Friday - Sunday, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.  
Instructor: Kassem Amoudi 
Credit: Non-Credit Only 

This workshop is not about the traditional way of painting the figure. If you are tired of getting lost in the details and traditional modes of representational painting, and you want to take a risk by exploring new ways of expressing the human form, this class is for you. Paint and draw the human figure in a looser and more expressionistic contemporary manner. Refine your painting skills to create a lively surface which will be considered a playground for intuitive creativity, technique, and skill. Expert instruction and advice from the instructor will push students to explore new possibilities and work more intuitively, allowing unplanned marks and passages to become artistic breakthroughs. Establish pictorial unity through visual metaphor and focal points and explore the power of using “active” and “quiet” areas. PowerPoint presentations and examples of contemporary ways of using the figure will enhance your understanding of the abstract qualities of space, line and color. Sessions will include live painting time, with critiques and advice from the instructor as he works one-on-one with each student. Open to all levels: You do not have to have extensive experience with painting the figure to make successful paintings. Note: Due to the emphasis on live instructor feedback and in-class painting, this Zoom class is not recorded.

Image: Kassem Amoudi.

Register by: December 1 

Materials List

Fall 2023 CE Policy Guide, including updated Withdrawal/Refund Policies

Information for PAFA CE Online Courses

Tuesdays, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.* 
Instructor: Roberto Osti 
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (see description) 

Register by December 18 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSPRING2024 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 Winter/Spring classes and workshops only. Open Academy classes, studio rental, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.) 

Paint portraits from a variety of models using the direct painting method. Examine the proportions and volumes of the head, as well as the placement, structure, and characteristics of the facial features, through preliminary drawings and demonstrations. Develop color using a limited palette to understand how to use chroma, temperature, value, tint, and tone. Instruction will address materials, composition, paint handling, and color mixing, blending, and theory. Homework assignments working from photos, Masterworks, or oneself/others will encourage students to learn to make personal aesthetic and technical choices and to practice concepts addressed in class. Open to all levels, this course is excellent for beginners as well as experienced students who want to review fundamental techniques or who simply enjoy painting portraits from life. Note: Course tuition includes a $50 model fee. 

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $745 (including model fee). Select credit option when registering. 

* Note: This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10. 

Image: Roberto Osti, Portrait of Max, limited palette, oil on board. 

Register by: January 8 
Materials List  
Winter/Spring 2024 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Tuesdays, 1:00 - 3:50 p.m. 
Instructor: Renee Foulks

Credit: Non-Credit or 1.5 Undergraduate Credit (see description)

Note:  This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10.

PAFA’s Open Academy provides the opportunity for Continuing Education (CE) and non-matriculated students to enroll in select BFA courses for credit or non-credit.  Open Academy students enrolled in PAFA’s renowned studio arts courses learn technical skills, creative expression, and critical thinking from master artist-teachers while working amongst dedicated full-time students in PAFA's classrooms. 

Students will learn the structure of the portrait, the history of historic and contemporary portraiture, methods and materials of portraiture and will be encouraged to develop a personal point of view in portrait painting. Issues of form, spatial concepts, color, visual and critical thinking will be addressed. Individual and group critiques will be conducted.

Optional: This course is available for 1.5 undergraduate credits for $1,400.  Select credit option with price adjustment during registration.

Image: Renee Foulks.

Register by: January 11
Materials List
Open Academy Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Wednesdays, 8:30 - 3:50 p.m. 
Instructor: Doug Martenson
Credit: Non-Credit or 3.0 Undergraduate Credits (see description)

Note:  This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10.

PAFA’s Open Academy provides the opportunity for Continuing Education (CE) and non-matriculated students to enroll in select BFA courses for credit or non-credit.  Open Academy students enrolled in PAFA’s renowned studio arts courses learn technical skills, creative expression, and critical thinking from master artist-teachers while working amongst dedicated full-time students in PAFA's classrooms.

For the first part of this class, students will work in PAFA's museum to paint master copies of landscapes in the collection. When the weather warms in March, the class will move to outside locations to put into practice the lessons learned from their master studies. Students may work in a variety of drawing and painting media from various locations in and around the city. Individualized instruction and group critiques will be given throughout the session. Van transportation available for outdoor locations.

Optional: This course is available for 3.0 undergraduate credits for $2,800. Select credit option with tuition adjustment during registration.

Image: Doug Martenson, Pines in a Field, oil on linen, 32 x 52.

Register by: January 11
Materials List
Open Academy Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Wednesdays, 8:30 - 3:50 p.m. 
Instructor: Al Gury

Credit: Non-Credit or 3.0 Undergraduate Credits (see description)

Note:  This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10.

PAFA’s Open Academy provides the opportunity for Continuing Education (CE) and non-matriculated students to enroll in select BFA courses for credit or non-credit.  Open Academy students enrolled in PAFA’s renowned studio arts courses learn technical skills, creative expression, and critical thinking from master artist-teachers while working amongst dedicated full-time students in PAFA's classrooms.

Students will learn the structure of the portrait, the history of historic and contemporary portraiture, methods and materials of portraiture and will be encouraged to develop a personal point of view in portrait painting. Issues of form, spatial concepts, color, visual and critical thinking will be addressed. Individual and group critiques will be conducted.

Optional: This course is available for 3.0 undergraduate credits for $2,800. Select credit option with price adjustment during registration.

Image: Al Gury.

Register by: January 11
Materials List
Open Academy Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Wednesdays, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. 
Instructor: Peter Van Dyck 
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (see description) 

Register by December 18 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSPRING2024 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 Winter/Spring classes and workshops only. Open Academy classes, studio rental, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.) 

This combination of instructed class and open studio is designed for students interested in advancing their representational drawing and painting.  Design and work on your own personal projects utilizing the cast collection, figure/portrait models, and still life or interior spaces, assisted by individual critiques and group instruction on topics of broad concern or interest.  This course features intermediate-level instruction for students with prior drawing/painting experience.  Note: Tuition includes a $80 model fee.  

Note:  This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10. 

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $1,180 (including model fee). Select credit option when registering. 

Image: Peter Van Dyck. 

Register by: January 8 
Materials List  
Winter/Spring 2024 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Fridays, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.* 
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan 
Credit: Non-credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (see description) 

Register by December 18 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSPRING2024 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 Winter/Spring classes and workshops only. Open Academy classes, studio rental, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.) 

Using oil or acrylic paints, exploit a wide range of techniques and artistic languages to transform everyday reality into expressive, symbolic, or personal statements. Base your paintings on unique studio still-life arrangements or use your own photographs as a starting point, and progress to working from a life model during the final weeks of the course. Topics discussed and demonstrated include using color as an emotive element, designing compositions to convey mood and movement, and employing energetic mark-making. For less experienced students, materials, color mixing, and basic techniques will be reviewed. 

Course Objectives  

The student will learn…  

• Selection and use basic materials, including the characteristics of various commonly used colors, solvents, and mediums  
• Execution of a variety of direct and indirect painting methods.  
• Approaches to interpreting and modifying observed reality to achieve emotive, symbolic, and compositional goals  
• Descriptive, emotive, and symbolic use of color, shape, and mark  
• Basic color theory and color mixing  

 Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $695. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

* Note: This course does not meet during Spring Break, March 4 – 10.  

Image: Fred Kaplan, Awakening, 2013, Oil on canvas, 24 x 44 in. 

Register by: January 12 
Materials List 
Winter/Spring 2024 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Tuesdays, 6 – 8 p.m. (Zoom with posted Canvas content)
Instructor: Susan Sullivan 
Credit: Non-Credit Only 

Register by December 18 for a 10% Early Bird Discount! Enter promo code EARLYBIRDSPRING2024 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 Winter/Spring classes and workshops only. Open Academy classes, studio rental, gift certificates, membership purchases, and lockers are ineligible.) 

Whet your appetite for painting by whipping up small food studies in oil or acrylic! Transform garden bounty, bakery confections, or lunchtime leftovers into masterpieces worthy of hanging in a kitchen or gallery. Alla prima still life painting is an excellent way to hone your color mixing and paint handling skills, and food is the perfect subject to capture form, light, color, and texture rapidly and expressively. Discussion and demonstration will cover tactics for setting up your composition, mixing color, and exploring paint application techniques for oil and acrylic; conversation is free to include food memories, recipes, and recommendations. Examine food paintings from historical and contemporary artists for inspiration and admiration. Combine palette and palate to create compositional concoctions that are personal, whimsical, or visually delectable. Instruction is geared toward oil or acrylic painting, but students may work in their drawing/painting media of choice. All levels are welcome. 

Image: Susan Sullivan.

Register by: February 23 

Materials List 

Winter/Spring 2024 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Information for PAFA CE Online Courses