Art & Design Department Offers Fall Art Classes
posted 10/5/09
Classes available for both youth and adults

ADRIAN, Mich. - The first of two sessions of the Youth Art Program to be offered this school year by the Adrian College Art and Design Department begins Saturday, October 17, and continues through November 21.

Two classes will be offered: one for ages K – 4th grade and one for 5th – 9th graders. Both classes will meet Saturday mornings from 9:30 a.m. to noon in the Mahan Center for Art and Interior Design on Adrian College’s campus. This session’s theme is Cultivate Your Art Experience.

While studying vegetables, fruits, and plants, students will create art in a variety of media, including dying fabric using Native American methods, drawing, papermaking, and Japanese woodcut. In addition, they will study artist Georgia O’Keeffe, take a field trip to Hidden Lake Gardens, and exhibit work there at the end of the session.

The program will be taught by experienced art teachers, led by Debra Irvine-Stiver. Adrian College art education students will assist. The program’s cost is $70.00 and includes all supplies. Scholarships are available for students who qualify for the free lunch program, through the Adrian College Art and Design Department.

Community Clay classes, taught in the art and design department’s well-equipped ceramics studio, are open to those of all skill levels who are high school age and beyond. The next session begins Saturday, October 17, and continues on successive Saturdays through November 21, meeting from 9:30 a.m. to noon.

The class will focus on hand-built sculptural works; more experienced students will learn to use wheel-thrown work in their sculpture. Generous studio time outside class is also provided. The class will be taught by Pi Benio, professor at Adrian College, and AC ceramics graduates John Ahearn and Megan Walton. The class cost for tuition, clay, and studio time is $160.00. Half scholarships are available for high school students.

Registration for both programs is through the Adrian College Conference Office, Valade Hall, 110 S. Madison Street, Adrian (517-264-3156), in person or by mail. Make checks payable to Adrian College Art and Design Department. Registration fees are non-refundable.

For additional information about the Youth Art Program, call Sue Thompson, coordinator of art education at the College, at 517-474-1103. For information about the Community Clay Program, call Pi Benio at 517-264-3901.