One of the greatest opportunities in the modern world is to get an art education of your choosing.

While it is important to learn and practice the fundamentals of art, how do you desire to learn these. Short, intense workshops usually up to a week are combined with being in a “destination”; longer, more comprehensive slower-paced courses are more likely in a private studio or live online. I call this type of workshop Studio Practice. There are also newer online video-based courses with larger numbers of participants and social media based. And there are a mixture of these. Each has advantages and limitations.

1. Short Intense Workshops - These usually are specialized in topic and are more narrowly focused. The student is immersed in creativity with a lot of fast-paced instruction and personal help. Students quickly bond and share together much like “camp.” These workshops are great for learning and practicing because the emphasis is usually on process and exploration. It is a wonderful way to meet various levels of artists from a variety of places and to get away completely from daily routines.

2. Studio Practice Courses - These longer courses usually meet on a weekly basis; learning is at a more leisurely pace with the emphasis on learning and practice and building habits for a sustained artist life. This is a great way to mentor and to develop skills and confidence while growing as an artist. Such a course is usually close to home and artists meet other like-minded artists in their own locale. Some may be given both as in-studio or live online. They are less expensive since there is not travel involved.

3. Online Courses can be done either alone at your own pace or together in a large virtual group. In the latter case, there is usually a meeting and sharing arena on social medial. The emphasis is more on the lessons, less instructor contact, and more reliance on the other students for connection. Often there are very large groups in on line courses from across continents. They can be great melting pots of all kinds of people to meet, and a great exchange of support and ideas among the participants. Less personal instructor involvement and again there is no travel involved.

4. In-studio and live online Courses. You can choose to travel or not. Teaching is done over a webinar type platform with students actively participating and receiving input from peers and the instructor. These courses can either be short and intense or over longer periods of time like Studio Practice Courses. These have the advantage of working in one own studio. The instructor is able to give plenty of one-on-one attention to all students. The group becomes cohesive throughout the course on social media and through checks-in during classes. This is a relatively newer form of workshops. They are usually fewer students and they often live in far away places.

We hope this helps you be able to choose the right workshop for you. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email us in the form below.

We hope you take a look at our workshops and find one that is just right for you. We offer all types of creativity learning opportunities.

Suzanne and Grant

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