Adult Open Studio
Thursdays, 7-9pm | $25+GST
Adult Open Studio classes are casual, social drop-in art workshops offered weekly, featuring a new project and theme connected to current exhibitions. These workshops explore the technical and conceptual side of art-making and give participants opportunities to experiment and explore new ideas and materials in the studio.
August 1 | Paint Party!
“Paint Only” in this class! Use acrylic paint to create an abstract work using line, shape and texture. Play with viscosity and application on canvas using brushes, sponges, palette knives and more! Register here.
August 8 | Alternative Images
Use a variety of image manipulation and transfer techniques to create an image that references contemporary culture. Experiment with image transfer, photo manipulation, and collage techniques to combine found and drawn images. Register here.
August 15 | Printed Patterns
Investigate the possibilities of composition and pattern before silkscreening your own unique design onto fabric. Learn the basics of silkscreen including making and cutting stencils, pulling a multi-layered image and registration. Bring extra fabric pieces to experiment on! Register here.
August 22 | Figurative Drawing/Sculpting III
Begin to fine-tune your figure drawing skills with some warmup drawings, then transition into the third dimension and use clay to sculpt the figure. Get in tune with volume and form to create a truly unique clay figure! Register here.
NB: This class features a nude model.
August 29 | Slow Stitch
Slow down and experiment with a range of fibres and upcycled materials, composition and collage techniques to create a one-of-a-kind work of art. Learn a few hand-stitching techniques before selecting and incorporating a colourway and textural palette into your artwork. Register here.
September 5 | Cyanotype
Try your hand at an old-timey photographic process invented in 1842 by Englishman Sir John Herschel. Bring along some floral stems and plant debris to create a series of cyanotypes on paper and fabric. Register here.
September 12 | Figure Drawing I
Using charcoal, conté and inks, sketch from a live model. Begin the session with expressive and loose renderings and finish with a longer more sustained study. Focus on the fundamentals of tone, form and perspective. Register here.
NB: This class features a nude model.
September 19 | Abstract Memories
With the recent passing of Canadian art icon Alex Janvier, we pay homage to his endless creativity and talent. View paintings by the artist in the AGA’s current exhibitions and then spend time in the studio creating artwork inspired by the geographical symbolism and memory mapping that many saw in his work. Register here.
September 26 | Paper Sculpture
View a recent acquisition to the AGA’s collection by Calgary-based artist Laura Vickerson and discover how she transforms the ephemera of everyday life into a reflection of our relationship to the world. In the studio, transform discarded consumer products into works of art. Register here.
October 3 | Process-based Art
The concept of time is one theme running throughout our current exhibitions. Explore how artists think about and play with observational time, the time it takes to make art and infinite time. In the studio create a durational artwork using humble art materials like charcoal and an eraser. Register here.
October 10 | Paint and Print
Explore the mediums of watercolour painting and relief printing in the artwork of Walter J. Phillips, an artist, and practitioner of both. Experiment with various painting techniques such as washes, wet-into-wet and resist before transforming your image into a relief print. Register here.
October 17 | Sculpture Garden
Inspired by local artist Lyndal Osborne, create a mixed-media sculpture that melds art and science, natural and man-made materials into a statement artwork. Register here.
October 24 | Figure Drawing II
Hone your figurative drawing skills with a series of gestural ink drawings. Choose to stay in a loose, expressive style or try your hand at a sustained tonal drawing. Focus on methods such as sight measuring to achieve representational proportion. Learn about the many ways to create a figurative drawing and the various strengths in gesture and representation. Register here.
NB: This class features a nude model.
October 31 | Exquisite Corpse
Join us in the studio on Halloween and delve into the uncanny and strange. A classic drawing game, Exquisite Corpse was first played by the surrealists Yves Tanguy, Jacques Prévert, André Breton and Marcel Duchamp in 1925. Make a series of printed monsters a la Mary Shelley. Register here.
November 7 | Acrylic Painting
“To paint, all you need is a few tools, a little instruction, and a vision in your mind”. Channel your inner Bob Ross and paint a landscape in under 1 hour. Visit current exhibitions for inspiration before heading to the studio to create a finished artwork filled with happy little accidents! Register here.
November 14 | Holiday Card Making
The holiday season is fast approaching and there is a lot to celebrate. Get a head start and design a set of cards to send out to your loved ones letting them know you are thinking of them. Try watercolour, printed or pop-up versions. Register here.
November 21 | Guerilla Art
Inspired by Laura St. Pierre’s series Urban Vernacular, create a collaborative sculpture using everyday objects and materials and place it within the public spaces of the AGA. Light and photograph the results before taking them down without a trace. Register here.
November 28 | Nailed it!
Inspired by the wildly popular internet memes, we’re putting our drawing skills to the test! Try your hand at re-creating an artwork from our current exhibition AGA100: A Lasting Legacy and then compare it to the original. How’d you do? Either way, walk away with a sense of creative victory! Register here.
December 5 | Figure Drawing III
Begin to fine-tune your figure drawing skills with some warmup drawings, then transition into the third dimension and use clay to sculpt the figure. Get in tune with volume and form to create a truly unique clay figure! Register here.
NB: This class features a nude model.
December 12 | Needle Felting
Try your hand at needle felting and create a mini sculpture inspired by our winter flora and fauna. Gift it or keep it for yourself. Register here.
December 19 | Handmade Gifts
Looking for some last-minute gifts? Make one in this open studio! Experiment with materials or let us help you create a one-of-a-kind present. Register here.