10 Places in L.A. to Draw Nude Models

Mark Berry

Dr. Sketchy's in Los Angeles

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Art, much like the naked body, has been known to take itself too seriously. The remedy? Sometimes they both can benefit from being in a relaxed environment more concerned with communication than instruction. We've compiled a list of 10 art galleries, workshops, centers and groups in the L.A. area where you can draw nude models for fun, not for critique.

Nicolette Wales

10. Avenue 50
Since 2002, the Avenue 50 studio in Highland Park -- like many of Los Angeles' neighborhood art studios and galleries -- opens up its space for inviting nights of no-pressure sketching sessions. Every Tuesday night, novice and expert artists come for figure drawing workshops that start with two-minute and end with 25-minute poses. Participants are asked for a suggested donation of $12 a session.131 N. Ave. 50, Highland Park., (323) 258-1435, www.Avenue50studio.com.

Barnsdall Art Center

9. Barnsdall Art Center
If the Barnsdall Art Park can lay claim to Frank Lloyd Wright's mastery of architecture with the Hollyhock House, can't it also be home to your mastery of the human form? The park's Barnsdall Art Center offers uninstructed life drawing workshops at $100 a pop on every day of the week except Sunday. 4800 Hollywood Blvd., Los Feliz, (323) 660-4254, www.barnsdall.org.

Mark Berry

8. Dr. Sketchy's
Dr. Sketchy's, the famed "anti-art school" figure drawing workshops that were started by an art school dropout in a dive bar in Brooklyn in 2005, has events at sometimes unexpected locations across the world. The Los Angeles-area events are organized by book publishers and events company Baby Tattoo Books and have a focus on the creative with a bit of boudoir. Events happen the first Tuesday of every month at Titmouse animation studio in Hollywood -- except for January's event, which will be on January 8. Entry fees are $15 for those who book online and $20 at the door. www.drsketchys.com.

DrawingParty.com

7. Drawing Parties
What's classier than a strip club and more intimate than a public figure drawing class or function? Jenn Eldridge Hansen's private Drawing Party events, which are run out of the ArtWorks Studios in Larchmont and Culver City, started as a creative spin on girls' nights out, with drinks, dinner and the art of the male form. They've since expanded to include female models and also offer "Date Night" Drawing Parties for couples. Prices start at $75 a person, plus tips ($60 for groups of six or more) and include instruction and supplies. www.drawingparty.com.