Mondays, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Instructor: Roberto Osti
Twelve-Week Course (36 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)
Note: No class on October 13

Figure paintingis a foundational part of fine arts training and one of the disciplines for which PAFA is most renowned. Practice direct painting technique from the nude model in varied poses toexplore color mixing and color theory, glazing, blending, and both limited and extended palette approaches.Instruction will address gesture, proportion, anatomical landmarks, volume, and color chroma, value, and temperature. Students will examine masterworks to appreciate different styles and work toward developing their personal expression.Instruction is geared toward oil, but students may draw-only if they wish. Open to all levels.Note: Course tuition includes a $75 model fee.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $770, including lab fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Image: Roberto Osti

Register by: September 4 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Mondays, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Instructor: Justine Ditto
Six-WeekShort Course (18 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Painting and printmaking go hand-in-hand, not only as adjacent mediums but in combination. This freeing and instructive course presents printmaking techniques as jumping off points to making mixed media work in spirit of experimentation and personal expression. Learn how to make monotypes, drypoints, and screenprints as a foundation for incorporating your choice of graphite, colored pencil, acrylic, watercolor, oil paint, and/or collage. Content includes technical advice from an artist-instructor ideally skilled in a variety of media as well as critiques to expand your creative boundaries. This class is perfect for painters/draftspeopleseeking to expand their processes, printmakers seeking to employ painterly and mixed media techniques, and anyone with love of color and experimentation. Open to all levels – no prior printmaking or painting experience required. Tuition includes a $20 materials fee.

Image: Justine Ditto

Register by: September 4
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Mondays, 1 – 2:30 p.m. (Zoom meetings supporting majority asynchronous content)
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan 
Six-Week Condense Course (30-Hour Equivalent) 
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

Exploit the unique qualities of acrylics to create paintings infused with light and rich, transparent shadows. Through a combination of online videos and illustrated lessons plus live Zoom sessions, learn how to build your paintings in layers of radiant opaque and transparent colors. A variety of acrylic painting techniques will be addressed, including the tenebrism of Baroque master Caravaggio. A rich resource of information about the wide array of acrylic painting materials is also provided. This course is appropriate for students at all levels, including beginners, but drawing experience is recommended.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $595. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering. 

Image: Fred Kaplan

Register by: October 28 

Materials List

Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies  

Information for PAFA CE Online Courses

Mondays, 6 – 8 p.m. (Zoom) with Asynchronous Canvas Content 
Instructor: Michelle Oosterbaan
Six-Week Course (18-Hour Equivalent)
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Dogs, cats, and other animals at home or in nature have been depicted in master drawings and paintings throughout the centuries — as portrait subjects themselves or as a part of landscapes, domestic scenes, still lifes, and other genres. Find inspiration in the creatures of the great outdoors or those curled up on your own couch to make animals a meaningful part of your painting practice. Utilize sketches and photo references to explore ways of realistically and expressively depicting domestic or wild animals, to capture facial features, posture/gesture, and textural effects of fur, feathers and whiskers while learning sound visual principles and techniques in water-media. Content will include examples from historical and contemporary art, engaging homework assignments, and discussions about the role of animals in art and tactics for making them a special focus in your own work. Instruction will focus on drawing and watercolor or gouache painting, but students are welcome to work in other media.

Image: Honoré Desmond Sharrer, Study for "Two Dogs in a Still Life" (detail), mid 20th century, casein or gouache on paper, 11 x 14 in. Collection of PAFA, gift of Adam Zagorin and the late Perez Zagorin. Copyright © artist or artist’s estate.

Register by: October 27 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies  
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses

Mondays, 6 – 9 p.m. 
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan 
Six-Week ShortCourse (18 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only 

If you haven’t drawn in a while, this course will help to rebuild your skills in translating the 3D world to the 2D surface of your paper. Hone your ability to interpret and define proportions, shapes, and value structure while working from observation from city views, interiors, and still-life objects. Content will address shading techniques, principles of perspective, and line quality in charcoal or pencil. Students will learn to:

• Reduce complex forms to simpler elements

• Gauge proportions and shapes using sighting techniques and other methods

• Use light and shadow to model form three-dimensionally

• Employ shading techniques

• Practice fundamental perspective principles and methods

Image: Fred Kaplan

Register by: October 27 
Materials List 
Fall 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies