(00) Studio Practice Community
Practice with purpose.
The Studio Practice Community is an ongoing membership for Vitruvian students who seek to develop their skills on an ongoing basis.
(01) The problem
You don't get better by watching. You get better by working.
The Studio Practice Community is a membership for adult students seeking to develop their drawing and painting skills with regular, structured practice. It's built around weekly live sessions led by Vitruvian instructors, monthly community meetings, and optional critiques — all aimed at giving you the resources, motivation, and feedback that make sustained progress possible.
Whether you're coming from one of our courses, working independently, or returning to art after time away, the community provides what can be hard to find on your own: routine, accountability, and connection with other students working alongside you.
(02) What's inside
What's inside the Studio Practice Community.
The Shed
A live, guided practice session every week. Targeted drills sharpen your fundamentals, while longer studies in graphite, pastel and oil put them to work. Each trimester has a different emphasis, moving from core skills through to completed artwork. Work alongside David Jamieson & Melinda Whitmore at your own easel.
Critiques
We offer two ways to get feedback on your work, live on Zoom. A group critique at the end of each trimester is open to every member — attend or submit a piece for discussion. Advanced and Premium members can also book private 30-minute sessions with David and Melinda. Bring what you're working on for specific, actionable notes: what's working, what to fix, what to try next.
Community Roundtable
A community-wide meeting each month on Zoom about a specific topic: studio setup, reference photography, short lessons, member Q&A, and more. Recorded for members who can't attend live.
Video Archive
Ongoing access to recordings of Shed and Study Hall sessions, plus selected past Live Streaming Classes from Vitruvian Studio. Hundreds of hours of class material, with more added regularly.
Study Hall
Every week, Vitruvian instructors livestream their own work in progress from the studio — no lecture, no lesson plan, just real artists making real art on camera. Tune in live and work alongside us! Sometimes it's good to have company, even when you're working alone.
Photo Reference Library
There's a difference between a "good photo" and effective reference material for drawing and painting. Reference images of portraits, figures, still life arrangements, facial features and more are available to all our members. Every subject is lit with a single dominant light source for clean shadow/light separation, shot for our students by David Jamieson and Melinda Whitmore.
Activity Feed
The community's home base — a live feed of everything happening across the studio. Share works in progress, react to each other's posts, and pick up the thread whenever you drop in.
Discussion Forums
Threaded conversations that don't scroll away. Ask a technique question, swap resources, or follow a topic — organized and searchable so good answers stay findable.
(03) Why this works
Three things you don't get from video alone.
Follow-through
Structure & Routine
Accomplished people in every field — from musicians to athletes to productivity writers — all say the same thing: you make real progress by sticking to a routine. Vague commitments like "I'll practice when I can" don't survive a busy week. The solution is having scheduled work sessions on the calendar, with other people expecting you to show up.
Feedback
Eyes on your work
Making art can be a solitary activity, and it's hard to know how to proceed without input. Watching a recorded course can teach you the procedure, but it can't evaluate your mistakes or tell you how to fix them. Private and/or group critiques with David and Melinda give you that — more eyes on your work to help you see what you've missed.
Fellowship
Connection with Classmates
Practicing in isolation can be hard to sustain. Practicing with company — even online and across time zones — is what keeps most members coming back. The forums, the live sessions, and the community meetings all exist to make sure you're not working in a vacuum.
(04) A four month arc
Three focused trimesters
Each calendar year is divided into three trimesters, each with its own focus, curriculum, and goals: Drawing & Value • Painting & Color • Focus & Finish. The first two present a series of sequential, skill-building exercises led by David Jamieson & Melinda Whitmore via live and recorded video. Opportunities to apply what you've learned happen in the third term with 2 sustained, multi-week studies. Community enrollment opens 1 month before each trimester begins. Cancel anytime.
Drawing & Value
Fall
● Starts September 2, 2026
Trimester 1 runs through the fall to the end of the year, with a focus on Drawing & Value. Curriculum and weekly schedule are published on enrollment.
Painting & Color
Winter
Trimester 2 runs from January through April, with a focus on Painting & Color in pastel and oil. Curriculum and weekly schedule are published on enrollment.
Focus & Finish
Summer
Trimester 3 runs from May through August featuring two sustained works across multiple weeks, one in graphite, the other in pastel or oil. Curriculum and weekly schedule are published on enrollment.
(05) Critiques
Meaningful Feedback
Watching a demonstration shows you what to do. Practicing helps you make it your own. But without specific, actionable feedback, it can be hard to know if you're progressing.
A critique puts experienced, friendly eyes on your specific work, and it's always the same eyes—David and Melinda lead every critique themselves, usually both at once. That means you're never showing your work to a rotating cast of strangers, seeing it cold. They get to know you and your artwork over time, so each critique picks up from the last. They're teachers first, and the goal is always to help you improve, never to judge you or rank your work against anyone else's. You'll hear what trained artists notice—the things you've stopped seeing after weeks of staring—offered with kindness and encouragement.
When you're working alone, it's easy to stall without realizing it. Supportive, constructive input from others is often what clears the way forward. That's not something you can do on your own.
(06) Three Ways In
Pricing
Basic
$40/mo $400/yr
- The Shed, weekly
- Study Hall, weekly
- Community Roundtable, Monthly
- Group critiques, every trimester
- Photo reference library
- Recorded class archive
- 20% off live streaming classes
Advanced
$100/mo $1,000/yr
Limited availability
- Everything in Basic, plus:
- One 30-min private critique each month with David or Melinda
Premium
$150/mo $1,500/yr
Limited availability
- Everything in Advanced
- Two critique appointments per month
- Priority scheduling
Enrollment in the Studio Practice Community is Currently Closed.
We begin taking new members one month prior to the start of each trimester. If you’d like to be notified when the next enrollment period begins, just enter your email address below. We’ll let you know when it’s time!
(07) Instructors
Meet Your Instructors
David Jamieson
Instructor of Drawing and Painting
David Jamieson began studying drawing and painting in 1996 at the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto. He went on to receive an MFA cum laude from the New York Academy of Art, where in 2000 he received the inaugural Prince of Wales Scholarship.
He has taught figurative drawing, painting and anatomy to undergraduate, graduate and private students in Toronto, Chicago, New York City, and at The King's Foundation in London, England. His work has been featured in American Artist's Drawing magazine and Poets & Artists. In 2016, David was named a semifinalist in the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. For two consecutive years, in 2024 and 2025, he won the First Place Award for Drawing in the Portrait Society of America's International Competition, and in 2026 he placed third overall in the same competition. His work is included in the collection of His Majesty King Charles III, in the permanent collection of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, and in private collections in Canada and the United States.
David is a co-founder and primary instructor at Vitruvian Fine Art Studio, where he has taught since 2006. He lives with his wife, artist Melinda Whitmore, in Oak Park, Illinois.
Melinda Whitmore
Instructor of Drawing, Painting and Anatomy
Melinda Whitmore received her MFA cum laude in painting from the New York Academy of Art and BA degrees in Art History and Studio Art from Indiana University. In addition to sculpting anatomical models for many of the country's top anatomical supply companies, her work has been featured in American Art Collector, American Artist Drawing Magazine, Poets&Artists, Art Renewal Center’s Salon, Manifest Gallery’s International Painting Annual 3, and numerous exhibitions from Denver to New York to Chicago.
In 2008, Melinda won the top prize for The National Sculpture Society's Figure Sculpture Competition and in 2010 was awarded the Agop Agopoff Memorial Prize for Classical Sculpture by the National Sculpture Society. In 2016, she was a semifinalist for the prestigious BP Portrait award, and more recently in 2017, Melinda was awarded an Exceptional Merit Award in Sculpture by the Portrait Society of America.
Melinda teaches anatomy at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and in the Medical Humanities department at Northwestern University Feinburg School of Medicine. She is also co-founder and principle instructor at Vitruvian Fine Art Studio in Chicago.
(08) Members say
What members are telling us.
"This is a great feature, unlike anything else out there, where you will find like-minded individuals who share a passion for improvement and encouragement. It's not about trying to impress others or fearing you aren't good enough but to draw inspiration from your peers and motivation to keep trying to do your best!"
"An online community of artists enjoying each other's success. It has a collegial, stress-free atmosphere that fosters an environment of authentic support and encouragement in our art endeavors."
"As a scientist, works in progress meetings are a way to present ongoing research and receive critical advice from colleagues ensuring success. The SPC offers the same opportunity to get valuable feedback from fellow artists in a friendly format at ongoing stages of my work."
"The Studio Practice Community gives me the opportunity to share my work and dispel my inner critic with a supportive group and supportive teachers."
"SPC has created a very supportive on-line art community concentrating on classical art training. I like every aspect of the community, especially the individual and community critiques. Seeing what others are working on is fun and instructive."
"If drawing has been a hobby for you and you would like to advance your skills but haven’t had luck finding the right teacher, look no further. What I have learned from David and Mindy has been invaluable. I am so grateful for this website and their guidance."
(09) FAQ
Questions?
When are live sessions?
Shed sessions run on Tuesdays from 1-3pm Central Time. Study Hall is on Thursdays from 1-3pm Central. The afternoon time slot works as a daytime session for our North American members and as an evening session for members in Europe (start times roughly 7-9pm depending on country).
Are live sessions recorded?
Yes. Every Shed and Study Hall session is recorded and posted in the community for active members to watch on their own schedule.
How long do I have access to recorded sessions?
For as long as your membership is active. Recordings from past sessions stay available to you while you're enrolled. If you cancel, your access ends at the close of your current billing period.
If I start with Basic, can I upgrade later for critiques?
Yes, provided the higher tier has space available. Advanced and Premium tiers have limited capacity, so if either is full at the time you want to upgrade, you can join the waitlist for the next opening
Can I cancel?
Yes. Monthly memberships cancel anytime. Annual memberships are not pro-rated but you keep access for the period you paid for.
(10) Join us
See you in the studio!
We keep the Studio Practice Community deliberately small and is closed to new enrollment by default. We accept new members three times a year, during the month before the start of each trimester.
Join the September Cohort →