The Big Draw Festival at Gainsborough’s House
October 27, 2025 – October 30, 2025
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#DrawnTogether
What is the Big Draw Festival?
The Big Draw Festival is the world’s biggest celebration of drawing and it takes place across the globe every year from 1–31 October. Since its launch in 2000, The Big Draw Festival has championed drawing as a universal language and a powerful tool for learning, self-expression, and innovation. The Big Draw Festival is made up of thousands of drawing activities that connect people of all ages with schools, galleries, museums, libraries, heritage sites, village halls, refugee organisations, outdoor spaces, artists, scientists, designers, illustrators, inventors and each other.
Join us for the Big Draw Festival at Gainsborough’s House, where we celebrate this year’s theme Drawn Together through a series of creative workshops. Throughout the week we will be teaming up with award winning music social enterprise CLIP and Creative Director, Tom Hobden to deliver exciting workshops to guide you through playful exploration of drawing, sound and digital projection.
Each session stands alone, but together they build towards a spectacular showcase event in Gainsborough’s Garden, filled with light, sound, music, food and celebration on Saturday 1 November 2025—come ready to experiment, connect, and discover new ways of making art together.
Each workshop is two hours, and you can book one, two or all three…
Creative workshops for 11–16 year olds—kids only!
£5 per child
Session 1: Monday 27 October, 10am–12pm
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In this session, you’ll join a group of likeminded people to create portraits & landscapes in surprising and unconventional ways – from shared mark-making to guided drawing challenges that push creativity beyond the ordinary.
Alongside your visual experiments, you’ll also explore how sound and music can shape and interact with drawing. And if the mood takes you, you’ll even have the chance to step behind the decks and try your hand at DJing.
Session 2: Wednesday 29 October, 10am–12pm
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Discover the art of portraiture through playful experimentation with mono print. In this session, you’ll explore the rich, expressive possibilities of mono print techniques to create bold and surprising portraits. Working with a mix of guided exercises and collaborative approaches, you’ll find new ways to capture the essence of people beyond traditional drawing.
Alongside the printmaking, you’ll experiment with sound and music, exploring how rhythm and atmosphere can influence the way portraits are experienced. The DJ decks will also be set up if you fancy giving that a whirl!
Session 3: Thursday 30 October, 10am–12pm
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Step into a workshop where language becomes a visual playground. You’ll explore text and typeface as creative tools – cutting, layering, and collaging words and letters into bold, experimental compositions. Through playful exercises, you’ll discover how text can move beyond communication to become pattern, and image in its own right.
Alongside the visual work, you’ll experiment with sound – exploring how sound and music can sit alongside and amplify your creations. And for those curious to push the experiment further, there’ll be an opportunity to step behind the decks and try your hand at DJing.
Tickets for this Event can be cancelled up to one week beforehand. Refunds will be given after this date only if the ticket is re-sold.
A message from the Director of The Big Draw, Matilda Barratt, on The Big Draw Festival 2025 Theme, ‘Drawn Together’:
What better way to mark The Big Draw’s 25th anniversary than with a theme that celebrates the power of creativity and collaboration? For a quarter of a century, The Big Draw has championed drawing as a tool for communication, expression, and understanding — helping individuals and communities come together and connect.
Drawing is a universal language that transcends barriers, bringing us closer and enabling us to communicate in ways that words cannot. ‘Drawn Together’ serves as a reminder that the simple act of making a mark can build bridges, forge bonds, and create shared experiences.
We can’t wait to see how you bring ‘Drawn Together’ to life in 2025—let’s make this anniversary year one to remember!
Matilda Barratt
Director, The Big Draw