Altoona After School Arts

After working with nearly 650 students at my previous residency, I feel so lucky to be at Altoona After School Arts. I think this might be my 8th year for conducting this program. Altoona offers this program as an addition to their curriculum and opens it up the the Junior and Senior High school students.

This year the sign up was small at 11 students and I have 5 young women who have come to learn about painting. I realize in situations how lucky I am to have such a job and creative time to spend with such a small group. The age range is diverse and the girls have quickly joined forces to enjoy the power of a group and individuals in learning a little about watercolor and acrylic painting.

My first goal is a simple lesson on color mixing with primary colors and a lesson on tinting with white. One of my favorite artistic movements is the Impressionists, so I encourage their first piece to be a study based on books I can provide for the students. However, our first day happened to be Valentine's Day so we had a quick lesson in watercolor.

Each student is encouraged to regard painting as a process and passion for color with brush strokes becoming different and the use of color important in any single composition. Because of the diversity of the group in age, I have initiated a group project as well to help encompass teamwork skills and communication.