Les ateliers artistiques du Paon: Nude drawing classes with live models at La Bellevilloise

For several years now, Le Paon, the platform founded by Juliette and Margaux that organizes artistic workshops to 'reconnect with your creativity', has been offering, alongside more traditional workshops such as watercolor or ceramics, nude drawing classes with live models. Intrigued and a little intimidated, we headed off to La Bellevilloise to find out what all the fuss was about.

Called Drink & Draw, these aperitif-workshops cost €29 per person. On the plus side, there's no need to bring your own equipment (or even run out and buy some if, like us, you're not familiar with drawing), as Le Paon provides all the materials required for a successful session: clipboard, blank paper, pencil, felt-tip pens and eraser.

The 2-hour workshops are designed for all levels, from beginners to experts. And in any case, participants aren't dropped into the deep end without help!

That evening, the workshop was guided by artist Raphaële Anfré, who distilled her advice and recommendations as the session progressed ("draw only part of the scene, emphasize the shadows, draw without taking your eyes off the model, draw with your eyes closed and only remember the scene", etc.). But we would have appreciated it if the course had gone the other way round! We'll explain.

4 scenes were set up when we came (three scenes with one model, and one scene with a duo of models). While it's great to be able to wander around the event to draw the different models from all angles, the poses are timed to allow the models to move around - and fortunately for them, because some of the poses are quite... acrobatic!

• To be read
• La Distillerie de l'Arbre Sec: our photos of the gin creation workshop a stone's throw from the Louvre
• L'Atelier Rodin, to discover the sculptor's work through children's eyes, returns on April 6
• Les ateliers de Marius, to learn how to make your own washing powder - new date

But the initial timings (several scenes to be drawn in less than 3 minutes) left us somewhat stymied and frustrated, not really knowing where to start. We would have preferred the last pose, held for around twenty minutes, to have been proposed first, just long enough for our pencil stroke to relax!

In the end, we really enjoyed the experience, and would have liked the workshop to have lasted even longer. On the other hand, it's a shame that for an event called Drink & Draw, drinks aren't included in the price of the workshop!