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All CE Summer 2026 In-Person and Online Courses
Assemblage and Mixed Media Art (ONLINE)
with Colleen O'Donnell
Tuesdays, 3 - 5 p.m. (Zoom with supplemental Canvas content) Instructor: Colleen O'Donnell
Six-Week Short Course (18-Hour Equivalent)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
From the poetic artworks of Joseph Cornell to politically charged assemblages of Betye Saar, assemblage is a powerful means of artistic expression, engaging the unconscious while drawing on elements of design, whimsy, and chance to reflect a point of view and a moment in time. In this class, learn to transform everyday items, found objects, elements of nature, or memorabilia into three-dimensional sculpture and collage. Be guided through a different topic each week, delving into your own responses and ideas to create dramatic, humorous, emotional, and satirical works of art.
Register by: June 2
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses
Botanical Drawing and Painting Intensive
with Linda Gist
Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Linda Gist
One-Week Intensive (30 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Explore flowers and other natural forms, beginning with line and value drawing and progressing to full-color rendering in watercolor and mixed media. Topics will include sighting techniques, line quality, tone and value, creation of depth, composition, texture, and basic color. All levels welcome. Tuition includes a $15 materials fee for floral subjects, provided.
Image: Linda Gist
Register by: June 15
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
The Figure in Clay Workshop
with Colleen O'Donnell
Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Colleen O'Donnell
Weekend Workshop (12 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Learn the techniques and tools of figure sculpture through demonstration and hands-on sculpting from the model. Explore anatomy, proportion, gesture, and design through the versatility of clay. Personal expression will be emphasized though representational and abstract approaches. Open to all levels and perfect for beginners. Tuition includes a $35 models fee.
Image: Colleen O’Donnell
Register by: June 18
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Etching, Monoprints, and Monotypes
with Tony Rosati
Tuesdays, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Instructor: Tony Rosati
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Experience masterful instruction in PAFA’s spacious print facilities as you explore an array of basic intaglio and monotype printing techniques including monoprint, drypoint, etching, aquatint, collograph and polymer plate methods. Image embellishments will include embossing, chine collé, collage, paper plates and mixed media techniques. All levels welcome; experienced students may continue independent work. Note: Tuition includes $20 lab fee.
Image: Tony Rosati
Register by: June 30
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Watercolor Animals
with Roberto Osti
Mondays, 1 - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours)
No class on August 3
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Animals are an endless source of inspiration. Learn to paint a variety of animals, from cute to powerful and pets to wildlife, in the expressive medium of watercolor. Practice fundamental watercolor techniques such as washes, gradations, textural effects, wet on wet, wet on dry, dry brush, and more. Learn to capture specific characteristics such as scales, fur, feathers, colors, expressions, and movement for more realistic and accurate paintings. Work from provided animal images of mammals, fish, and birds for a diversity of surface and expressive concerns, or bring your own photographic subjects (no live animals!). Basic drawing experience recommended.
Image: Roberto Osti
Register by: June 29
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Fast and Unfussed Figure Painting
with Roger Chavez
Tuesdays, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Instructor: Roger Chavez
Six-Week Condensed Course (30 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Energize and open up your approach to figure painting through rapid, loose oil painting studies from the life model. Learn tactics to avoid the tendency toward tightness and over-attention to detail too early in the process that can lead to work that lacks liveliness in gesture or mark and is difficult to adjust or correct. Through short, small-scale painting exercises from the model in one-day poses, learn new ways of approaching life painting with an emphasis on keeping compositions fluid, capturing the gesture and character of the subject before getting locked into its contours, and both initiating and retaining a sense of freshness in your color and brushstrokes. Instruction will address color mixing, painting materials and methodologies, and the importance of cultivating sustainable methods for growth in your painting practice. Note: Tuition includes a $65 models fee.
Image: Roger Chavez
Register by: June 30
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Terracotta Figure Sculpture
with Morgan Dummitt
Tuesdays, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Instructor: Morgan Dummitt
Six-Week Condensed Course (30 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Modeling the figure in clay is the foundational skill of traditional sculpture. Working from a model, learn to sculpt in clay from initial gesture to surface finishing techniques. Topics of study will include proportion, composition, structure, and simplified sculptural form. Students will complete two sculptures in the course of the class. All work will be fired after class. Beginners welcome. Note: Tuition includes a $65 models fee.
Student Learning Outcomes
- Gain a basic understanding of the osteology, myology, and anatomy of the figure
- Analyze and organize the various elements of the body into simplified sculptural forms
- Carry out best practices for modeling and maintaining water-based clay sculpture
- Understand best practices for creating ceramic sculpture
Image: Morgan Dummitt, Brittany, terracotta.
Register by: June 30
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.
Anatomical Figure Drawing
with John Horn
Wednesdays, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Instructor: John Horn
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours)
Register by April 27 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSUMMER2026 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Dual Plus or Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Summer Session 1 and 2 classes and workshops only. Spring 2026 courses, Summer Studio-Critique/studio rental programs, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.
Develop your ability to render the human form through the time-honored combination of anatomical study and life drawing. Learn the methods and technical skills of traditional figure drawing, such as measuring, capturing gesture, anatomical structuring, and tonal rendering. Through lectures and demonstrations, and work from the life model, learn the structural aspects of the human form: bony landmarks, simplified volumes, and proportional relationships. Progress to the skeletal framework and superficial muscles to identify their surface effects and how they influence mass and movement. Incorporate your knowledge of figure anatomy to capture the fluidity, vitality, and subtleties of the human form while working from the life model in short and extended poses. Note: Tuition includes a $35 models fee.
Image: John Horn
Register by: July 1
Materials List
Please review CE's Summer 2026 Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies, prior to registering.