What Does A Life Drawing Model Actually Do?

Most people think a life drawing model has a pretty simple job.

Turn up.

Get naked.

Stand still.

Go home.

After working as a life drawing model for years, I can tell you that’s only about 10% of the job.

The reality is that a good life drawing model is constantly reading the room, working with the art teacher, adjusting poses, managing the energy of the group, and figuring out how to create the best experience possible for the bride and her guests.

No two classes are ever the same.

And that’s exactly what makes the job so much fun.

The First Job: Pulling Off The Surprise

Most people think a life drawing model’s job starts when the posing begins.

It doesn’t.

The first job is making sure the surprise works.

By the time the guests see me, the art teacher and I have usually already spent five to ten minutes quietly setting things up behind the scenes.

The bride thinks she’s attending a normal drawing class.

The bridesmaids are trying not to laugh.

And I’m hiding in a spare room waiting for my cue.

Pulling off the surprise without being spotted is often harder than any pose I’ll do during the class.

The good news is that once the surprise lands and the first laughs happen, the entire room relaxes.

👉 LINK TO: Life Drawing Hens Party - What To Expect

Reading The Room

Once the surprise is over and the first laughs have happened, that’s when the real work starts.

Within the first couple of poses I’m trying to work out what sort of group I’ve got.

Some groups want a genuine drawing class.

Others want ninety minutes of laughs, flirting and organised chaos.

Most sit somewhere in the middle.

You can usually tell pretty quickly.

Are they listening closely to the teacher?

Are they asking questions about drawing techniques?

Are they concentrating on their sketches?

Or are they spending more time laughing than drawing?

The funny thing is that groups tend to move together.

If the first few guests start taking the drawing seriously, the rest of the room usually follows.

If the first few guests start treating it like a giant hens party game, the rest of the room usually follows that too.

A good life drawing model and a good art teacher are constantly reading those signals and adjusting the session accordingly.

Choosing The Right Poses

Every experienced life drawing model has a catalogue of poses they’ve collected over the years.

Some are artistic.

Some are funny.

Some are designed to show off the physique.

And some are specifically designed to make the bride blush.

The trick isn’t knowing lots of poses.

The trick is knowing which poses suit that particular group.

A pose that works brilliantly with one hens party might completely miss the mark with another.

Some groups love classic life drawing poses.

Others want cheeky poses that get everybody laughing.

The goal is always the same.

Keep the group engaged.

Keep the atmosphere fun.

And give everybody something interesting to draw.

Working With The Art Teacher

One thing people don’t realise is that the model and art teacher are constantly working together throughout the class.

Most guests assume the teacher is there to teach drawing and the model is there to pose.

That’s true.

But only partly.

By the second or third pose, we usually have a pretty good idea what sort of class the guests want.

Some groups genuinely want to learn.

They’re asking questions about shading, proportions and drawing techniques. They’re concentrating, following instructions and actually trying to improve from one sketch to the next.

Those groups often end up doing longer poses.

Ten minutes.

Fifteen minutes.

Sometimes even twenty minutes.

The teacher can slow things down, explain techniques and help guests create something they’re genuinely proud of taking home.

I always joke with these groups:

“Draw me like one of your French girls.”

And surprisingly, some of the artwork that comes out of those sessions is incredible.

Then there are the other groups.

The ones that are much less interested in learning drawing techniques and much more interested in having a laugh.

And honestly, that’s most hens parties.

The funny thing is that once one guest starts heading in a particular direction, the rest of the group usually follows.

If the first few poses are full of banter, laughter and cheeky comments, the entire class tends to lean into that energy.

That’s when the class starts becoming less about art and more about entertainment.

The poses become shorter.

Ninety seconds.

Two minutes.

Maybe three at the most.

The teacher starts introducing games and challenges.

“Eyes on the model.”

“No looking down.”

“Continuous line drawing only.”

“No taking your pencil off the paper.”

The moment somebody breaks a rule, the teacher becomes the official drinks umpire.

Penalty drink.

The room erupts.

Someone complains.

Someone else immediately breaks the same rule.

Another penalty drink.

At that point the drawing class has usually transformed into organised chaos.

The model is flirting.

The teacher is trying to maintain some level of artistic credibility.

The bride is laughing.

The guests are arguing about whether somebody looked down first.

And somehow everyone is still producing drawings.

That’s one of the reasons I enjoy life drawing so much.

No two classes are ever the same.

Some groups leave with artwork they’d happily frame on a wall.

Other groups leave with a collection of drawings that should probably never see daylight again.

Both groups usually have an amazing time.

Drawing Breaks And Games

One thing I always teach new life drawing models is that the class shouldn’t feel like one long drawing lesson.

The best sessions have little breaks, games and activities mixed throughout.

It gives guests a chance to stand up, grab a drink, compare artwork and reset before the next round of drawing starts.

Over the years I’ve collected quite a few games that work brilliantly in a life drawing class.

Some are drawing challenges.

Some are team activities.

Some are designed purely to get the bride laughing.

But there is one game that consistently beats everything else.

The Bandaid Game.

It’s a hens party classic for a reason.

By this point in the class the guests have usually spent thirty or forty minutes looking at the model while drawing him from every possible angle.

Now they finally get a chance to interact.

The game is simple, hilarious and always gets the room involved.

The guests place bandaids on the model, the bride is blindfolded, and the challenge begins.

The room immediately becomes louder.

The guests start yelling instructions.

The bride starts bargaining for clues.

The model suddenly becomes the centre of attention all over again.

It’s one of those games that never seems to get old.

And it’s usually the point where even the quiet guests start joining in.

👉 LINK TO: The Bandaid Game

A well-run life drawing class should feel like a mix of drawing, games, laughs and interaction.

That’s what keeps the energy high and makes the experience memorable long after the pencils have been packed away.

Positioning Matters More Than People Realise

One thing guests rarely think about is where the model stands.

The guests can only draw what they can see.

Distance matters.

Angles matter.

The layout of the room matters.

Part of the job is constantly making small adjustments so everybody has a good view and enough space to work.

Sometimes that means moving closer to one side of the room.

Sometimes it means adjusting a pose so people sitting on the floor can still see.

Sometimes it means finding a position that works for both the guests drawing and the guests who are mostly there for the laughs.

The best classes feel effortless, but there is a lot happening behind the scenes.

Breaking The Ice

This is probably the most important part of the job.

The first laugh changes everything.

One of my favourite lines is:

“I think the beautiful bride-to-be might be a little short-sighted. I’d better move closer so she can see what she’s drawing.”

Then I’ll move directly in front of her.

The bride goes bright red.

The guests start laughing.

And suddenly everybody relaxes.

The awkwardness disappears.

The class starts flowing.

And from that point on the whole experience becomes much more fun.

The Little Competitions

One thing the guests always seem to enjoy is the little competitions that happen after each drawing.

Once a pose is finished, everybody puts their pencils down and compares what they’ve created.

The model gets to pick a favourite drawing.

Then the art teacher gets to pick a favourite drawing.

Sometimes they agree.

Most of the time they don’t.

The winning guest gets a bit of bragging rights and is invited up the front for a photo with the model and their masterpiece.

The guest holds their drawing in a position that helps preserve a little modesty while still creating a great photo for the group to remember the day.

These photos often end up being some of the favourites from the entire event.

The art teacher also becomes the group’s unofficial photographer throughout the class.

While guests aren’t taking photos during the drawing session itself, the teacher is constantly looking for opportunities to capture the experience.

She’ll grab reaction shots when the bride starts laughing.

She’ll capture guests concentrating on their artwork.

She’ll photograph the reveal of the drawings at the end of each pose.

One of her favourite tricks is positioning herself behind the guests while they’re drawing so the sketch pads naturally block the lower half of the model, creating fun, tasteful photos that still show exactly what’s happening in the room.

By the end of the class, we’ve usually collected dozens of photos that tell the story of the day from start to finish.

Before any photos are shared, we always quickly review them to make sure there aren’t any accidental surprises hiding in the background that weren’t meant to be captured.

Once everything has been checked, the photos are sent through to the organiser so the group can relive the laughs, the terrible artwork, the bride’s reactions, and all the moments they probably forgot about after a few glasses of Prosecco.

Because while the drawings are fun, it’s usually the photos and stories that people are still talking about months later.

Sometimes we even have prizes to hand out. Winners might take home handmade soaps, candles or creations from our other hens party activities. 👉Check out our activities page to see what else is available for your hens party.

The Goal Isn’t The Drawing

This surprises people.

The goal isn’t really to create amazing artwork.

The goal is to create an experience.

If the guests leave talking about the laughs, the bride’s reaction, the funny moments, the terrible drawings, the surprisingly good drawings, and the stories that happened during the class, then you’ve done your job properly.

That’s what a good life drawing model is really there to do.

The drawing is just the excuse.

The memories are what everybody takes home.

👉 LINK TO: Life Drawing Entertainers

👉 LINK TO: What Is Life Drawing?