Take a minute to watch the video above to see how excited and inspired our art explorers are during our one-of-a-kind ART-ventures!
"The after school projects were great...and what I really like is the way the instructor introduces the lesson with a few minutes of teaching about what the project is...this week the kids learned about lighthouses...so it is educational as well as fun and artsy! When Nathan went home Friday he told his mom he loves the art class!!! For me, this is combining the two things I love...kids and art.” -Volunteer Pam Pudlo, Woodland School, Southwick, MA
We believe artistic enrichment is a crucial element of a great education. Through the process of creating art, children expand their minds, they make discoveries, they thrive! Studies show that through the joy of creative art experiences, children develop essential life-long skills, such as creative problem solving, out-of-the-box thinking, expressiveness, and rich imaginations. Our programs provide hands-on art-based experiences enjoyed in a relaxing and encouraging setting.
With a dash of whimsy and a dollop of fun, we help art explorers think creatively about art and the amazing role it plays in our wonderful world!
We offer multi-week programs that range in duration from 4 to 12 weeks, and take place on the same day each week, most often right after school at your school. Each program provides a huge variety of high quality art experiences within a single exciting theme, for example, “Art-ventures in the Rainforest”, "Where the Wild Things Art" and “Art-ventures Around the World”. The classes are also provided at community centers on any weekday or on Saturdays.
A limited number of scholarships may be available for our after School programs based on need. For an application, please click below.
Multi-Week ART-ventures Themes and Descriptions
ART-ventures in the Rainforest
Head off on a jungle safari! Art adventurers trek through the rainforest, discovering the wondrous and rare creatures that call it home. Journey into the world of
parrots, jungle cats, snakes, red-eyed tree frogs and more, and experiment with whimsical and original art forms and techniques. Create stained glass tigers, build rockin' rain sticks, paint ceramic
turtles, design repoussé reptiles, and sculpt froggy light switch covers. Throughout the voyage art adventurers learn about the importance of saving the rainforest, and pick up super artist survival
skills like printmaking, painting, collage, and journaling. They even make their own t-shirts using a unique and unusual oil pastel technique. Surprises and laughter round out this fun-filled art
safari. Adventurers return home with awesome works of art each week. Grades K-5
ART We There Yet? World Treasures ART-ventures (Gr. 3 - 6)
Grab your passport and climb aboard! In this multi-cultural art exploration program, young art travelers jet from continent to continent, and discover amazing art secrets hidden all across the globe. Borrowing from Native American art traditions, craft colorful Shrinky Dink sun catchers and sculpt “All About Me” clay totem poles. Create flower pots with feet and funny faces, inspired by ancient pottery found in the Philippines. Design intricate, eye-catching Mehndi art gloves in India and bold metal embossing masterpieces in Greece. Make Aboriginal clay masks, and try a special kind of Italian scratch art, called “sgraffito.” Plus, draw African elephants, make t-shirts inspired by Panama "molas" (fabric art), sculpt Burmese marionettes, and decorate festive skulls inspired by Mexican calaveras. Art-venturers experience a multitude of materials and techniques, and bring home two- and three-dimensional masterpieces each week as souvenirs from their travels. Fun facts about each country and culture are included. The only thing kids need to pack is their imaginations!
Breaking All The Rules: Unusual and Surprising ART (Gr. 3 - 6)
In this all-new program, specially designed for grades 3 - 6, we’ll look at old techniques from refreshing new angles, and combine materials that don’t usually go together to create totally unexpected masterpieces. We’ll also take inspiration from famous artists known for bending the rules of art! Design Textured Pendants using printmaking techniques on clay, give landscape art a new twist by painting on Stained Glass Lanterns, and make Light Bulb Hot Air Balloons. Draw Wanted Poster Self-Portraits, craft Metal-Embossed Knights in Shining Armor, and sculpt Clay Bobble Head Animals. Paint colorful Fabric Collage Dinnerware and vibrant Neon Zebras on canvas. Create Mixed Media Roosters based on Picasso’s paintings, try M.C. Escher’s mind-bending drawing style while designing Tessellation T-shirts, build Magnetic Paper Sculptures inspired by sculptor Frank Stella, and piece together found objects into Assemblage Art like Louise Nevelson. Art-venturers bring home unconventional and utterly fantastic two- and three-dimensional works of art each week.
Just for Fun ART-ventures
Get ready to "create some fun"! Just for Fun Art‐ventures lead children on an imaginary tour through the world's greatest art museums, inspiring creativity through exposure to the FUN‐damentals of artist's tools, techniques and art forms, many inspired by the masters. But don't just admire these great works—decorate your home with masterpieces of your own! Draw Oil Pastel Flowers like O’Keefe, create colorful canvases in the style of Matisse, and design upside down and inside out Watercolor Dream Paintings inspired by Chagall. Sculpt Swirly Clay Pencil Holders, create Burlap Landscape Collages, and decorate Paper Mache Boxes. Craft wacky Cubist Costumes inspired by Picasso, draw very unique self-portraits, and design sparkling Fabric Wall Hangings. Creatively educational, whimsical and unconventional, these art‐ventures welcome children into a world of artistic wonder. Children bring home beautiful masterpieces each week, sure to transform any home into a gallery! Grades K-5
Magical ART Mystery Tour
Abracadabra, Hocus Pocus, its magic and mystery with art as the focus! Magical Art Mystery Tour draws children into a world of wonder, revealing unbelievable art tricks and inspiring out-of-the-box creativity. Experiment with new and mysterious mediums and discover surprising techniques to transform familiar materials into magical masterpieces. Sculpt clay lizards and build lizard playgrounds out of sticky magic "nuudles". Create colorful ceramic piggy banks, whimsical Model Magic owls and scratch a work of art inspired by the artist, Miro. Wave wands over T-shirts to form magical designs using fabric printing inks and stir a few unexpected items into a "fluffy goop" potion. Discover the secret ingredient that turns pencils into paints, black lines into circus elephants, and torn paper into painted landscapes. And so much more! The results are totally "WOW." And...voila...young art magicians bring home masterpieces each week. Grades K-5
Monsters and Mermaids Fantasy ART-ventures
Pay no attention to that fire-breathing dragon! Armored in aprons and wielding paintbrushes, brave young art explorers journey into a fairytale kingdom, where fairies
flit through rainbow skies and zany zombies roam the streets. Meet fantastical creatures, both spooky and sweet, while conjuring bedazzling art: Decorate wicked cool witch or wizard hats and sculpt
clay witches on broomsticks! Design colorful ceramic skulls inspired by Dia De Los Muertos and paint unicorn or dragon banks. Craft monster t-shirts and create sparkling castles on canvas. Make hand
puppet mermaids,vampires, fairies, werewolves, or any creature you can imagine. Build UFOs and sculpt clay aliens to fly them, construct haunted house boxes, and make metal robot art. Using
some very magical potions and spells (i.e. materials and techniques), art-venturers experience painting, drawing, sculpting, stained glass, ceramics, fabric art, and more. Enchanting two and
three dimensional masterpieces come home each week. Fun, fantasy-filled art-ventures! Grades K-5
Pirates and Fairies ART-ventures
Sail the high seas on a fantastical art adventure through a world of pirates and fairies, princesses, sea monsters and talking parrots! Children will really get into
character, donning handcrafted pirate hats and swords or fairy tiaras and wings. Create wooden rowboats and set out on a search for buried treasure, then create gem-studded treasure chests to hide
the riches! Paint ceramic castle banks and sculpt clay dragons to guard them. Design pirate flags or princess hats. Paint froggy note holders—perhaps they'll turn into prince! Draw silly sea monsters
and design enchanting stenciled t-shirts! Pirates and Fairies explore painting, beading, fabric, clay art and more. Humorous stories are included each week, as well as surprises and laughter. Don't
miss these fun and fantasy-filled workshops! Grades K-4
Sticky, Shrinky, Shiny ART-ventures
The amazingly imaginative 2 and 3 dimensional projects in this program will inspire children’s creativity as they experiment with a variety of unique art forms, tools, and techniques. Art explorers create Sequined Mexican Mirrors, Macaroni Mandalas, and Shrinky Dink Animal Pendants. Make Funny Felt Monsters, paint Ceramic Snail Banks, and create Mini Canvas Paintings with Easels. Design personalized Pencil Cases, sculpt Sweet Treat Clay Desserts, and learn how to draw Perspective Landscapes. Plus, paint Goofy Animals on canvases, create Colorful Pillowcases, and sculpt Clay Flying Pigs. These projects and more introduce children to a world of artistic wonder while we encourage their own original ideas and their own unique perception and interpretation of art. Grades K-5
Spread Your Wings and Roar ART-ventures
This all new art-rageous program is truly like a trip to the zoo. Design Stuffed Teddy Bears, create Owl Paintings on canvas, and sculpt Clay Peacocks with zany feathers. Color real Rubber Duckies, paint Ceramic Bunny Banks, and make Wooden Animal Puzzles in the style of Oaxacan alebrijes. Even travel back in time to paint Dancing Dinosaurs with watercolors. We’ll also pop into the zoo food court to create Mixed Media Sandwich Collages and Pasta Relief Clay Tiles, and visit the photo booth to make Cardboard Mustache Masks and draw Minion Self-Portraits. On the way out, we’ll stop at the gift shop to design Sticker Resist T-shirts, decoupage large Paper Mache Letters, and build wacky Mix-and-Match Character Blocks. Art-explorers experience painting, drawing, sculpting, fabric design, decoupage, collage, and more. A trip to the zoo that you’ll never forget! Art explorers bring home exciting handmade souvenirs each week. Grades K-5
Superheroes: Saving Planet Earth
Superhero girls and boys soar off on a top-secret mission to save planet Earth using the most important superpower of all: imagination! Like Powerpuffs and Spider Boys,
we'll design our own superhero masks, shields, and capes to protect our secret identities, and even build superhero sidekicks to accompany us as we save the world. During these fun and resourceful
art experiences, Super Art Heroes create a variety of AMAZING and original works of art using natural, recycled and unconventional art forms and techniques. Paint canvas tote bags, construct your own
super-vehicles, and make superhero stained glass! Paint a rocketship, create yarn art on jars, and draw superhero self-portraits. Color ceramic superhero banks, build secret comic book boxes, and
explore the art of printmaking while designing bubble wrap t-shirts. Both girls and boys will have a blast as members of the League of Super Art Heroes, saving the Earth with exciting and
environmentally-conscious masterpieces. Grades K-5
Where the Wild Things ART
Art-venturers explore many whimsical and original art forms and techniques, discovering clay and collage, painting and drawing, mask-making and decorating, just to name a
few! Sculpt colorful hybrid creatures and clay pots. Design ceramic robots, celestial windchimes, and awesome airplanes. Decorate birdhouses, wooden guitars, and goofy masks. Create cityscape
printmaking, letter collages, and panda drawings. Even make your own tape
resist t-shirts! Plus, hear wonderful stories, such as "Where the Wild Things Are" or "Nova the Robot," that go hand-in-hand with each project.
Humor and surprises are always included. Explore, experiment, create! Art-venturers bring home awesome works of art each week! So much FUN! Grades K-4
Towns in which we currently offer after school and summer programs …
In Massachusetts: Agawam, Chicopee, Easthampton, East Longmeadow, Hadley, Hampden, Longmeadow, South Hadley, Southampton, Southwick, Springfield and Wilbraham
In Connecticut: Avon, Bolton, Bloomfield, Canton, Cromwell, East Granby, East Windsor, Farmington, Glastonbury, Granby, Manchester, Marlborough, Meriden, Middletown, Newington, Suffield and Winsted.
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