Teaching drawing skills at Samsung Design Europe

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by Roger Mason

In October 2012 I was hired by Malin Andersson, creative UX manager of Samsung Design Europe in my capacity as a specialist art teacher to improve the drawing skills of her team of designers.

The workshops ran for three full days and were designed to enable the participants to do a lot of drawing – as well as have fun, doodle (with permission!), design characters, draw short stories and learn professional techniques, such as creative figure drawing, cartooning tips and perspective. Material requirements were simple, consisting largely of black pens and paper.

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by participants at Samsung Design Europe
The creative team at Samsung regularly use drawing as a part of their presentations, frequently sketching ideas out for themselves and for clients. The workshops emphasise productivity and functionality; a drawing may not be pretty, but if, for example, it clearly shows a hand holding a smartphone then it succeeds.

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by participants at Samsung Design Europe

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by Roger Mason

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by participants at Samsung Design Europe
The participants do a lot of drawing and occasionally I use practical demonstrations, one to one tutorials and slides to enable learning. The most important thing when drawing is confidence and I work hard in my workshops to boost this for participants and demonstrate that everyone can draw and attain a result.
At the end of the three days the participants invited their colleagues in for an impromptu, Friday afternoon art exhibition which was much enjoyed by all, with many expressing their wish that they had taken part.

“The workshops were expertly facilitated and my team and I really enjoyed the experience. The drawing skills have helped us with our creative process, and Roger’s teaching skills and professionalism are excellent.”

Malin Andersson 

creative UX designer, Samsung Design Europe.

Comic book drawing workshop artwork by participants at Samsung Design Europe