Royal Drawing School
Draw from life, for life

Strategy and verbal identity for the East London drawing school.

The story

Founded in 2000 by HM King Charles III and artist Catherine Goodman CBE LVO, the Royal Drawing School is the independent, artist-led, not-for-profit home of observational drawing. 

Open to all, from beginners to practicing artists, the School offers a range of programmes including the postgraduate-level Drawing Year, public courses, and a programme for young artists. These take place in the Royal Drawing School’s East London studio, in galleries and online.

Approaching its 25th anniversary, the Royal Drawing School needed a new visual and verbal identity to communicate its evolving mission, reach wider audiences and claim its position as the leading global advocate for the power and necessity of observational drawing. 

In the brand strategy phase, together with the brand narrative team at Pentagram, I conducted in-depth interviews and workshops with everyone from the founder to teachers, support staff, students and alumni. We toured the studios, attended private views, surveyed wider supporters, and even took a life drawing class at the school. From this in-depth research, we developed the brand purpose, ‘For all who draw and all that drawing can be’ and mission, ‘To bring more of the world to drawing and drawing to more of the world’ all in service of the vision, ‘A world where anyone can learn, discover, deepen, debate, study and share the practice of drawing, regardless of background or circumstance.’ We identified brand values of commitment, courage, community and progress. 

Together this set the creative brief for verbal identity. The result was a tone of voice crafted to feel both authoritative and approachable – reflecting the School's dual nature as a royal institution and inclusive educational space. Our guiding principles were that the writing should feel ‘as thoughtfully worded as good gallery interpretation, as immediate and intimate as drawing, as democratic as a pencil and paper, and as motivating and inspiring as an artist’s manifesto.’ 

We then wrote a brand narrative and core copy applications. Messaging invited artists of all kinds to delve deeper into their drawing practice here, prompted creatives to reconsider the role of drawing in their work, and gave internal teams a shared purpose to rally around. The narrative was also translated into a fundraising proposition for patrons and alumni. 

Finally, to mark 25 years of the Royal Drawing School we conceived The Power of Drawing, an exhibition and book showcasing drawings from renowned artists and alumni including Tracey Emin, Tim Burton, Thomas Heatherwick and Es Devlin, as well as the King himself, complete with quotes about what drawing means to them and their practice. 

The result is an elevated yet welcoming voice that brings the brand strategy to life across every touchpoint, from web and social, to exhibitions and course catalogues and that will support the Royal Drawing School’s next 25 years as it evolves from small London-based art school to leading global advocate for the power and necessity of observational drawing, as the foundation of all creative practice and as an art in its own right.

Partnered on: Strategy, tone of voice, messaging, fundraising proposition, book and comms concepts. 

Collaborated with: Harry Pearce’s team and brand narrative at Pentagram, Romily Winter, Tiffany Fenner, Ashley Johnson, Ishaan Pamnani.

As seen in: Creative Boom and Communication Arts. 

Key copy:

  • Draw from life, for life

  • Change the way you see

  • Draw life. See differently.

  • The more we draw, the more we see

  • Every day a line

  • Where observation meets imagination

  • For artists, for creatives, for children, for postgrads, for everyone, for life.

About us copy:

  • Welcome to the Royal Drawing School, the place to learn to draw, to discover leading and emerging artists, and to celebrate and advance the practice of drawing from life.

  • Welcome to the Royal Drawing School, the place to learn to draw, to discover leading and emerging artists, and to celebrate and advance the practice of drawing from life. 

    Independent, artist-led and not-for-profit, we believe in drawing as an art in its own right and as a catalyst for innovation across every creative field. With the simplest of tools, drawing opens up unlimited possibilities. In short, drawing changes how we see the world - and it should be for everyone. 

    That’s why we work to ensure artists and creatives everywhere can access our world-leading skills-based drawing tuition, regardless of background or circumstance, age or location. It’s why we work to bring new audiences to drawing. And it’s why we are dedicated to championing our practice for this generation and the next.

  • We are a school, offering a world-renowned, full-scholarship, postgraduate-level Drawing Year programme where artists and creatives of all kinds can dedicate themselves to a year of intensive, skills-based drawing tuition and change the way they see forever.

  • We are a gallery, exhibiting leading and emerging artists in an annual public programme of selling shows, bringing more of our practice to the world, and more of the world to our practice.

  • And we are a community, based in East London, but working with and supporting artists everywhere. We are for all who draw and all that drawing can be.

    Based in East London but working with and supporting artists everywhere, we are for all who draw and all that drawing can be.

    We invite you to practice with us, visit us or support us.

“As the institution celebrates 25 years, a rebrand by Pentagram's Harry Pearce and team captures the soul of a place where drawing still matters... not just as a skill, but as a way of seeing, thinking and connecting.”

Katy Cowan Creative Boom

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