Wild Life Drawing Online: March Hares

Take a leap and join us for a class on the fastest land mammal in Britain, the brown hare. With their long hind legs and streamlined bodies, these incredible creatures really are built for speed- and are capable of reaching a mindblowing 45 mph! 

These intriguing animals have inspired us humans throughout the ages and feature heavily in art and folklore. In Celtic mythology, hares were regarded as sacred, and it was believed that they were connected to the spirit world. In Ancient Greece, hares were a symbol of fertility and romantic love and were often engraved onto wedding rings. 

For this class we are delighted that we will be joined by Dr Silviu Petrovan, the Conservation Research Manager at PTES and a Senior Researcher in the Conservation Science Group at the University of Cambridge. Silviu wrote his PhD on the ecology of brown hares in pastures in North Yorkshire and is a fount of knowledge on the species. Expect lots of fascinating hare facts, along with some fun stories from his time working with these enigmatic animals (hint: catching hares in order to tag them is no mean feat).

The class will be hosted by illustrator Jennie Webber, who will teach you her method for drawing animals, with lots of specific hare drawing tips that will ensure that your sketches don’t end up looking like Bugs Bunny. 

We will be working from some high-quality reference images, which will include some of Silviu’s own photographs, that he took while, quite literally, studying hares in the field. 

The class is open to all abilities so whether you haven’t drawn since school or you draw on the daily, you’ll get loads out of the session. The basic materials you need to take part are some paper, a pencil, a sharpener and a rubber, but if you’d like to experiment with other materials, please feel free to get creative! We will email you an event link along with instructions and the reference images before the event. As with all our online sessions, we will send out a recording of the class afterwards so that you can watch it back as many times as you like.

50% of profits will be donated to people’s trust for endangered species.