Adult and Teen Classes

AVA Members receive 10% off most classes!

Most classes are for students 16 and older.
All welding classes are for students 18 and older.
Financial Assistance is available for all classes.
Class Information & ScheduleClass ImageClass Medium, Level, & PriceClass DescriptionRegistration

Winter Daytime Open Studios

Wednesdays, Jan 8-March 26
12 sessions 

9 am-12 pm

open studio drawing

Drawing Open Studio

for Continuing and Advanced students

$250* / $25 per individual session

Weekly monitored life drawing sessions, without instruction, open to individuals of all levels of experience. 

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SCAFFOLDING: Making Flax Sculptures
SUE SCHLABACH

Saturday, March 1
1 session 

10 am-3 pm

flax-bird-16x9

Mixed-media

$100*
$15 Materials Fee

Sue Schlabach will lead a workshop as part of the group exhibition Scaffolding and teach methods used to create the birds in her installation piece Murmuration. Participants will create small mesh and wire armatures to cover with layers of felted flax. Participants will learn the adaptable ways flax can be formed sculpturally into works that can later be painted, gilded or left in their natural coloration (after a few days of drying time). Schlabach will share about her experience growing flax in Vermont and her work with the Belgian artist Germana Tack who developed these artistic methods and taught them to a group of Vermont artists in early 2024. This workshop includes conceptual processes, hand-building, use of sharp tools, fiber-handling and use of water-based adhesive. 

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SCAFFOLDING: Wheel-thrown Altered Ceramic Vessels
DASHA KALISZ

Saturday, March 1
1 session 

10 am-2 pm

Dasha_Kalisz ceramics

Clay

$80*
$30 Materials Fee

Dasha Kalisz will lead a workshop alongside the group exhibition Scaffolding and her work Transmutation, focusing on her process of creating altered ceramic lung vessels. Participants will have the chance to explore the technique of altering ceramic forms by shaping them on the potter's wheel and transforming them into dynamic vessels and sculptures. The workshop will also delve into the symbolism, metaphor, and cultural significance of clay, materials, and the lung as a symbol of life, breath, and the exchange of energies. This hands-on experience offers a unique blend of technical skill-building and conceptual exploration in the realm of ceramics. All are welcome, but some ceramics wheel experience suggested. 

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Metalsmithing
ROFF HARROFF

Thursdays, Jan 23-Mar 13
8 sessions

6-8:30 PM

roff-shell-16x9

Metal

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$430

$75 materials fee

Forging, forming, and fabrication of brass, bronze, copper and other non-ferrous metal with traditional and non-traditional methods will be explored in class.  Please bring a sketchbook with you and wear natural fabrics long pants and closed supportive shoes.

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Beginning & Intermediate Woodworking: Boxes and Beyond
DAVE SHINNLINGER

Thursdays, Jan 30-Mar 20
8 sessions

6-8:30 PM

shinnlinger boxes wood

Wood

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$430

$90 materials fee

This course will allow the participant to use power tools in the AVA woodshop to create a basic box, and potentially more. If time and interest allow, a wooden knob can be turned on a lathe to accent the box and additional boxes crafted as well. This class is ideal for beginners and for getting to know the AVA woodshop, but is also appropriate for intermediate woodworkers looking to improve their skills and learn new things.

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Beginning & Continuing Watercolor: Mixing Great Colors
JOAN HOFFMANN

Fridays, Jan 24-Feb 14
4 sessions

9:30 am-12 pm

HoffmannJ-Waterlily-16x9

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$215

Click here for a class materials list

Begin your watercolor journey or continue beyond the basics! Technique demos, along with critiques and discussions, will guide you through a painting each session. In this class there will be an emphasis on how to mix and tone your paints for great colors. Beginning and more experienced students are welcome.

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Introduction to Welding
Ian Blackmer

Fridays, Jan 24-March 14 
8 sessions

5-8 pm

Wedling

Metal

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$520

$90 materials fee

Learn to select, measure, mark, cut and prepare mild steel for welding, then join the pieces together through the Metal Inert Gas (MIG) wire feed welding process. During this eight week course students will become familiarized with working safely in an industrial shop setting. Students will learn and practice basic wire feed welding techniques as well as hand and power tool operation and apply those newly learned skills to the creative process.

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Basic Drawing
DARYL SEITCHIK

Mondays, Jan 27-March 10 
6 sessions | No class Feb 17

6-8:30 pm

daryl seitchik drawing egg

Drawing

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$325

Class materials list

 In this class you'll learn 4 basic drawing techniques to improve your drawing abilities while embracing process and conquering the fear of a white page. You'll learn measuring techniques to train your eye and draw with accuracy; discuss the characteristics that make up a good composition and point of view with the help of a viewfinder; learn to use positive and negative space to improve accuracy and relative proportions; and explore the many ways to shade and use lines.  This class is inspired by the book Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, by Betty Edwards. For Adults, Teens (16 and up), and teachers interested in Professional Development

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Painting and Drawing the Organic Form
SUSAN GRAY BÉ

Tuesdays, Jan 28-March 18 
8 sessions

5:30-8 pm

gray be still life flower oil acrylic

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$430

Class materials list

In this class you'll learn to see light as contrasting shapes while adding structure and detail with line, tone, and color. Your aesthetic preferences will naturally evolve as you learn techniques to create three-dimensional forms. You'll begin class with charcoal, and expand with a choice of pastels, watercolors, acrylics, or oils, while drawing from organic forms and a live model.

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Painting from Observation with Oils
MURSAL NAZARY

Wednesdays, Jan 29-March 19
8 sessions

6-8 pm

mursal nazary painting

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$350*

Class materials list

In this course you'll explore oil painting based on an observational approach. The class will begin with the fundamentals by looking at works of art from the history of observational painting. During class you'll focus on still life painting with oils, employing a range of tools and exploring how they relate to your subjects. While there will painting during class, the instructor will also talk about ways to paint at home in your own surroundings. 

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Collage & Mixed-media
ANASTASIA TAMBAKIS

Thursdays, Jan 30-Feb 20
4 sessions

6-7:30 pm

tambakis collage

Mixed-media

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$130*

$20 materials fee

This course is designed for artists of all skill levels who are interested in exploring the creative possibilities of combining various artistic materials and techniques. In this introductory class, you will learn how to integrate different media—such as paint, collage, drawing, and found objects—into a cohesive and expressive artwork.

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Hand-building with Clay
KÄRIN ROTHWELL

Wednesdays, Feb 5-March 12
5 sessions; Open studio with monitor on Feb 19

5:30-8:30 pm

Rothwell Clay Hand-building Pear

Clay

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$320*

$70 Materials Fee

Possibility comes to fruition as you and your hands learn how to move and manipulate clay without the use of a wheel. Hand-building means constructing with coils and slabs of clay, pinching and 'modeling'-- techniques used since antiquity in every corner of the earth. Both functional pieces and works of art will be ready to glaze and take home at the end of the session.  Each class starts with a demonstration and group time, then students may turn to individual work on independent projects, open to your own expression and whim. Build boxes, trays and vases. You take it from there! Surface decoration will also be addressed, using slips and underglazes followed by finished glaze techniques. Open to all skill levels. Please bring a notebook dedicated to ceramics.

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Sketchbook Watercolors: Traveling About
JENNIFER BROWN

Tuesdays, Feb 25-March 18
4 sessions

10 am-12 pm

brown landscape watercolor

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$170

Click here for a class materials list

Continue your trip by Watercolor painting from travel photos. Revisit your lovely trip by recomposing and painting from your photos. Or imagine a trip you want to take and get to know the landscape and architecture ahead of time through painting. Strategies for traveling with watercolors will also be discussed. Some experience with watercolor painting is necessary.

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Introduction to Woodworking: Making a Stylish Serving Tray
MIKE HILLINGER

Tuesdays, Feb 25-March 25
5 sessions

5:30-8:30 pm

hillinger-tray-16x9

Wood

for Beginning Students

$325

$90 materials fee

In this class you will create a hardwood serving tray using solid-wood construction that allows for seasonal wood movement. You'll also learn about breadboard construction, exposed joints, tapered stock, pinned joints, and cord lashing. This class is perfect for students who have taken other introductory woodworking courses, but will also be accessible to those with no woodworking experience. Click here for a detailed project description. 

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Beginning & Continuing Watercolor: Warm & Cool Colors
JOAN HOFFMANN

Wednesdays, Feb 26-March 19
4 sessions

6-8:30 pm

hoffmann joan watercolor

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$215

Click here for a class materials list

Begin your watercolor journey or continue beyond the basics! Technique demos, along with critiques and discussions, will guide you through a painting each session. In this class there will be an emphasis on how to use warm and colors to create contrast and mood in your paintings. Beginning and more experienced students are welcome

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Beginning & Continuing Watercolor: Warm & Cool Colors
JOAN HOFFMANN

Fridays, Feb 28-March 21
4 sessions

9:30 am-12 pm

hoffmann joan watercolor

Painting

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$215

Click here for a class materials list

Begin your watercolor journey or continue beyond the basics! Technique demos, along with critiques and discussions, will guide you through a painting each session. In this class there will be an emphasis on how to use warm and colors to create contrast and mood in your paintings. Beginning and more experienced students are welcome

Register Now

Collage & Mixed-media
ANASTASIA TAMBAKIS

Thursdays, March 6-27
4 sessions

6-7:30 pm

tambakis collage

Mixed-media

for Beginning & Continuing Students

$130*

$20 materials fee

This course is designed for artists of all skill levels who are interested in exploring the creative possibilities of combining various artistic materials and techniques. In this introductory class, you will learn how to integrate different media—such as paint, collage, drawing, and found objects—into a cohesive and expressive artwork.

Register Now

MORE INFORMATION

AVA Faculty

Derek Bell received his BFA in Painting in 2008 from the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Painting and spent three of his years there as a Teaching Assistant. As a painter, Derek prefers landscape, portraiture, and animals, as well as an occasional still life. Since graduating from RISD, Derek has worked primarily in oils, watercolor, gouache, and more recently egg tempera. https://www.instagram.com/perfectpoultryportraits/

Jennifer Brown began her art career at a young age making woodblock prints in her family kitchen. She majored in Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard University and earned a degree in art and education from Vermont College as a parent and working adult. Most recently she has taken painting and printmaking workshops at Art New England in Bennington, VT, as well as continuing to study oil painting with painter, Peter Granucci. She uses watercolor and gouache to explore nature, landscapes, and figures in the landscape.

Amber Geneva Erkiletian received her BFA at the School of the Art Institute, Chicago where she gained a passion for working in large-scale steel sculpture. Her curiosity about the range of materials available for sculpture caused her to pursue diverse fields that feed her professional development and her application of technical knowledge. Amber’s experience ranges from casting aluminum and bronze for art and industry to fine woodworking and fiberglass construction to refining microscopic precision components for the Mars mission. As an artist, Amber is drawn to the minute subtleties of expression in human body language. Her art practice uses welded steel and Pal Tiya Premium, a unique sculpting cement, to create chimerical animal sculptures for outdoor installation. As an independent art teacher, Amber considers it her mission to ensure that everyone who wants to make sculpture can, at any scale and for any environment. For more information about Amber, please visit her website.

Fred Faudie works out of his studio in Norwich, Vermont where he lives with his wife and teenage son who share his painting, photography, and design studio: SeeingMind. He has exhibited his drawings, prints, and paintings in numerous juried shows across the country, including having his work accepted to group and one-person exhibitions in Washington, D.C., Andover, Massachusetts, Boston, and New York City. He is a Professor Emeritus with the Art Department of the University of Massachusetts Lowell where he taught studio courses for thirty-four years. During his tenure there he taught basic, intermediate, and advanced studio courses, various art history courses, set up several analog darkrooms, and taught the first computer art course. He was a key player in developing their accredited B.A. and B.F.A. degrees. Fred Faudie holds an A.B. in Art History from Cornell University, an M.A. in painting from the University of Iowa; participated in post-graduate studies in photography at the University of Iowa, and holds an M.F.A. in Illustration from Syracuse University.

Nick Gaffney received his M.F.A. in Fine Arts/Photography from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY, in 2002. Since then he has taught Photography, Studio Art, and Digital Media at various places. He has exhibited his photography throughout the country, including solo shows at AVA and the Vermont Center for Photography, in Brattleboro, VT. He is currently on the board of the Vermont Center for Photography and is also a member of the Lebanon Arts and Culture Commission. He lives in Lebanon with his wife, two daughters, and dog Ruby. ngaffney.net

At the age of eight, Olivia Janna Genereaux took her first after-school art class painting. She learned to paint from life and to mix colors. She loved the control of building her world and found her place. She chose to attend Rhode Island School of Design, where she studied textiles and illustration, majored in painting, and graduated in 1986. Four decades later in 2014, she earned a Master’s Degree from Lesley University, College of Art and Design. Her love of art is a gift she gives to herself and shares with others every day.

Stephanie Gordon received her BFA from the University of Michigan. Stephanie taught art at Hanover High School for 18 years before retiring. She currently teaches community art classes for adults and teens. Stephanie has most recently been making encaustic paintings. She exhibits work locally and regionally and her art is in many private collections. sbgordonart.com

Joan Hoffmann paints impressionistic oil and watercolor landscapes and birds in plein air. She is dedicated to painting, teaching, and preserving the wild landscapes that she explores. Joan lectures on the History of American Landscape Painting, National Parks, Public Lands, and the Art of Landscape and teaches and exhibits her work in UT, CO, CA, and at her studio in South Royalton. www.joanhoffmann.com

Mike Howat is a New Hampshire-based painter and printmaker. His work explores themes of urbanization, Americana, and collective memory. Since earning his B.F.A. from the New Hampshire Institute of Art in 2014, he has been actively engaged in the growing New England art scene. He exhibits regularly with Kelley Stelling Contemporary and Mill Brook Gallery & Sculpture Garden and has shown with Chase’s Garage, Rochester Museum of Fine Arts, and Nahcotta, among others. He is the current artist-in-residence at Kimball Jenkins School of Art, where he teaches classes and workshops in painting, printmaking, and drawing. mikehowat.com

Michael Kraatz holds a BS in Art from the University of Wisconsin and an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. He has been a roster artist with the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts for many years, completing numerous Arts in Education residencies in public schools. He works in 2-D and 3-D and is particularly known for his blown glass. Kraatz’s work has been shown nationally and regionally, including at AVA. www.kraatzrussell.com

Maggie mayfly Kundtz Joseph: Visual artist; AVA studio tenant since 2013; AVA instructor.  Strives to nurture & empower young and old in the creative process.  Earned a BFA from the University of Michigan in painting & photography; Master’s in photography from Maine Media College.  Early life, worked in the gallery/ museum arena and NYC photography scene; Currently, immersed in art making and raising a family.  Created the artist persona, mayfly, to better embody the ideas of ephemerality and transformation in her art.

Sue Martin majored in art at a teacher training college in Ripon, Yorkshire, England. Currently retired as a classroom and reading teacher, she has time to rekindle and expand her artistic interests to include stained glass. She finds great delight in incorporating found objects into her work and she has exhibited her stained glass panels, in the Upper Valley.

Chris McGrody has been building custom furniture and handcrafted cabinetry professionally in his shop for 15 years. Before starting his shop, Chris worked for several years at a local furniture studio building high-end traditional Shaker furniture. While working there as a craftsman, he also ran the workshop program and taught week-long and weekend workshop courses. Chris also instructs regularly at the Dartmouth College Student Woodshop. Chris enjoys passing along his knowledge of woodworking through project-based classes. www.chrismcgrody.com

Robert O’Brien received his BA from S.U.N.Y. at Buffalo and has worked in watercolor for 40 years. Since moving to Vermont in 1977, he has focused his work on the landscape and architecture of New England. He studied with James Whatford, Tony Couch, and Marshall Joyce. He is a member of many watercolor societies and has won numerous awards. www.robertjobrien.com

Tracy Penfield has a history with AVA going back to 1985. She exhibited her fiber art, taught and modeled at AVA until founding SafeArt in 2000, based in Chelsea VT, where she resides. She passed SafeArt on to the next generation in 2020 and has a private practice in trauma healing at the Center for Integrative Health in Hanover and in Chelsea. She is also a dancer and the Artistic Director of the Passing Project: www.passingproject.org.     Kärin Rothwell became a student of clay under the tutelage of Karen Williamson at the Davidson Pottery at Dartmouth College in 1981, followed by post-grad classes at UNH and workshops at Haystack Mountain School in Maine and ‘Phoenix’ with Gerry Williams in Goffstown. Surrounded by the rich history of strong clay cultures while living in the Middle East, Holland, Spain, and Mexico in her early years led to her desire for personal exploration in the medium. Kärin was a teacher/trainer at Dartmouth for many years and began the children’s program at the League of NH Craftsmen in 1984.

Meredith Smith holds a BFA and MAT from the Rhode Island School of Design and did postgraduate study in costume and theater design at Brown University. She has worked as a costume and jewelry designer, college professor, and owner of a London-based clothing company. Meredith is a juried member of the League of NH Craftsmen.

Teaching and Modeling at AVA

Modeling: If you are interested in modeling for art classes at AVA (clothed or unclothed), please contact our Education Manager, Nick Gaffney, at nick@avagallery.org.

Teaching: AVA is always interested in learning more about creative educational experiences for our community. If you are interested in teaching a workshop at AVA, please email nick@avagallery.org.

Financial Assistance

Legacies Live On

Thanks to the generosity of family and friends of prominent past AVA supporters, AVA is honored to offer financial assistance to mitigate the cost of classes and workshops.

Click here to apply for Financial Assistance.

AVA Financial Assistance Fund

The AVA Financial Assistance Fund provides eligible individuals of all ages and abilities with tuition assistance in any of AVA’s art camps, educational workshops, or outreach programming. Funds donated for financial assistance but not specifically directed to the Al Quirk or Aya Itagaki funds are allocated to this fund. Click here to donate to the AVA Financial Assistance fund.

Al Quirk Financial Assistance Fund

The Alfred T. Quirk Senior Student Financial Assistance Fund was established to support seniors (60 and over) in their artistic endeavors. After his retirement from a thirty year career at Dartmouth College, Al Quirk began a new calling as a watercolor artist, taking classes at AVA and eventually serving on AVA’s Board of Directors. Recognizing the significance art and AVA played in Al’s later life, eligible seniors can apply for financial assistance for any AVA class or workshop.

Aya Itagaki Financial Assistance Fund

The Aya Itagaki Financial assistance Fund provides eligible individuals of all ages and abilities with tuition assistance at either AVA or the Okinawan Karate Academy. Aya was an AVA founding member, artist, teacher and AVA board member for over four decades. Her family established this fund to continue her legacy of support. Applicants may receive financial assistance toward classes at either AVA or the Okinawan Karate Academy.

All financial assistance funds help provide creative opportunities for those who would otherwise not be able to participate due to financial concerns. Contributions can be made to any of these funds by phone (603) 448-3117, online by clicking here, or by mail: AVA Gallery and Art Center, 11 Bank Street, Lebanon, NH 03766.