One of the exercises I like to do with my students is to ask them to draw something that is very small on a much larger scale. This is often quite a challenge especially to students who haven't drawn for a long time. A large piece of paper is daunting and we feel quite exposed at the prospect of working so large. But if you continue to work really small you are not able to represent as much as you can see. Take an object such as the simple screw for example. If you draw that

Watching the Big Painting Challenge on BBC 1 this Sunday I was pleased to hear mentor Pascal Anson refer to mark making and asking participants not to make marks for the sake of it but to make marks with the paint that “mean something”. This is a difficult but important concept to grasp. It is easy to give in to a desire to splash the paint on without really considering its impact and asking yourself important questions such as what colour and which brush should I use? and ho