Tuesdays, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Instructor: Douglas Martenson
Twelve-Week Course (36 Hours)*
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)  

Join PAFA’s celebrated figurative tradition, combining Eakins-influenced historical techniques with contemporary approaches.  Master the drawing elements of gesture, proportion, volume, anatomy, tone, and composition in charcoal and colored chalk on toned paper.   Progress to oil painting materials and techniques, expanding from limited colors to a full palette.  Ideal for all levels, with options to draw- or paint-only based on experience.  Note: Tuition includes $75 models fee.   

*Note: No Class on March 4. 

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

Register by: January 10
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Tuesdays, 1 – 4 p.m.
Instructor: Douglas Martenson
Twelve-Week Course (36 Hours)*
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)  

Explore the power and nuance of one of art’s most engaging subjects: the portrait. Investigate the structure, proportions, form, and anatomy of the human head through drawings and painted studies.  Progress to finished paintings and address issues of likeness, composition, space, texture, and aspects of the clothed figure. Learn to better see and understand color to mix it more successfully, a useful skill for painting all subject matter.  Designed students at all levels learning or pursuing work in oil, acrylic, or other media; students may draw-only if they wish. Note: Tuition includes $75 models fee.   

*Note: No Class on March 4. 

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

Register by: January 10
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Tuesdays, 6 – 9 p.m.
Instructor: Jill A. Rupinski
Ten-Week Course (30 Hours)*
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

Expand the boundaries of traditional watercolor painting! Explore the wonderful range of effects that may be achieved by incorporating compatible water-soluble materials such as ink, watercolor pencils, and opaque pigments, as well as toned surfaces. Demonstrations and examples of masterworks will illustrate traditional and contemporary techniques, with a wealth of practical and technical advice provided. Observational study in PAFA’s still life studio may be supplemented by options to work from personal sketches, photo sources, recognized artworks, and memory or imagination. Students will be encouraged to experiment, explore, and develop their personal expression with water-media.  

*Note: No class on March 4. 

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

Register by: January 10
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Tuesdays, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Instructor: Tony Rosati
Ten-Week Course (30 Hours)*
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

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 $30 lab fee.

*Note: No class on March 4.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $625 (including lab fee). Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: January 21
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Tuesdays, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Instructor: Marguerita Hagan
Ten-Week Course (30 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit

Explore a custom sculpture experience in clay with veteran ceramicist, Marguerita Hagan.  Learn various hand-building processes with an emphasis on abstraction. Create work that is either wall-hanging or free-standing, focused on 3D qualities or surface treatments, or both. Whatever you imagine will be supported with experienced individualized attention and specific hand-building and painting techniques to manifest your intention. Gain exposure not only to hand-building directions but also to many surface treatment methods including airbrush, underglaze paints, pencils, masking, resist, glaze, overglaze lusters, and waterslide and rice paper transfer decals. Instruction will be tailored to serve the individual whether for learning basic hand-building methods or realizing a work or series.  Come with no experience or translate your existing practice into the transformative language of clay. Note: Tuition includes a $30 lab fee. 

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $625, including lab fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering. 

Register by: January 28
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies 

Tuesdays, 12:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Instructor: Anthony Ciambella
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only 

If you believe that painting can be more than applying brush to canvas, this course is for you.  Explore the fluid, sculptural, assembled possibilities of acrylics!  This hands-on, one-of-a-kind journey will take you places that you never thought you would go in acrylic painting:  pour paint to make layers of color that can be peeled up, sculpted into three-dimensional forms, or collaged and layered into other paintings or mixed-media works. Create flexible tiles of acrylic color that can be snipped, shaped, and assembled into mosaics or applied to a variety of surfaces for artistic or decorative effects.  Discover a myriad of alternative supports, brushes, and methods of paint application to incorporate abstract effects into your current body of work.  Push the boundaries of what it means to paint with acrylics in this exciting exploration into experimental techniques. 

Register by: March 3
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Tuesdays, 6 – 8 p.m. (Zoom with posted Canvas content)
Instructor: Alicia Mino
Six-Week Short Course (18-Hour Equivalent)
Credit: Non-Credit Only 

Learn to create lively and realistic animal portraits utilizing watercolor painting techniques. Explore the anatomy and structure of the skull and facial features, as well as the construction and natural rendering of fur and other textures. Emphasis will be placed on expressing the unique character and posture of the animal portrait subject, as students work from their choice of wildlife imagery or photos of household pets. Instruction will address basic drawing and watercolor techniques for creating precise but soft effects – perfect for the distinctive needs for creating animal likenesses.  

Register by: March 3
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies
Information for PAFA CE Online Courses 

Tuesdays, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Instructor: Michelle Oosterbaan
Six-Week Short Course (24 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit Only  

Gouache (opaque watercolor) is the perfect medium for landscape painting in the open air! Painters of all levels will fall in love with this portable, fast-drying, and easy-to-clean-up alternative to oils. Explore the medium’s vibrant color and versatile application and layering methods as you portray the beauty of springtime gardens in Philadelphia’s parks in your own personal style. Learn techniques for choosing a composition and working efficiently outdoors as you complete a series of rapid sketches and at least one sustained painting.  Topics will include color, paint materiality/texture, transparent and opaque layering techniques, color mixing and historical palettes, pigments, and paper choices. Open to all levels. Painting locations featuring shade, restrooms, and other amenities may include Wissahickon Park in Mt. Airy, Washington Square Park near Independence Hall, and Bartram's Garden in Southwest Philadelphia. Note: Students are responsible for their own transportation to painting locations. 

*Please reserve a rain date of May 13, should any session be postponed due to inclement weather.  

Register by: March 25
Materials List
Winter/Spring 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies