Seattle, WA. Gage Academy of Art is offering a variety of online art classes for the public in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through Gage 360 online classes, people can connect with instructors and peers to learn art skills, receive feedback, and conduct discussions about art from the comfort of their homes. Gage is also offering online summer programs for kids and teens through differing subscription plans. Check out this video introducing Gage 360 to the public:
Gage Academy of Art Registrar Morgan Patten shares that Gage’s goal as an organization is to “provide an array of classes and offerings to not just adults, but youth and teens.” When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Seattle, Patten shares that Gage aimed to still have its regular classes and “maintain connections” through an online model.
Director of Global Marketing, Communications Technology, and Community Engagement Joanne Levy shares that Gage “went from never offering online classes to creating two-quarters of online and free learning” for the public. Patten says that so far “free offerings have been great” and Gage has been able to “maintain the same quality of instruction” as well as “achieve global reach.”
Patten says, “engaging in hobbies and activities that let [people] be creative at a difficult time is important.” She also shares that “the arts is something that needs to be protected and invested in, especially at times like this” to “help those who are struggling.” Through online art offerings, Levy says that Gage wants “people to keep art alive” so that the organization “can be there for another 30 years.”
Among the Gage 360 offerings, Gage Academy of Art is conducting Art Bites, which are $25, hour-long art classes taught by various instructors. People may also partake in the Art to Go series, which is free to the community and offered twice each week. The Art to Go series features free art tutorials, demos, and lectures from Gage instructors through Zoom.
A promotional photo for Gage’s Art Bites online program
A promotional photo for Gage’s Art to Go with instructor Kathleen Moore
There is also an option of Art to Go for teens, which is an online version of Gage’s Teen Art Studio (TAS) program. Teen Art Studio is a free program that increases art access for individuals ages 13-18 who may face barriers to creative outlets. This includes teens who experience homelessness, LGBTQIA youth, or those who speak English as a second language. The program is all about providing teens with a safe space for self-expression. Through TAS, teens receive free online art classes every Friday night from professional instructors in a variety of subjects and mediums, such as drawing, sculpting, painting, visual storytelling, cartooning, and more.
A promotional photo for Teen Art Studio online, featuring art by TAS instructor Scott McCall
Gage has also shifted its youth summer program to an online subscription model. There are monthly and summer-long subscription plans for children ages 6-11, in which participants receive art and movement lessons from professional teaching artists for two hours each day. There are also online summer classes for teens, in which individuals ages 13-18 dive into their art passions in two-week-long drawing, painting, and digital animation intensives. Or teens may explore a variety of new art skills in one-week classes on printmaking, sculpture, and illustration. More information on scheduling and pricing for the different weeks of teen programming is available on Gage’s website. Check out the video below promoting Gage’s summer classes for teens:
An example of printmaking and ceramic art creation taught in Gage’s teen summer program by Nicholas Nyland and Klara Glosova. This work, created by Nyland, combines painting techniques with printmaking and sculpture.
There are also countless online art classes and weekend and week-long workshops for adults to explore. These include Gage’s Plein Air classes, in which participants meet with Gage instructors at a social distance at one of Seattle’s parks or outdoor spaces to learn and create art.
Art by Crystal Soojeoung Shin from a past workshop at Gage Academy of Art on creating “Handmade Cards with Botanicals,” taught by Shin.
For 30 years, Gage Academy of Art has provided contemporary art instruction and personal mentorship for artists of all skill levels. The organization is especially known for its Gage Academy of Art Atelier programs, in which artists pursuing mastery in painting, drawing, or sculpture may receive guidance from accomplished teaching artists.
From Gage Academy of Art:
To support Gage Academy of Art, people are encouraged to take a class this summer, as well as check out upcoming workshops and lectures. People are also welcome to donate.
An innovative and accessible contemporary art school, Gage Academy of Art is unapologetically independent and fiercely committed to excellence in the fields of painting, drawing, sculpting, and printmaking. Celebrating 30 years of service to the community, we believe in personal mentorship and skills-based studio instruction, delivered by brilliant teaching artists with charcoal dust under their nails. Whether you are a curious newcomer or a professional artist, a working creative or a retired passion-seeker, Gage is open to anyone with the desire to learn.
Seattle, WA. Urban ArtWorks is continuing its mural apprentice program and public art projects while abiding by social distancing protocol. This summer, Urban ArtWorks will partner with South Park Arts, Seattle Neighborhood Group, and local young artists to create a mural on Ambakity restaurant in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle. Urban ArtWorks is also collaboratively creating public art that celebrates Black lives throughout the city.
Youth apprentices meet with their teaching artists, Dovey Martinez and Felipe Perez, in the South Park mural program. Photo was taken by Dennis Diaz.
Executive director Amanda Hashagen says that Urban ArtWorks’ “longest-running program is the mural apprentice program.” The mural apprentice program is an eight-week program in which young artists learn basic art skills and work on one large mural or public art project either during the school year or summer. Following the mural apprentice program, youths can advance into a long-term six-month apprenticeship, in which aspiring artists can connect with a mentor who will assist them in building portfolios. People can get more information on how to become an apprentice or program volunteer on Urban ArtWorks’ website.
This summer, the mural apprentice program will primarily operate online. Apprentices will receive basic art lessons virtually and be given assignments to work on offline as well. A summer project that youth apprentices are currently working on is a mural for Ambakity restaurant in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle. During this project, young artists collaboratively plan and design the mural virtually and at a social distance. After the planning process is complete, half of the artists will meet to paint one day, and the other half will meet another day to follow social distancing guidelines. Another project apprentices will have the opportunity to work on is designing and painting a utility box in Seattle. Urban ArtWorks will provide participants with paints, brushes, supplies, and snacks to ensure that the artists can create their work to the best of their abilities.
An artist works on Urban ArtWorks’ mural on the Metropole building in Pioneer Square.
Urban ArtWorks’ goal as an organization extends past beautifying Seattle. Through their numerous programs, Urban ArtWorks strives to work with young people with barriers to employment and provide them with basic job training and professional life skills. Hashagen wishes to empower local youth at Urban ArtWorks by teaching them to “trust that their perspectives are valid to share with the community.”
Hashagen shares that quarantining has given Urban ArtWorks’ staff increased time to reflect on how to improve their organization. She shares that the Black Lives Matter protests in Seattle have especially “amplified what their priorities should be.” Specifically, Urban ArtWorks is working to make its team and programs racially equitable. Hashagen claims that Urban ArtWorks is a predominantly white-led organization, and board members are “actively trying to change that.”
Urban ArtWorks is also connecting with its community by creating public art related to the Black Lives Matter movement. In mid-June, Urban ArtWorks worked on a large mural on the Metropole building in Pioneer Square to commemorate Juneteenth, the celebration of the official end of slavery in 1865. Artists and neighbors in the public were invited to contribute to the mural while social distancing. Over twenty individuals stopped to add their own touches to the painting and “transform the heavily graffitied wall into a rotating gallery.”
Urban ArtWorks’ collaborative mural on the Metropole building in Pioneer Square.
Urban ArtWorks also partnered with the Downtown Seattle Association to create art amid the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter Protests that transpired following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Urban ArtWorks secured highly visible locations in the Westlake area for BIPOC artists to create murals. Ten murals were painted on the boarded-up windows of the Nordstrom building on 6th and Pine street. Hashagen shares that “Black lives are more important than any damage done to a building or object, and [Urban ArtWorks] didn’t want that message to get lost in the ‘repairs’ [artists] made with any murals created.” Pictured below are some of these murals.
Mural by artist @Dozfy on Instagram and photographed by Paul Nunn
Mural by @ccstencil on Instagram and photographed by Paul Nunn
Mural by @wolfdelux on Instagram and photographed by Paul Nunn
Above all, Urban ArtWorks wishes to continue “engaging youth and communities in the creation of public art that inspires connections and honors their voices.” Hashagen encourages the public to “open their eyes and see what beauty and transformation young people can bring to our community” and “give them the respect they deserve.” Through its community outreach and displays of public art, Urban ArtWorks strives to show Seattle that “young people are brilliant and beautiful.”
From Urban ArtWorks:
To support Urban ArtWorks, financial and supply donations are always welcome. The organization also looks for volunteers and people to assist with photography and administrative work. People can also follow Urban ArtWorks on Instagram @urbanartworks.
Urban ArtWorks was developed in 1995 as a result of the SODO Business Association’s desire to clean up trash and graffiti along the busway in Seattle’s industrial zone. A plan was developed to enrich the surroundings and discourage graffiti by creating murals throughout the area now known as the SODO Urban Art Corridor. The collaboration of private and public partners facilitated the creation of an arts program for at-risk youth centered on the development of murals. Urban ArtWorks incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1998, and the scope of our work has expanded far beyond SODO and the corridor. Today, our organization works full time to promote the arts and produce new public artworks across the entirety of Seattle. Our youth programming continues to empower young people through professional opportunities in the arts. Our mission is to create public art that empowers young people and transforms communities
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