Current educational opportunities

Plein Air Painting in Pastel
Lisa Stauffer

5 Days: July 6 - 10 
Time: 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. (time may adjust due to light and weather)
Location: Grand Marais, MN

Paint outside with pastel in beautiful Grand Marais. The basics of outdoor painting will be discussed throughout the week. You will learn to choose your own subject, improve your skills in design, composition, and drawing, consider painting fundamentals, and more. Instructor demonstrations, personal assistance at your easel, and group critiques will give us a chance to learn as we explore plein air (outdoor) painting in a fun and supportive environment. Do plan to bring all the equipment you will need for your own painting set-up and comfort during our days of painting, watching demonstrations, and enjoying the beauty of Grand Marais and Cook County.

Contact Lisa for registration information or questions: email, phone (please leave a message), or via her website.

Plein Air Summer!
Matt Kania

Dates: July 13 - 15
Location: AI Lincoln Park Building, 2229 W 2nd St., Duluth, MN 55806

The height of the summer plein air painting season is upon us! Now is a good time to refresh your landscape painting skills and make the most of painting outdoors in summer. In this 3-day rapid-fire workshop, we will cover reliable approaches to plein air painting by honing our skills at observing and translating natural colors onto the canvas. We will learn to create effective landscapes using tried-and-true methods at various locations around Duluth. Matt will demonstrate plein air painting using oil painting materials, and will work individually with students to support their own efforts. While oils are encouraged, students using other mediums are welcome. Register and find more information here.

Painting The Outdoor Still Life
Bridget Ertelt

2 Days: July 18 - 19 
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Location: Central Park in Roseville

When we hear people talk about plein air painting we often think of landscapes. However, painting the outdoor still life is an excellent way to study light and color. Students can learn a lot from this type of study, as it is easier to see how light and color shifts occur on simple objects than in the more complicated forms in the landscape. Each day exercises will be presented to help students achieve strong starts. Class focus will be on color, but light effect, value, and drawing will also be discussed. Students will begin the first sessions by painting very simple still life set ups that will become more elaborate as the workshop progresses. Class will be taught in oils and tailored to all skill levels.

Register through the Atelier Studio Program of Fine Art: https://theatelier.org/study/landscape/

Painting The Outdoor FIGURE
Bridget Ertelt

2 Days: August 8 - 9 
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Location: Central Park in Roseville

Come paint the figure outside! Students will spend the weekend painting the clothed figure outdoors in natural light. The goal will be to learn how to achieve a believable light effect (sunny day vs. overcast light) using the figure as our subject. We will be doing exercises to capture gesture, and large value/color proportions. The class will start with short poses and progressively lengthen the poses throughout the weekend. We will talk about considering the perspective you are viewing the figure from, and why this is important when creating a scene. Studying the figure outside is a great way to increase your understanding of how light falls on all form outdoors. This class will be taught in oils. Students of all skill levels are welcome. Some previous drawing experience may be helpful as drawing will be discussed but will not be the focus of this workshop. Limit 12 students.

Register through the Atelier Studio Program of Fine Art: https://theatelier.org/study/landscape/

Redwoods, Coastline, Canvas, and Cuisine:
A Luxury Plein Air Retreat with Mary Pettis

Dates: September 13 - 18
Location: The Inn at Newport Ranch, 31502 N Highway 1, Fort Bragg, CA

Embrace the adventure and joy of plein air painting with ARC Living Master Mary Pettis immersed in the dramatic beauty of the Mendocino coastline and awe-inspiring redwoods! The Inn at Newport Ranch provides luxury accommodations and gourmet cuisine while students enjoy live demonstrations, personalized one-on-one instruction, and thoughtful critiques from Mary Pettis. This exclusive experience is limited to 10 artists. Contact Mercedes via phone or email for more information and registration.

Master the basics: ink & watercolor sketching with kar-keat chong

Dates: September 20 - 25
Location: Dillman's Resort, 3305 Sand Lake Lodge Lane, Lac du Flambeau, WI 54538

Develop conceptual and practical skills in sketching with ink and watercolor with architect and master watercolor artist, Kar-Keat Chong. Instruction covers basic ink sketching techniques, incorporating watercolor into ink sketches as well as perspective, composition, color concepts, and design. Learn more and register here.

Painting The Autumn Landscape
Bridget Ertelt

2 Days: September 26 - 27
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Location: Central Park in Roseville, Lake Harriet Rose Gardens

Autumn is one of the best times to be out on location studying the landscape as it becomes saturated in color! There will be a lecture/demo both mornings where we will discuss seeing color as value, mixing color and a discussion on how to evaluate color intensity based on the effect of light. In the afternoons,I will work with students at their easels. Students of all skill levels are welcome to participate in this workshop, though some experience painting in oil will be helpful for this class.

Register through the Atelier Studio Program of Fine Art: https://theatelier.org/study/landscape/

Ongoing Classes​

Monthly Intermediate Drawing Class
KARLYN ECKMAN

I have been offering classes since 2017, and cover basic concepts in perspective, foreshortening, value, sight-size drawing, freehand drawing, composition, tree anatomy, and other topics requested by the students. Classes are taught in Saint Anthony Park in a private studio, with frequent outdoor sessions and an occasional museum field visit. Anyone interested can contact me; there are a few OPM'ers in the group. Contact Karlyn via email or phone for more information and registration.

Portrait and Figure Drawing/Painting
OT Artists

Ongoing: Mondays, Wednesdays - 7 pm
Address: Warehouse 2 (ACVR) 4th Floor, 106 Water Street West, St. Paul, Minnesota 55107

Monday night portrait drawing/painting with a clothed model, and Wednesday night figure drawing/painting with a nude model. All sessions begin at 7:00 pm. Cost is $6/hour for alternating 2 or 3-hour sessions. For more information, visit the OT artists’ website and/or subscribe to the Life Drawing newsletter.

Color relativity fundamentals
kami mendlik

Ongoing: online course, work at your own pace

Kami Mendlik's comprehensive online course builds a deep understanding of the fundamentals behind creating light, form, and structure in your work. Through easy-to-follow step-by-step lessons, you will learn a clear strategy for painting Color Relativity that you can apply to every painting. Designed for painters who want to build confidence with paint, this course allows you to study online at your own pace—starting today! For more information and to sign up for this course, visit the artist’s websiteand/or send an email to contact Kami directly.Autumn is one of the best times to be out on location studying the landscape as it becomes saturated in color! There will be a lecture/demo both mornings where we will discuss seeing color as value, mixing color and a discussion on how to evaluate color intensity based on the effect of light. In the afternoons,I will work with students at their easels. Students of all skill levels are welcome to participate in this workshop, though some experience painting in oil will be helpful for this class.