By Elizabeth Scinta By Elizabeth Scinta | October 4, 2021 | Lifestyle, Art,
Tap into your inner artist this fall by signing up for classes through these local arts programs. DC's top art teachers will have you snapping photos around the DMV, taking ceramics for a spin or painting a masterpiece in no time.
Capitol Hills Arts Workshop
Life drawing, beginner’s wheel throwing and jazz dance classes are just a few of the courses available at Capitol Hills Arts Workshop. From youth to adult options for beginner and advanced levels, there’s a class for everyone. The youth offerings include after-school programs, dance classes and music. They also have a gallery on site for students to showcase their work. 545 Seventh St., SE, 202.547.6839, chaw.org
Elevated Arts
If an adult’s only art class is more your style, consider stopping into Elevated Arts. Each class begins with snacks and refreshments before stepping into the studio to be guided through the chosen painting. Each day brings a new work to replicate, such as landscapes and abstract portraits. For those hoping to paint from the comfort of their home, Elevated Arts sells take-home packages that include a canvas, easel, pack of paint, paint brushes, paint palette and link to an instructional video. 1821 18th St. NW, 202.299.0600, elevatedartsdc.com
Winter Palace Studio
At Winter Palace Studio, Natasha Mokina and Victor Pakhomkin lead classes exploring traditional methods used by European academies, focusing on intense figure painting and drawing. Mokina and Pakhomkin are graduates of the esteemed St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts, and Mokina has even won the “Best Young Artist of St. Petersburg'' award. Single-session options and semester-long courses are available virtually and in-person through the Bethesda location, and in-person at the Georgetown location. Multiple locations, winterpalacestudio.com
Capital Photography Center
Snap your way to becoming an esteemed photographer with the help of professional photographers at Capital Photography Center. They offer in-the-field courses, photo basics, editing and post-processing, flash and lighting, smartphone photography and more. These single-sessions classes take place in Falls Church and DC, as well as in-the-field throughout the DMV. 8130 Porter Road, Falls Church, Va., 1616 H St. NW, 703.549.7150, capitalphotographycenter.com
District Clay Center
Hands-on experience is the best way to become familiar with ceramics. Sign up one-shot classes, if you are unsure pottery making is for you, workshops, intensives and online classes for every level artist. Courses get as specific as clay characters, like whimsical busts with Isolina Alva, a sculpture artist from Baltimore, and as broad as the one-shot options where beginners take the potter’s wheel for a spin. 2414 Douglas St. NE, districtclaycenter.com
Liberty Town Arts
Owned by Dolores and Kenneth Lecky, a potter and photographer, Liberty Town Arts is your one-stop-shop for everything art-related, including pottery, drawing, painting, glass and fiber classes. The space allows students to create and show their art in one place, if they apply to be a part of the gallery shows. Currently, Liberty Town Arts is looking for artists for their 6x6x6 show where the art must be smaller than six inches. 916 Liberty St. Fredericksburg, Va., 540.371.7255, libertytownarts.com
Glen Echo Park
Glen Echo Park offers art classes in nearly every medium. The Park features 13 resident artists and organizations, hundreds of classes, two award-winning children’s theaters and holds a variety of other programs. Besides the tried and true art courses like painting and drawing, Glen Echo Park welcomes guests to try mosaic making, glassblowing, fused glass and silversmithing. The fall 2021 course schedule is up on their website, and sign-ups have already begun for in-person and online sessions. 7300 MacArthur Blvd. Glen Echo, Md., 301.634.2222, glenechopark.org
Muse Paintbar
Paint and sip at this female-led paint bar located at the National Harbor. While composing your masterpiece, nibble on small bites and try various libations from their extensive beer and wine list. The instructor will guide students step-by-step through a painting of their choice during the two-and-a-half-hour class. Guests can pick from a variety of works, including seasonal landscapes and abstract portraits. 122 Waterfront St., National Harbor, Va., 888.607.6873, musepaintbar.com
Studio Arts Department of the Smithsonian Associates
DC is home to 17 Smithsonian museums, and with at least nine being art-focused, what better place to become an artist than through this distinguished organization? The Studio Arts Department invites local art enthusiasts to try a variety of classes quarterly in drawing, fiber arts, mixed media, calligraphy, painting, sculpture and more. The department has provided over 200 courses for more than 40 years, taught by an array of instructors and visual artists. 1100 Jefferson Drive SW, 202.633.3030, smithsonianassociates.org
Shop Made in DC.
Stacey Price and Michael Babin founded Shop Made in DC to promote local makers and artists. Besides selling works by DC creatives, they offer classes to help grow the local arts community. Shop Made in DC has a variety of options on their roster, such as terrarium building, knitting and wine and watercolors. Get creative in person at their Georgetown and Capitol Hill locations, or have a kit shipped to your door and participate virtually. Multiple locations, shopmadeindc.com
Photography by: Sarah Brown/Unsplash