Drawing female models is no longer just for professionals.

In conjunction with the print exhibition “In a Man’s Brain: Images of Women,” University Museums is presenting an open drawing studio tonight at the Brunnier Art Museum, which is located on the top floor of the Scheman Building.

During the session, the audience will sketch an image of the female figure while viewing two live female models.

Renee Senter, curator of education for University Museums, said the exhibition represents a common theme — the cultural stereotypes about women and their roles in society over time.

Senter said the open drawing studio is a great opportunity for students and the public.

“It’s over and above what you would get out of a class,” she said. “[You] get insight into how artists and models work with each other.”

Senter said ISU professors of both architecture and art and design will host drawing studios throughout the semester.

She said professors first show the print exhibition and then direct models into specific poses while giving informal instructions to help the audience.

Each professor takes a different angle with the drawing studios, Senter said. Carol Prusa, an art and design professor and tonight’s host, will focus on line and form of the three-dimensional figure, she said.

Senter said it can be difficult to depict the female figure, but people of all artistic backgrounds attend the drawing studios.

“Art is a discipline. It’s not a talent — it’s more of a developed skill,” she said. “It’s something you have to sharpen.

“It’s been so much fun,” she added. “[Everyone] can learn from each other. It’s a nice, casual environment.”

Senter said people should take advantage of the open studio because similar sessions usually cost money.

“It gives everyone access to something that is never free,” she said. “It’s rare to have access to two models free.”

Mary Atherly, University Museums collections manager and the organizer of the exhibition, said “In a Man’s Brain: Images of Women” includes more than 80 prints from the past 400 years.

“The prints show how imagery of women has evolved and how the print medium has changed,” she said.

Atherly said the open drawing studio is a way to “let students experience what it’s like to be an artist.”

She said her idea for the “unusual” exhibition originated in 1994 when she visited the University of Glasgow, Scotland, through an ISU faculty/student exchange program.

At the Huntarian Art Gallery in Glasgow, Atherly said she observed a large print collection in which many male artists portrayed the female figure.

“When I was going through the catalog, I saw mostly images of women in various aspects of their lives,” she said. “I realized all the images of women were done by men.”

The exhibition’s title is derived from “In Man’s Mind,” a print by Ed Vard Munch which sums up the exhibition’s theme, she said.

Atherly said funds for the exhibition and drawing studio came through private donations, aid from the University of Glasgow and the University Museums budget.

Since the exhibition took three years to organize, Atherly said it isn’t likely that a similar exhibition and subsequent drawing program will take place on an annual basis.

“When you select prints you have to do research, and it can take two to three years to make arrangements,” she said.

Additional drawing studios for “In a Man’s Brain: Images of Women” are scheduled for November 6 and November 20, and the print exhibition will be displayed at the Brunnier Art Museum through January 4. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.

Participants will be limited to using graphite, marker, color pencil and/or scratch board. Portable easels and newsprint will be available while supplies last.