Studio 05
Drawing Fundamentals for Design
Drawing as a tool for thinking, not just for making art
Six days of observational drawing, perspective, prototyping — plus an outdoor sketching field visit to Cubbon Park and Vidhana Soudha.
When
20–25 July 2026
Six full days · 10am–5pm
Where
CU Global Campus
Devanahalli, Bengaluru
You earn
2 Credits
Certificate of Completion
for external participants
Open to
All Students
UG, PG, PhD across schools + external participants
What you’ll do
Build the essential principles and techniques of drawing as a foundational tool for visual communication and design thinking. You’ll learn to observe, analyse, and translate three-dimensional forms onto a two-dimensional surface with clarity and intention. Across progressive exercises and projects, you’ll explore line quality, proportion, perspective, light and shadow, and compositional structure. The emphasis is on freehand sketching as rapid ideation — externalising and communicating ideas before committing to digital tools. The course covers gesture drawing, technical illustration, orthographic projection, and isometric drawing, with both analog and mixed-media approaches. By the end, you’ll have a personal drawing practice rooted in observation and experimentation, applicable across graphic design, product design, architecture, and UX/UI design.
What you’ll make
One of the following, hand-drawn and hand-painted:
- A social message poster as emotive painting for Instagram
- A product design prototype
- A package design prototype
Your work is assessed via a pin-up exhibit at the end of the studio, judged by external or internal jurors on inspiration, design thinking, skill, and application.
Your six days
| Mon | Observational exercises — noticing basic shapes, forms, arrangements, colour, texture, light and shadow. Wrist flexibility exercises. Introduction to pencils, pastels, inks, charcoal, paint. |
| Tue | 3D shapes, projections, and perspective. 1-, 2-, and 3-point perspective drawings of daily objects, scenes, buildings, and monuments. |
| Wed | Outdoor nature study — drawing space, flora, fauna, people, gestures, postures. |
| Thu | Prototyping topic announced. Identifying inspiration, selecting your prototype, concept note, rough sketches, presentation ideas. |
| Fri | Rapid prototyping with materials. Creative writing about your deliverable. Refinement. |
| Sat | Pin-up exhibit. Juror assessment. Certification of completion. |
Field visit to Cubbon Park and Vidhana Soudha for outdoor sketching forms part of the week.
What to bring & wear
Drawing stationery: A3 cartridge sheets, canvas sheets, scale, pencils, sharpener, eraser, paint, brushes, crayons, charcoal, inks, pastels, acrylic colours, paper tape, etc.
Across all six days, please come in loose, comfortable, presentable cotton clothes — you’ll need flexibility for sitting and long hours of observational sketching.
Your instructor
Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan
Bangalore School of Design and Technology
Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan is an artist, design educator, trainer, and coach, currently at the Bangalore School of Design and Technology. A self-taught artist drawing and painting since the age of three, she works across pencils, pastels, inks, charcoal, paint, and other media with a keen eye for detail. She graduated in Science from Seshadripuram College, Bangalore, and pursued Computer Education at Aptech.
Her early work was recognised by Millitoon Animations Pvt. Ltd. in Chennai (1997), where she trained in traditional frame-by-frame animation. She has been teaching since the age of 26 and is passionate about helping students unfold their creativity. Her wider interests include physics, biology, quantum physics, and the spiritual exploration of nature and the cosmos — sensibilities she carries into her teaching.
Registration Opens
20th May 2026
- Free for CU students
- Paid for external participants
Questions about a Studio?
Reach out to the Studios Coordinator. Happy to talk through any of the courses, what to expect day-to-day, or whether a particular Studio fits where you are in your learning right now.
Studios Coordinator
Anand K Sharma
cu.studios@chanakyauniversity.edu.in
+91 88930 33233
Campus
Chanakya University Global Campus
NH-648, Haraluru–Polanahalli
Near Kempegowda Intl. Airport
Devanahalli, Bengaluru — 562165