Manifest Drawing Center

OPEN FIGURE LIFE DRAWING
Tuesdays, Thursdays | 6:30 - 9:30 pm
Wednesdays | 7 - 9 pm
Fridays | 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Sundays | 10 am - 12 pm

Have you been looking to spend some time working from the figure?

Our Open Figure sessions provide a space for the creative public to come in and work side-by-side on drawing while working from a model.

These low pressure, no stress sessions in our creative studio environment are a great opportunity to practice, learn, and engage.

Gather your supplies of choice, register online, and explore which option works best for you any upcoming week!

Find more information and register for a future session by visiting:
www.manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/openfigure

DRAWING AS MINDFULNESS
Mondays; 7 - 9pm
ROLLING ENROLLMENT

Led by Brigid O’Kane

With the hectic nature of day to day life, it’s easy to lose track of the little things. Truly, who couldn’t appreciate adding some more moments of conscious mindfulness?

Drawing is similar to meditation, requiring focused attention on the subject matter being drawn. The process of drawing is just as important as the drawing being created, and through this course participants learn to emphasize this process and focus on the present moment.

Are you interested in engaging in meditative mindfulness through the practice of drawing?

This course is open to all—no matter your skill level or experience.

Please note: classes fill up quickly, and early registration is highly recommended!

Read more and register for a future session by visiting:
https://www.manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/drawing/drawing_as_mindfulness/

DARKROOM (Re)FRESHERS
The first Sunday of every month | 3:30 - 5:30 pm

Led by Resident Instructor Michael Wilson

Have you been interested in developing film and printing in the darkroom for the first time?

Maybe you’re ready to shake off the rust and make a return to the darkroom after a long hiatus?

Whatever the situation, the Darkroom Refresher is just the thing to get you back into the swing of things!

During each session, Michael Wilson will demonstrate the procedures and fundamentals of black and white film processing and enlargement printing in the darkroom.

After participating in the refresher, we encourage participants to stay for the Open Photography Lab hours to try out the processes themselves and receive one-on-one feedback.

Please note: students who complete this workshop will then be qualified to access the community darkroom during weekly Open Lab hours in the future.

Are you interested in learning more? Visit:
https://manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/photo/refresher

AN EXTENDED PORTRAIT SESSION
The first Sunday of each month | 10 am - 4 pm*
(*with a 1 hour lunch break from 12 - 1pm)

Looking to spend extra time studying the portrait?

Consider joining in the first Sunday of each month for the Extended Open Portrait Session.
During these days, participants can work from a clothed model in a single pose for up to 5 hours.

As with all Open Figure Life Drawing sessions, the Drawing Center’s relaxed yet vibrant, no-pressure environment inevitably leads to new learning, support, and productivity that complements formal study at the high school, college, or professional level.

Please note: Block pass holders will have two visits marked off their pass for the extended portrait sessions.

Gather up your supplies of choice and register online by visiting:
https://www.manifestdrawingcenter.org

FINAL REGISTRATION DEADLINE ALERT!

OBSERVATIONAL DRAWING II
Tuesdays | 6 - 9 pm
June 2 - July 14, 2026
Registration Deadline: May 29, 2026

Led by Resident Instructor Dan O’Connor

It’s that time again already: TODAY is the final day to register and join in Observational Drawing II.

Are you interested in strengthening your ability to capture what you see before you in drawing?

In this course, students will learn both traditional and non-traditional approaches to capture a broader range of mark-making, gesture, and interpretation.

Subjects include dynamic still life, interior space, and natural forms, with an emphasis on developing sensitivity to structure, light, and spatial relationships.

This course encourages a more personal and expressive response to observational work while reinforcing drawing with precision and discipline.

Don’t delay and miss out!
To find more information and register, visit:
https://manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/drawing/observational/observational_2/

Image: ink drawing by Katie Baker ()

ABSTRACT DRAWING II
Thursdays | 6 - 9 pm
June 11 - July 30, 2026
Registration Deadline: June 8, 2026

Led by Artist in Residence Megan Wolfkill

Are you interested in deepening your understanding of composition, rhythm, balance, and mark-making in your drawings?

Abstract Drawing II is for those comfortable with basic drawing concepts who are looking to experiment and challenge their habits and assumptions in drawing.

This course is not about making purely expressive or decorative work, but about using abstraction as a way to strengthen formal sensitivity, develop a more intentional visual vocabulary, and increase awareness of the impact of your chosen creative materials.

Are you interested in exploring the world of Abstract Drawing?
Learn more and register by visiting:
https://manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/drawing/abstract/abstract_2/

Image: Megan Wolfkill

STUDY HALL
Fridays; 1:30 - 4 pm
Sundays; 4:30 - 7pm

A glimpse at some of the natural resource collection today, and a reminder: The Study Hall hours are a free weekly opportunity to create within the halls of M1!

An uninstructed opportunity similar to an independent study, these times are a chance to work on personal creative study in the Drawing Center’s studio spaces.

Please note: while a free opportunity, please register at least 24 hours in advance (so we know to expect you).

Gather your project and materials of choice and register online at:
http://www.manifestdrawingcenter.org/studyhall

AN EXTENDED PORTRAIT SESSION
The first Sunday of each month | 10 am - 4 pm*
(*with a 1 hour lunch break from 12 - 1pm)

Just can’t get enough Open Portrait time?

We understand, and that’s why we invite you to join us the first Sunday of each month for the extended open portrait session.
During these days, participants can work from a clothed model in a single pose for up to 5 hours.

As with all Open Figure Life Drawing sessions, the Drawing Center’s relaxed yet vibrant, no-pressure environment inevitably leads to new learning, support, and productivity that complements formal study at the high school, college, or professional level.

Please note: Block pass holders will have two visits marked off their pass for the extended portrait sessions.

Gather up your supplies of choice and register online by visiting:
https://www.manifestdrawingcenter.org

Image: Artist in Residence Ryan Kerr

On May 9, Manifest opened the doors to its new Printmaking Studio—the only publicly accessible stone lithography facility in the Greater Cincinnati region outside a university—with a ribbon cutting, 120+ guests, and an inaugural lithography stone signed by everyone in attendance.

The ribbon was cut by April Foster, who taught Manifest Director Jason Franz lithography at the Art Academy of Cincinnati in the 1980s and donated the studio's first stones, and Kristin Spangenberg, Curator of Prints at the Cincinnati Art Museum Forty years later, they stood together at the ribbon.

"There is nothing quite like it here or anywhere in the country," said Perin Mahler, Campaign Co-Chair and artist-educator teaching at California State University, Long Beach who flew in from California for the occasion. "Manifest is a rare instance of the gallery school—a place where the past is respected but the present is showcased."

This is Phase One of the Manifest Center for the Visual Arts. Phase Two is coming.
Introductory lithography and etching courses, as well as a visiting artist workshop led by Art Werger focused on the process of mezzotint are now open for registration.

A sanctuary for the practice, learning, and experience of the visual arts. Where serious art, and artists, get made, studied, and seen.

🔗 manifestvisualarts.org

OPEN FIGURE LIFE DRAWING
Tuesdays, Thursdays | 6:30 - 9:30 pm
Wednesdays | 7 - 9 pm
Fridays | 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Sundays | 10 am - 12 pm

Have you been looking to spend some time working from the figure?

Our Open Figure sessions provide a space for the creative public to come in and work side-by-side on drawing while working from a model.

These low pressure, no stress sessions in our creative studio environment are a great opportunity to practice, learn, and engage.

Gather your supplies of choice, register online, and explore which option works best for you any upcoming week!

To read more and register, visit:
www.manifestdrawingcenter.org/studio/openfigure