Most people think of museums as places to view art, not to create it.

But Thursday at the Brunnier Art Museum, participants will be able to sharpen their pencils and their powers of observation and create their own art.

Brunnier is hosting a life drawing workshop at 7 p.m. Thursday. A student model will be provided and professional illustrator Dean Beichler will be on hand to answer questions. The museum will provide drawing boards, but attendees are asked to bring dry (non-paint) media.

“It’s a chance to sharpen your skills in a non-pressure situation,” said Rachel Hampton, communications specialist at Brunnier.

All ages and skill levels are welcome to attend, Hampton added, as past workshops have attracted both students and members of the community.

Opening a biology or zoology textbook might expose you to the artwork of Beichler, who has worked as a scientific and medical illustrator for the ISU Veterinary Medicine program.

“Drawing from life teaches you observation,” he explained. “In order to draw you need to have good powers of observation.”

Beichler said he still puts aside time each week to draw the human figure and hone his artistic perception.

ISU students have already shown their interest in life drawing by filling to the brim the life drawing class that the College of Art and Design offers. Registration for the class has increased so much that new sections have been opened in the past few years, said Deborah Pappenheimer, temporary assistant art professor.

Unlike the models in the Brunnier’s workshops though, the models in the ISU life drawing class are nude.

Pappenheimer said drawing live models remains important despite the prevalence of photography because there’s nothing mechanical between the artist and the creation.

“Cameras can distance you from what you’re looking at,” she said.

People can take the class up to three times, she said, and the students who do find they evolve from setting down the detail of the bodies to capturing the model’s expressiveness.

Thursday’s session is just one of a longer series of workshops. The other workshops will also be 7 p.m. on Thursdays, and will be on March 28, April 11, and April 25.