Events & Activities
Workshops, Demos, and Discussions
All activities are FREE unless otherwise noted!
Sketching in the Galleries
Pencil media only; no easels. Drawing pads must be 18" × 24" or smaller, or pick them up at the Museum. Facilitated by an artist/teacher.
Pencil Appreciation Day
December 13, 10am – Noon
January 10, 10am – Noon
Museum Workshops
Alternative Photographic Process: Van Dyke
December 6, 10am – 3pm
Instructor: Chad White
In an age of prevailing digital technology, photographers continue to explore the use of alternative processes for more handcrafted appeal. Join this one-day workshop to explore the Van Dyke method to expose and process paper prints.
Cost: $45 Museum Members, $55 non-members.
For more information or to enroll, call (602) 307-2054.
Scottsdale Artists' School Workshops
Scottsdale Artists’ School continues its series of weekend workshops at the Museum this summer. Instructors select several Museum masterworks for reference and inspiration on. After viewing and learning about the works, students return to the studio for hands-on experience with the same principles and techniques employed by the masters.
No experience required for any workshop. Materials are included with tuition, but students should bring a sketchpad and pencil.
Cost range from $150 to $170 for Museum Members, $180 to $200 for non-members.
To register, call Scottsdale Artists’ School at (480) 990-1422 or visit their website.
Beginning Drawing
15 -16 November, 10am – 4pm
Instructor: Larry Charles
Learn how to transfer what you see onto paper. Even if you have never drawn before, this class helps you have success from the very beginning. After touring Elihu Vedder’s Drawings for the Rubáiyát, students explore various drawing techniques and methods for creating a realistic image. Includes instructor demonstrations and hands-on practice.
Experimenting with Watercolors
January 24 & 25, 10am – 4pm
Instructor: Carrie Curran
This workshop covers the basics while inspiring creativity. Participants experiment with wash techniques, brush strokes and paint application. For inspiration, students visit Elihu Vedder’s Drawings for the Rubáiyát to look at the artist’s use of chalk, pencil, ink and watercolor.
No experience necessary; materials included with tuition.
Drawing the Figure
February 28 & March 1, 10am – 4pm
Instructor: Larry Charles
Learn how to transfer what you see onto paper. Through instructor demonstrations and hands-on practice, students explore various techniques and methods for creating a realistic image. For inspiration, students view Medievalism.
Digital Photography
March 28 & 29, 10am – 4pm
Instructor: Alan Lowy
Learn how to take your camera off “auto mode” and get better pictures! Students learn about aperture, shutter, filters, flash and better composition to create images with better color and visual impact. To enhance their experiences, students view Seeing the Grand Canyon.
ASU Workshops
For more information on any of these programs, contact ASU’s Lifelong Learning program at (602) 543-6440 or visit lifelonglearning.asu.edu.
Art Inspiring Art
December 4, 1 – 3pm
This five-session workshop considers the effect of art on artists. Participants explore ekphrasis, an ancient device of creating new works of art – fine, decorative or performed – based on others. They visit two special exhibitions, Edward Weston in Mexico and Elihu Vedder’s Drawings for the Rubáiyát, and learn more about a special musical collaboration held at the Museum each year. Finally, class members create their own written works inspired by the masters.
Cost: $50 for Museum Members, $60 for non-members.
This program for adults aged 50+ meets at the Museum and is limited to 20 participants.
Mother Nature, Father Time
Thursday, February 19, March 5, 19, April 2 and 16
In this five-part workshop, participants consider different ways that the passing of time has influenced artists. From recording the aging process to capturing people and places for posterity in the face of modernization, from time-lapse photography to Impressionist masterworks: artists’ dialogue with Time is far-ranging. Participants visit three special exhibitions, take part in our annual Arts & Flowers® extravaganza and create a Monet-inspired series of watercolor sketches.
Cost: $50 for Museum Members, $60 for non-members (includes materials). This program for adults aged 50+ meets at the Museum and is limited to 20 participants.
Book Covers Book Club
Join this discussion group, led by the Museum's librarian Sandra Wiles, where no prior reading of the material is necessary.
Well, Did You Vedder?
December 16, 6pm
The Lemon Art Research Library looks at the swell party outlined in the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. Look at different versions, unusual interpretations and other classic pieces of literature that are celebrated visually again and again.
Fascinating Rhythm
January 20, 6pm
Let the collections of the Lemon Art Research Library whet your appetite for the striking and beautiful photographs on view in Odyssey! Trace our fascination with exotic locations and cultures as evidenced by the work of Linda Connor and a host of other artists and photographers.
The Body Electric
March 17, 6pm
How do our clothes shape our lives; how do our lives shape our clothes? Learn more about some of the medieval conventions on view in Medievalism and how they still serve – or curb – us today.