Upcoming programmes

Creativity takes practice, not talent.

Three focused programmes starting this season — each one built around specific skills, honest feedback, and time to work through real creative problems.

Participant working on a creative project during a assistingourtroops masterclass

Three programmes, three distinct focuses

Each programme runs independently — you can join one or all three depending on where your practice currently sits.

8 sessions

Creative Drawing from Observation

Starting 14 February 2025 — Fridays, 18:00–20:00

Focused on developing accuracy and personal mark-making through direct observation. Works equally well if you draw regularly or have been away from it for years.

8 live online sessions, 2 hours each
Maximum 12 participants per group
Materials list provided on enrolment

Led by Orla Ní Fhaoláin — practising illustrator, 12 years teaching

Enquire about this programme

6 sessions

Storytelling Through Visual Composition

Starting 1 March 2025 — Saturdays, 10:00–12:30

How images communicate before words do. This programme examines framing, visual rhythm, and the decisions that make a composition feel intentional rather than accidental.

6 live sessions, 2.5 hours each
Maximum 10 participants
Printed workbook included

Led by Tadhg Ó Briain — graphic novelist and educator

Enquire about this programme

5 sessions

Experimental Mixed Media

Starting 22 March 2025 — Sundays, 14:00–16:30

Combining photography, collage, paint, and found materials to build images that resist easy categorisation. Suited to participants who want to loosen up their approach.

5 live sessions, 2.5 hours each
Maximum 8 participants
Starter materials kit posted to participants

Led by Bríd Uí Cheallaigh — artist and residency facilitator

Enquire about this programme

Close detail of textured artwork surface from a assistingourtroops masterclass session

How these programmes are structured

Each session is built around doing, not watching. Demonstrations are short — most of your time is spent on your own work with direct feedback.

Assistingourtroops has been running online creative programmes since 2015. The format has been refined through experience: small groups, specific briefs, and instructors who are still active in their own practice.

Places are limited deliberately. Feedback only works when the instructor can actually see what each participant is doing.

Live session: All sessions run in real time via video. Recordings are available for 7 days after each session.

Brief: A short creative prompt given at the end of each session — optional but designed to move your work forward between meetings.

Group critique: Structured group feedback in the final session of each programme — participants share work and receive written notes from the instructor.

Enrolment: Contact us directly to check availability and confirm a place. No automated booking — we confirm manually within 48 hours.