There’s something worth seeking out in Bath right now. An exhibition of life drawing work by the artists of Bath Drawing is on display at Widcombe Social Club throughout June and July, and it’s well worth a look.
The show brings together a brilliantly varied collection of work, all focused on one of the oldest subjects in art: the human form. Different techniques, different marks, different ways of seeing, but a shared commitment to looking properly at the world in front of them. As the artist and critic John Berger put it, “for the artist, drawing is discovery”, and that spirit runs through every piece on display.
How it started
Bath Drawing was founded in 2018 by local artist Melissa Denton, who spotted a gap in the city’s arts offer and decided to do something about it. Casual drop-in life drawing classes were hard to come by in Bath at the time, and Melissa wanted somewhere accessible and welcoming, with no course sign-up required.
The group got started at The Curfew on the London Road, where it grew steadily and built a loyal community of regulars. When The Curfew closed, Bath Drawing found its feet in Sydney Gardens during the difficult post-pandemic years, before Ellie offered up the Living Room at The Grapes in 2022. With its beautiful Jacobean plaster ceiling and the buzz of the pub below, it turned out to be a spot on fit, and Bath Drawing has called it home ever since.
About Melissa
As well as running the sessions, Melissa works as an Assistant Librarian at Historic England and as a Museum Assistant for Bath Preservation Trust. She set up Bath Drawing as much for herself as for others, wanting a regular space to practise without the pressure of a structured course. In her own work, she tends towards portraits, using charcoal and soft pastels to work quickly and responsively across the paper.
“I enjoy giving people a place to meet and draw,” she says, “and I’m always inspired by their work.”
Over the years, Bath Drawing has welcomed an impressively mixed crowd: students, professional artists, office groups on staff outings, visitors passing through Bath and dedicated locals who turn up week after week. The models, some of them artists themselves, deserve a great deal of the credit, too.
Come and draw with us
If the exhibition has got you curious, the brilliant news is that you don’t have to admire other people’s work from the sidelines. Bath Drawing’s drop-in life drawing sessions run every Monday and Tuesday evening at 7pm in the Living Room here at The Grapes on Westgate Street. All materials are provided, so there’s nothing to bring and no experience required.
Come for the drawing, stay for a drink downstairs afterwards. Or the other way round. We won’t judge.
The exhibition runs throughout June and July at Widcombe Social Club.
Drop-in classes are every Monday and Tuesday at 7pm, email bathdrawing@gmail.com or DM her on Instagram to book.
