Few faces captivate artists and photographers quite like Grace Kelly's. The interplay of elegant structure, luminous skin, expressive eyes and dramatic Hollywood lighting makes her portrait an ideal study for artists ready to refine their drawing skills.
Spend a day discovering how careful observation, patience and subtle pencil work can transform a blank page into a portrait filled with life.
Guided by internationally acclaimed realist painter and educator, Crystal Beshara, you'll develop the techniques that bring greater confidence, accuracy and realism to every portrait you draw.
More than learning to draw a portrait, you'll refine your artist's eye by simplifying complexity into shape, light and value, transforming careful observation into expressive realism.
Building Realistic Pencil Portraits
Designed for artists with a foundational understanding of drawing, this immersive one-day intensive will help you develop the observational and technical skills that bring realistic pencil portraits to life.
What you will learn
Throughout the day you'll follow the same progression professional artists use when constructing a portrait, strengthening both your technical skills and your understanding of the subject.
Seeing Structure
Every successful portrait begins with sound construction. Learn to recognise facial proportions, map features accurately and establish a strong underlying structure that captures a convincing likeness from the very beginning.
Sculpting Form with Light
Discover how artists use light and shadow to create the illusion of three-dimensional form. You'll learn to simplify complex values into clear relationships, giving your portrait depth, volume and presence.
Creating Lifelike Skin
Explore subtle tonal transitions, blending techniques and carefully placed highlights to create the soft, luminous quality that gives realistic portraiture its elegance.
Drawing Hair with Confidence
Rather than drawing individual hairs, you'll learn to see larger shapes, directional flow and value patterns. Crystal will demonstrate how layered graphite and controlled pencil strokes create believable texture, movement and shine.
Bringing the Portrait to Life
The final stage is where observation meets craftsmanship. Refine your portrait through thoughtful edge control, careful blending and selective detail, bringing clarity, expression and refinement to the finished drawing.
Experience required
This workshop is designed for artists who already have a basic understanding of drawing and are ready to build on those foundations. If you're comfortable with line, simple shading and observational drawing, Crystal will help you develop the skills and confidence needed to create more realistic and expressive portraits.
Included
- All materials and drawing tools — you are welcome to bring your own if you prefer
- Step-by-step guided demonstrations
- Practice sheets for techniques
- Reference image
- A great experience in the PMAC Studio
- Refreshment station
About Crystal Beshara
Crystal is an international award-winning contemporary realist painter and sought-after educator. A self-taught realist, she spent her rural childhood observing and drawing the natural world around her before developing the remarkable technical precision for which her work is now known.
Working confidently across pencil, watercolour, gouache and oil, Crystal combines meticulous realism with expressive, gestural mark-making. Her workshops are thoughtfully structured, engaging and encouraging, giving participants practical skills they can continue building long after the day concludes.
Benefit from Crystal's more than 25 years’ teaching experience in this workshop.
Good to know
Please arrive a little early, settle in and help yourself to some refreshments (on tap all day). Late arrivals disrupt the rest of the class, and it may not be possible for the instructor to help you catch up.
Lunch
We'll take a 30-minute lunch break — bring a packed lunch or support a local eatery.
Know your way around
Visit our FAQs page to learn more about parking, our facilities, local restaurants and accommodations.
At a glance
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Facilitating Artist Crystal Beshara
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Class size 12 seats
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Language English with supplementary explanation in French if required
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Date Thursday, 27 August 2026
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Time 09:30 to 16:00
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Experience needed
Suitable for artists who already have a basic understanding of drawing and are ready to build on those foundations
