Grades 6–8 · Ages 11–13
Art Foundations
Ninety minutes is long enough to actually learn a medium instead of sampling it. This is the year a kid finds out what they're good at — and it's usually not what they expected.
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One of my own pastel studies — the kind of observational work this class builds toward.
When
Mondays, 12:30–2:00 PM
Length
90 minutes
Per class
$35
Full 10 weeks
$350
First class is $15, so you can try it before committing. $20 off for each additional sibling. Classes are held at my home studio in Holladay — I send the address when you enroll.
Fall 2026 workshop
Foundations — September 14 to November 16.
Ten Mondays. The fall workshop is about learning to see like an artist and building technique that holds up — and meeting a working artist most people have never heard of, every single week.
Kids finish the year knowing thirty-odd artists beyond the usual ten. That's deliberate. Every week is anchored to a real artist whose work connects to what we're making that day.
What we cover
The ground this class covers.
Contour and value in graphite. The cheapest supplies and the biggest jump in skill.
Wet-on-wet and dry brush, over two weeks, because paint control genuinely needs the second Monday.
Line weight as a decision, not an accident.
Layering — building a color instead of picking one.
One object, one light source, and the full range in between.
Composition when you can move the pieces around.
Carve a plate, ink it, and pull a real edition.
How a class runs
What a Monday looks like.
- Roughly one medium a week, with two weeks where the medium needs it.
- The idea is named at the start of class, and the steps come one at a time.
- Four or five real vocabulary words a week.
- Work goes home each week — nothing sits in a folder at the studio.
- The last week is student choice, in whichever medium they liked best.
This tier is a medium sampler on purpose. Most kids arrive having only ever used pencil and school-grade markers.
I tell students what we're learning at the start of class, then reveal the steps one at a time as we go. It keeps everyone moving together and leaves room for the lesson to bend around the group in front of me.
Coming soon
The week-by-week schedule
I'm still finishing the ten-week lesson plan for Art Foundations — each week's project, materials, and featured artist. It'll be posted here before the fall workshop begins on September 14.
Coming back next year
No repeats.
The curriculum runs on a three-year rotation, and every tier is a three-grade band. A student can stay in Art Foundations for all three years and never repeat a project. When they age up into the next class, the ideas come back — but at a depth they couldn't have handled before.
Enroll
Come try one class first.
Your first Art Foundations class is $15. Email me and tell me your child's grade — I'll send the studio address, the supply notes, and confirm your spot.
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