlight crab and vegetable options, so there is no raw fish, and students can substitute crab for veggies, making this a vegetarian-friendly class. Once students are comfortable with sushi, they will learn how to roll, prepare, fold and cook delicious vegetable dumplings. To complement these two courses, students will work on mixing spicy mayo sauce and a honey soy dipping sauce.
Since the courses are BYOB, students may want to learn how to incorporate some beverages into their cooking (while still savoring them during the process). For these students, Cooking with Beer might be the right choice. In this class, students will learn the art of enhancing the flavor of food through the addition of beer. Students will learn how to create multiple courses of a meal in the class, all of which utilize different kinds of beer to bring out new and exciting flavor profiles. For starters, students will make an IPA vinaigrette dressing to add to an arugula salad. The main course consists of pan-seared chicken with a mushroom and beer sauce paired with creamy beer mac and cheese, and the meal concludes with a chocolate stout cupcake. This course is a great way to learn a simple but effective cooking method that you can use to enhance almost any meal you make at home.
Oftentimes, the appeal of going to a restaurant is that they are preparing food you don’t think you could make at home. Taste Bud Kitchen aims to dispel this misconception in courses like their Steakhouse class, which aims to teach students how they, too, can learn to make tender, delicious steak without having to leave their homes. Students will learn the techniques to perfectly sear a Flat Iron steak and how to know exactly when it is medium, rare or well done. Once students have prepared the steak, they will learn to complete the meal by preparing a red wine reduction for the meat and a side of truffled mashed potatoes and a bleu cheese chopped salad. By the end of this course, students will have prepared their own restaurant quality-steak dinner, and they will be ready to carry these skills over to other steak recipes for themselves or their guests.
Dance Classes at Stepping Out Studios
Stepping Out Studios is one of the most well-known and influential dance studios in NYC. Opening its doors in 1985, the studio began as a small boutique dance studio specializing in partner-dance training. Since then, it has grown to be nationally recognized and it is understood to have been influential in bringing styles like Argentine Tango and West Coast Swing to NYC. The school was central in the Latin and swing revivals that dominated the New York dance scene for decades, and the school had developed a dedicated educational outreach program to help create an inclusive and inviting dance education environment. The studio’s storied history and centrality to the NYC dance community make this a perfect place for students of all skill levels to enroll in a class and start learning partner dance today.
One of Stepping Out’s most popular courses is their Complete Beginner Salsa class. This program, open to adults of all ages, is a great place to introduce yourself to this popular style of dance. Originating in Cuba in the 1950s, Salsa has become one of the most influential dance styles in the NYC club scene, and it has developed a lot of New York flavor after having caught on in the city. A derivation of the mambo, this fast-paced, undulating dance emphasizes quick turns and compelling rhythms. This program is open to beginners and intermediate dancers (Stepping Out recommends it for students with less than one year of experience). Unlike many styles taught at the studio, a partner is not required, but this is still an excellent evening for couples or small groups to spend an evening learning to dance.
Among Stepping Out’s most famous classes is their Argentine Tango—Beginner course, which aims to teach students one of the Latin partner dances that Stepping Out introduced to NYC. In this course, students will be introduced to the basic steps and movements associated with this particular style of tango, including ochos, sentadas, and milongas. Experienced instructors will guide students through the steps and rhythms of the dance, and students will learn how to work with their partners to weave together steps into a fluid motion. This course is open to beginners and is an ideal way to become familiar with this popular and enduring style of tango dancing. NYC has tango clubs running almost every night, so learning this dance is a great way to learn a sociable and fun hobby that you can bring almost anywhere. Since this is a partner dance, learning tango skills can make for a great date night.
Another great class at Stepping Out is their West Coast Swing—Beginner class, which teaches students a uniquely American dancing style that Stepping Out helped bring to NYC in the mid-80s. This dancing style involves bringing smooth and fluid dance moves to Blues and Soul Music. Originating in the 1940s, this style of dancing developed more or less independently in a wide range of cities, including Chicago and D.C. and Stepping Out gives students a chance to learn regional variants of the dance over three sessions. Students will get practical, live experience learning the dance style, and once they are comfortable with their training, they can enroll in the more advanced courses offered by Stepping Out.
Improv Classes at Magnet Training Center
A very popular and accessible way to flex your creative muscles and meet new people is to enroll in an improv class at a school like the Magnet Training Center. If you are an extrovert who wants to learn a complex and rich acting tradition, learning improv can be a lot of fun. In these classes, students will receive expert guidance on common improv techniques, exercises and games and students can choose to participate in long-form or short-form improv. If you are interested in learning how to write comedy or sketch work, this is also a great place to find classes. Operating since 2005, Magnet Training Center offers a space for students to learn from experienced improv actors who have spent the last two decades bringing Chicago’s rich improv tradition to NYC. Courses cover generalist skills, specific techniques and unique genres of comedy and improv performance.
Students looking for a quick and accessible introduction to improv should consider Magnet Training Center’s Improv Level One: The Principles of Improv. This class, designed for students with no prior experience, aims to teach students the fundamental principles of good improv work through practical exercises and various games. Students will begin with common warmup activities to help ease them into the space, and they will quickly graduate to 2-person scenes, multi-person scenes, elaborate group games and simple monologue practice. This course is open to students of all skill levels, and the experienced instructors have decades of experience as improv actors and instructors, meaning that students will have all of the support they need to get comfortable with improv fundamentals in preparation for more advanced classes.
For students with some improv experience, Magnet Training Center offers specialized improv classes, like their Musical Improv Level 1 Class. In this eight-week course, students will learn the complex art of musical improv, which is a style that blends live musical performances with traditional long-form and short-form improv techniques. Students will start by learning simple musical exercises before moving on to group song-building games and more collaborative improv performances. Students will then learn how to build long-form scenes with their improvised music, letting teams of performers create entire musicals in an evening. After students have completed their eight training sessions, the class will have a collective performance where they will publicly perform an improved musical in the school’s performance space.
Students seeking more advanced training can enroll in Magnet Training Center’s Improv Level Two: Intro to Long Form course. This class introduces students to the techniques to maintain longer, more complex scenes. Students will learn how to quickly invent and establish a character’s point of view and how to play developed characters with more obvious nuance and intricate emotions. Then, students will learn how to build longer scenes, including techniques like utilizing callbacks and playing second or third beats in a scene. Students will also learn how to transition between scenes, allowing them to build characters that they can play across multiple different scenes and games during a performance. At the end of the course, students will have another opportunity to participate in a live stage performance at the Magnet Training Center’s theater space.
Wood, Leather and Steel Working Classes at Craftsman Ave
If you are looking to learn a tactile, creative hobby that lets you work with your hands and create practical household objects should consider enrolling in a woodworking class at Craftsman Ave. Located in Park Slope, Craftsman Ave aims to offer beginner-friendly crafting classes in everything from woodworking and leathercrafting to jewelry making and welding. Students enrolled in these courses will receive expert, hands-on instruction from professional carpenters and craftsmen and can take advantage of Craftsman Ave’s tools and workspaces. They offer courses for beginners and experienced craftsmen alike, meaning that students will be sure to find a course that fits their needs. The courses also blend practical DIY skills with creative hobbyist skills, making these courses even more helpful for anyone looking to pick up a practical skill they can use to make their lives easier.
Students looking to learn the art and practical skills of carpentry can enroll in a course like Craftsman Ave’s Craft a Side Table course, where students will get hands-on instruction in woodworking as they build their own oak side table. This beginner-friendly course is open to students with no prior woodworking experience, and the class teaches students their way around a workshop as part of the training. Students will start the class with just a few pieces of oak, and by the end of the class, they will have built a small end table, roughly 15’ X 9’. Students will get hands-on experience working with various power and hand tools, including a miter saw, a router table, a table saw and a belt sander. All the skills that students learn in this workshop will apply to other carpentry and furniture-making projects they attempt in the future.
If you are interested in another hands-on crafting experience, you might want to consider a class like the Craft a Custom Leather Bag course. This class will introduce students to the world of leather crafting by teaching them how to make their own personalized tote bags. Students will be able to select the style and color of their leather and be guided through every step of the process. In this workshop, students will learn to use hand tools like anvils, mallets and rivets and how to work with a state-of-the-art Sailrite sewing machine. Students who learn the basics of leatherworking will be introducing themselves to a new, fun and practical hobby. Creating a custom tote bag is just one of the options offered by Craftsman Ave, which offers hands-on sessions in topics like wallet-making and electronics cases.
Another fun, unique way to introduce yourself to a practical DIY craft is learning the art of metalworking in Craftsman Ave’s Make a Custom Knife class. This two-part class will see students making all of the elements of a real, functional knife they can take home once the course is complete. Students will get to choose patterns for a French Chef knife, a vegetable slicer, a cleaver or a utility knife, and they will work to transform a raw piece of steel into a sharp, working blade using Craftsman Ave’s state-of-the-art metalworking shop tools. The second day of the course will focus on building the handle out of brass and hardwood, assembling the blade and the handle together and sharpening the blade to perfection using one of Craftsman Ave’s custom sharpening jigs. This is a beginner-friendly course, the perfect place for students to learn how to work with wood and steel.
Drawing Classes at Drawing New York
Students with an artistic bent may be interested in learning the classical art of figure drawing, the practice of sketching or creating detailed drawings of live models. This fun and artistic activity can be a rewarding experience for detail-oriented students who enjoy the prospect of creating life-like replicas of real people in pencil, charcoal or other drawing mediums. Drawing New York is a local drawing school that hosts a community of over 10,000 local artists specializing in live figure drawing classes, offering them in-person at their NYC studio and online. They offer guided instruction courses and open studio drawing sessions, giving students ample opportunities to learn and practice the craft at their own pace. Drawing New York also regularly collaborates with NYC art institutions like The Morgan Library, The Museum of The City of New York, and The Museum of Arts and Design to display student work.
Students interested in getting guided instruction on the history and techniques of figure drawing as an art form will want to consider a class like Drawing New York’s Instructed Figure Drawing. This course will begin with a lecture and demonstration session aimed at teaching students the basics of pencil drawing then, students will have time to begin working on a live model drawing with the assistance of a live instructor who can help students develop their techniques. This is a beginner-friendly course aimed at introducing students to the world of figure drawing, and all students will need to supply is a pad of paper, a pencil of their choosing and an eraser. Students of all levels are invited to participate in the class, and newcomers are always welcome, making this an inviting and sociable space to meet fellow artists.
Students who are just looking for a social experience and a chance to practice their skills should consider Drawing New York’s open Weekday Figure Drawing or Weekend Figure Drawing studios. These are uninstructed drawing sessions in which students will have the chance to work with a live model in a series of poses meant to hone their drawing skills. The course has no instructor, but students can collaborate with one another, sharing feedback and providing support to their fellow artists. Students will need to bring their own supplies, and Drawing New York recommends pencil and charcoal, though they can accommodate watercolor artists (they are currently unable to accommodate dry pastels or ink-based paints).
If you want a casual evening of drawing and socializing, consider Draw New York’s Figure Drawing Wine and Snacks—Sketch and Sip course. This course resembles their regular figure drawing classes set in a more laid-back atmosphere. The sessions are BYOB, and Draw New York encourages students to share and socialize as they spend two hours drawing or painting live models. In addition to drinks, there will often be live music accompanying the session, which many students find to help create a more inviting space for an enjoyable evening. This class is open to students of all skill levels, but no instructors are present, so you’ll be free to explore the medium at your own pace. This course is a great opportunity to meet new people and practice a new artistic hobby in an inviting and accessible studio space.
Why Enroll in a Class?
NYC residents may be wondering why they should consider enrolling in courses like these. These classes are excellent ways to spend an evening (or longer) having fun and learning valuable skills that you can build on in the future. Learning how to bake or garden are skills that you can carry with you for the rest of your life, and learning woodworking, painting or even wine tasting can be a way to develop a new hobby, meet like-minded people and discover interests that you never knew you had. And, at the end of the day, sometimes you don’t need a lofty reason to spend a night having a glass of wine and painting, it can just be a lot of fun.