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Continuing Education at PAFA

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CE Workshops (1 - 3 Days)

in CE Courses by Format/Length

The Torso in Clay Workshop (In-Person)

$330

with Morgan Dummitt

Calendar Next available session starts Sep 19, 2025 at 9 am

Friday - Sunday, 9 a.m. – 4p.m.
Instructor: Morgan Dummitt 
Three-Day Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible. 

Sculptors from Ancient Greece to Michelangelo have recognized the centrality of the torso for creating dynamic figure sculptures. This condensed class will focus intensely on the anatomy, structure, and proportions of the torso. Students will complete a half life-sized torso in clay. Perfect for beginners or for experienced students wishing to bring renewed vitality to their figurative work in any media. Work will be done in terracotta and fired after class.  Tuition includes a $35 models fee.

Learning Outcomes

Students in this class will:

  • Gain a thorough understanding of the interaction of the ribcage and pelvis as theyinform the torso
  • Understand simplified form conceptions of the major masses of the body
  • Learn the basic structure, anatomy and proportions of the torso
  • Learn best practices for building and firing sculpture in clay

Image: Morgan Dummitt, Torso Fragments.

Register by: September 12 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Watercolor Workshop (In-Person)

$225

with James Toogood

Calendar Next available session starts Sep 27, 2025 at 9 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Instructor: James Toogood 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible. 

Interested in learning or improving your watercolor skills? All materials and techniques will be discussed, including the selection of papers, brushes, and pigments, as well as transparent and opaque painting methods. Students will work from still-life subjects and/or their own source material. All levels welcome.

Image: James Toogood

Register by: September 19 
Materials List
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Portrait in Pencil Workshop (In-Person)

$205

with RA Friedman

Calendar Next available session starts Oct 11, 2025 at 9 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: RA Friedman 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible. 

Using inexpensive materials, this hands-on workshop will introduce the concepts and methods needed to create a strong sense of dimension and likeness in your portrait drawings. Explore the proportions and planes of the head, neck and shoulders. Learn how to create a structural foundation and how to easily manage anatomy by breaking down forms into simple geometric shapes. Instruction will address different strategies for creating a finished tonal portrait as well as tips and tricks that will help you draw like a pro! Note: Tuition includes a $10 models fee.

For more advanced instruction or an optional follow-up to this course, see Advanced Portrait Drawing Workshop.

Image: RA Friedman

Register by: October 3 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Nature in Autumn: Leaves, Flowers, and Fruits in Watercolor (In-Person)

$195

with Linda Gist

Calendar Next available session starts Oct 18, 2025 at 9:30 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Instructor: Linda Gist 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible. 

Watercolor is the perfect medium for capturing the jewel-like tones and gradients of color in autumn’s changing leaves and abundant harvests. Learn to preserve the season’s rich textures and tapestries of color by exploring a variety of paint mixing and application techniques while working from natural forms. This workshop will include demonstrations of wet-into-wet and dry-brush techniques and one-on-one instruction. All experience levels welcome. 

Image: Linda Gist

Register by: October 10 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Painting Metal and Glass Workshop (In-Person)

$195

with Frederic Kaplan

Calendar Next available session starts Nov 8, 2025 at 9 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.

Highly reflective and transparent/translucent surfaces, such as metal and glass, can be a challenge for oil painters to represent accurately: distortions, abrupt shifts in value, and color influences by surrounding objects can make it difficult for the artist to discern what they are actually seeing or how to capture these effects. Through straightforward demonstrations, learn logical step-by-step approaches for painting each of these challenging subjects, and follow up with hands-on practice working from glass- and metal-themed still life arrangements. Prior drawing and painting experience strongly recommended. Note: This workshop is designed for oil painters, but acrylic painters are also welcome.

Image: Frederic Kaplan

Register by: October 31 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

The Figure in Clay Workshop (In-Person)

$230

with Colleen O'Donnell

Calendar Next available session starts Nov 8, 2025 at 9 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Colleen O'Donnell 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, 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: October 31 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Water, Water, Everywhere: How to Paint Water in All Media (In-Person)

$225

with James Toogood

Calendar Next available session starts Nov 15, 2025 at 9 am

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Instructor: James Toogood 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Water:  It’s all around us -- streams, rivers, lakes, oceans, atmospheric effects, and more. It's a key ingredient in watercolor painting, regardless of the subject matter. But how does the artist create the illusion of water in a painting, regardless of the medium? This two-day workshop will present key tactics an artist can employ when painting bodies of water. Examine the nature of reflections, water movement, how water appears under various weather and lighting conditions, and more. Instruction includes demonstrations of how to incorporate various water effects in your own work and a review of the ways master artists historically have portrayed water in their paintings over the years. Open to all levels. Demonstrations will be conducted in watercolor, but instruction presents valuable information for painters of all media.

Image: James Toogood.

Register by: November 7 
Materials List
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Color Matters Workshop (Online)

$175

with Kassem Amoudi

Calendar Next available session starts Nov 22, 2025 at 10 am

Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Zoom Only)
Instructor: Kassem Amoudi 
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Register by August 22 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDFALL2025 at checkout (and click “+” to add the discount). PAFA members at the Friend level and above receive an additional 10% off. Discount applies to CE regular adult Fall classes and workshops only. Studio rental programs, Open Academy (BFA) courses, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible. 

Elevate the role of color and learn how to incorporate it both strategically and intuitively into your paintings under the guidance of artist/critic/mentor KassemAmoudi in this condensed two-day workshop. Explore color’s role in creating focal points, suggesting space, influencing mark, and promoting personal expression. Work from personal subject matter (objects, images, emotions, or ideas) to develop your personal style, informed by examples from contemporary and modern art. Zoom sessions feature open painting time, supported by critiques and advice from the instructor as he works one-on-one to guide students toward their goals. This course is excellent for students seeking to jumpstart their use of color in abstract/nonobjective imagery. Painting experience recommended. 

Image: Kassem Amoudi

Register by: November 14 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies  
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses





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