Felt workshop, art history series, and percussion class among new offerings

By KATE SNYDER

Community Arts Center

The Community Arts Center’s fall class lineup is its most diverse ever, says newly-appointed Executive Director Niki Kinkade. 

“I am really excited by the range of styles and techniques that we’re offering this fall,” Kinkade says. “Many of these classes are in response to requests from the community, and we love feedback about what people want to see us offer.”

Art History series engages Centre professors

Art history lovers are in for a treat this fall with a new class series and special day trip planned with the support of professors from Centre College. Dr. Jay Bloom, Dr. Amy Frederick and others will present a series of noontime lectures on Tuesdays beginning mid-September, while an organized group trip to the Speed Museum in Louisville is being organized for October. More details about these programs will be available soon.

Beyond these new opportunities, the Arts Center’s fall lineup for teens and adults again includes several ceramics classes, capitalizing on the organization’s well-equipped basement ceramics studio. A new ceramics instructor — Stacey Chinn of Lexington — joins the Arts Center team this fall and will be teaching introduction to wheel-throwing, a class focused on bowls and other vessels, and a clay jewelry class. 

Instructor Jonas Hurley will also offer his popular introductory wheel-throwing class and will teach Printmaking 101. Students in both classes have the unique opportunity to visit Hurley’s farm to make use of his propane kiln and/or printing press.

For teens and adults interested in learning or refining basic drawing skills, Arts Center Creative Director Brandon Long will offer a four-week Drawing 101 class for adults starting mid-September. The Arts Center’s popular Thursday evening ballroom dance classes will return Aug. 10, with a beginner rumba class followed by intermediate hustle.

Also new this fall is a variety of two-sessions workshops for teens and adults, including some offered during the day. 

“We hear from some of our retiree art-lovers that they prefer not to drive at night, particularly as we move toward winter,” says Kinkade. “Having both afternoon and evening workshops makes it as easy as possible for adults to work these classes into their busy lives.” The adult workshops will include handmade felting, altered book art, henna painting, ceramic serving trays, and clay angel figurines.

Shorter kids classes allow for greater variety

Fall classes for middle and elementary students will be shorter in duration — four weeks instead of seven — to accommodate busy extracurricular schedules and allow for more variety of classes, Kinkade says.“We know how busy families are. The shorter classes make it easier to schedule and are less expensive.” 

Classes for children will include Bookworms (focusing on the intersection of art and literature), Art around the World (creating artwork inspired by other cultures), Drawing for Kids, Mix It Up (a mixed media class led by Long), Art Adventures (a drop-off class for preschoolers), Kids Pottery, and an intergenerational drum circle led by Lydia DiMartino Ellis. The Arts Center is also adding several two-week clay workshops for children, focused around specific projects such as fairy houses or a nativity scene.

The Arts Center is expanding its offerings for homeschool families in response to the positive feedback received about the ceramics class offered earlier in the year. The 2017-2018 homeschool curriculum for elementary students will include art history, drawing, percussion, music appreciation, painting and ceramics over the course of the school year. A middle- and high-school drawing class is being offered in the fall, with plans to expand to additional classes if there is sufficient community interest.

Elementary students will also have the unique opportunity to spend the night at the Arts Center at the new Night at the Museum overnight camp. The first event is Aug. 11 with additional overnight adventures in the works for later in the fall.

Need-based scholarships and payment plans are available for families facing financial challenges. Information about scholarships is available online at www.communityartscenter.net/scholarships or by calling (859) 236-4054.

ON EXHIBIT 

En Plein Air – August 3 to 26

A group exhibit featuring new work by the Plein Air Artist of Central Kentucky.

Opening Reception August 4 – 5:30pm to 7:00pm

COMING UP 

• Starry Night Studios: Funny Little Flowers, 2-4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 6, $28; Franz Marc’s Blue Horses, 6:30-9:30 p.m., $35

• Night at the Museum, Aug. 11-12, $40 (kids in grades 2-6) 

August 11 – 12 | 6:30pm to 8:30am | $40

Teen, adult classes: 

• Introductory Pottery Classes, Wednesdays & Thursdays, $200 per seven-week session

• Clay Jewelry, 11:30am to 12:30pm Saturdays, $85 per four-week session

• Beginner Ballroom Dance, 6 p.m. Thursdays, $10/class

• Printmaking 101, 7-9 p.m. Wednesdays, Aug. 23-Oct. 4, $140

• Drawing 101, 6:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Sept. 26-Oct. 24, $40

• Altered Book Art, 1-3 p.m. Tuesdays, Aug. 29-Sept. 5, $40

• Woven Ceramic Baskets, 7-9 p.m. Tuesdays, Sept. 12 and 19, $50

• The Art of Henna, 2-4 p.m. Sept. 23, $40

Kids’ classes:

• Munchkin & Me, 10 a.m. Thursdays, starting Aug. 24

• Art Adventures, 1-2 p.m.Tuesdays or 10-11 a.m. Fridays, $40

• Bookworms Art Class , 4-5 p.m. Tuesdays, $40

• Art around the World, 4-5 p.m. Wednesdays, $40

• Kids Pottery, 9:30-11 a.m. Saturdays, $80 

• Kids Clay Workshops, 4-5 p.m. on “select” Thursdays, $35