Learning to See (with Ruskin) online sessions 2025/6

Introduction
What happens when we pause long enough to truly see the world around us?
This gentle, monthly workshop series, at 2pm (UK time) on the first Saturday of every month, from September 2025 to May 2026, invites you to slow down and look closely—at leaf and lichen, cloud and stone, light and shadow. Guided by the spirit of John Ruskin and his belief that learning to draw is above all a way of learning to see, Learning to See offers a welcoming space for anyone, regardless of skill level, to deepen their connection to the natural world through careful observation and creative practice.
Inspired loosely by Ruskin’s The Elements of Drawing, the series will blend drawing with a wide range of creative responses, which might include walking, watercolour and colour mixing, photography, mapping, and reading.
SESSION LEADERS
Sessions run on the first Saturday of each month; artist, writer and Companion Kateri Ewing opened the series in September and October, setting the tone for an experience rooted in reverence, presence, and accessibility. Artists Julian Perry, Robert Newall and Doris Rohr are all guest session leaders in the series.
Together, we’ll explore how attentive seeing can rekindle our sense of wonder—and how wonder can lead us toward care.
Join us for 90 minutes of shared observation, practice, discussion, and community each month, and discover how small, mindful acts of attention can become a daily rhythm of creative noticing.
You should be sent the Zoom link for each session by email in the week of each session, and it is also available further down this page
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EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS
We suggest that attendees have the following materials to hand:
Sessions will usually run for 90 minutes.
Forthcoming sessions
SESSION SIX, ON SATURDAY 7th FEBRUARY 2026 AT 2pm (UK time)
Session leader Kateri Ewing
ZOOM LINK: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7070805610?omn=83093413736
SESSION SEVEN, ON SATURDAY 7th MARCH 2026 AT 2pm (UK time)
Session leader Robert Newall
ZOOM LINK TO FOLLOW
Session recordings
For anyone unable to join us live, or if you wish to repeat the session, a recording of each session will be placed on YouTube and you can find links to them here:
SESSION ONE (Sept 2025, with Kateri Ewing) RECORDING: https://youtu.be/iP7iPUFqVs8
SESSION TWO (October 2025, with Kateri Ewing) RECORDING: https://youtu.be/ITQ2DAMuIRY
SESSION THREE (November 2025, shared drawing session led by Rachel Dickinson) RECORDING: https://youtu.be/DOFtphS3AIE?si=LM0eadoFOdOiCxR1
SESSION FOUR (December 2025, with Kateri Ewing) RECORDING: https://youtu.be/s7bWgYWB3wM
SESSION FIVE (January 2026, with Doris Rohr) RECORDING: https://youtu.be/6jNAmoOujGc
Reading The Elements of Drawing
If you would like to read The Elements of Drawing, it can be found online HERE, and you can find a facsimile of George Allen's edition of 1904 HERE.
Participant's gallery
If anyone who attends a session would like to share their work, we will display it here.

Helen Joy - session 2

Kateri Ewing - session 4

Joanna Espiner - session 5

Helen Joy - session 3

Simon Seligman - session 4

Joanna Espiner - session 5