Classes Archive - Delaware Art Museum

Steep yourself in creativity! Make a handbuilt tea organizer and matching teacup with your own playful twist—think cozy shapes, fun handles, and colorful finishes. Perfect for tea lovers who like their mugs as unique as their brews. No experience needed.

Step into the colorful world of Russian folk art! In this joyful 3-hour workshop, artist Anna Freeman will guide you through the traditional craft of Romanov clay toys — playful handmade figures that have delighted generations. Each workshop features a different toy design-such as a bear, lady, or lark.

You’ll learn simple hand-building techniques to shape your own charming toy animals or people, then decorate them with the bright patterns and colors that make Romanov toys so distinctive — or choose to have them glazed for a classic finish. Along the way, Anna will share stories and cultural insights about this centuries-old Russian art form.

During the workshop, students will create two toys — one with the instructor’s guidance and one independently (depending on your pace). After the toys are dried and fired, the studio manager or instructor will glaze and fire them a second time. Finished pieces will be available for pickup later. Alternatively, you can paint your toys with acrylic paints at home once they’re fired.

No clay experience is needed—just bring your curiosity and creativity! All materials are provided. Perfect for adults and teens who love art, culture, and hands-on making.

Enjoy the pleasures of making your own useful pots. Students will explore techniques for creating beautiful ceramic pieces by hand and on the potter’s wheel. Form, function, and various surface treatments will be presented in a fun, informal setting.      

Students with a foundation of throwing skills can continue to build their voice in this class. Demonstrations will guide individual creative projects and strengthen skills to advance student’s techniques in clay.    

Students will explore a range of techniques for creating decorative and/or functional ceramic pieces on the potter’s wheel. Lessons can include a range from beginner fundamentals to developing skills to improve technique. For more experienced potters, the teacher can help you experiment with more advanced techniques (i.e. clay marbling, donut vase, bigger sizes).

Learn the intricate art of Sgraffito in this one-day ceramic workshop! Carve designs into your very own ceramic work of art, no experience necessary! Adults only.

Let your creativity grow wild! Handbuild a one-of-a-kind planter that’s full of character—curvy, textured, or totally funky. A fun, feel-good workshop where you’ll create the perfect new home for your favorite plant. No experience needed.

Students enjoy a gentle introduction to hand building and wheel throwing in this relaxed beginner’s class!   

Learn how to make fabulous cups, bowls, plates, and vases in this fun and informative class designed for beginning level students. Students will start with hand building and transition onto the wheel.

Let your creativity bloom in this playful pottery workshop! Handbuild a one-of-a-kind flower vase—think wavy rims, bold textures, and funky shapes that show off your style. A lighthearted class perfect for anyone who loves color, flowers, and getting a little messy with clay! No experience needed.

Learn all about the art of mosaics and create your very own masterpiece in this one-day workshop! Supplies provided, no experience required! Adults only.

Get your hands in clay with your favorite person! In this Valentine’s-inspired workshop, you’ll each handbuild a mug that complements the other—matching, mismatched, or totally wild. The perfect cozy date night for couples, besties, or anyone who loves love and good mugs. No experience needed.

Make a statement at your next brunch or flower arrangement! In this playful workshop, you’ll handbuild a one-of-a-kind pitcher—tall and elegant, short and chunky, or totally funky. Add bold handles, carve designs, and make it uniquely yours. No experience needed.

Say goodbye to boring butter storage! Handbuild your own French-style butter dish that keeps your butter soft, spreadable, and stylish. Add texture, color, and flair to make breakfast (and your counter) way more fun. No experience needed.

Get ready for a satisfying stack! In this hands-on workshop, you’ll create a set of nesting bowls—each with its own personality, pattern, or design. Perfect for snacks, prep, or showing off your colorful new collection. No experience needed.

In this multi-week class, students will explore a variety of approaches to character design and storytelling. A wide range of techniques and materials will be practiced based on interest and intention including pencil drawing, inking, watercolor, markers, and colored pencils. These materials will be explored congruently to create characters used to play table top games such as Dungeons and Dragons, but also comic making, paintings, and more! Students will also learn to cut and prep paper, measure, thumbnail, and sketch. Topics of discussion will include character design, setting, concept, and mark making. 

In this multi-week class, students will learn various approaches to illustration, both traditional and utilizing new techniques and technologies. Materials explored included pencil, archival inks, watercolor, gouache, alcohol markers, paint pens, and colored pencils. Students will learn various approaches to pattern-making, cross-hatching, and other forms of mark making as well as combining created imagery into collage.

This course offers an introduction to Children’s Book Illustration, exploring the relationship between concept, text and image. The class will give the students opportunity to select a text and practice illustrative techniques by choice. Exploring new approaches is part of the learning experience and the appropriate methods and materials will be discussed individually.

Students will:

Develop conceptual skills as they relate to image making.
Incorporate design components such as format, layout, and typography in the illustration process. It includes the ability to research for inspirational references, and practiced professionally based solutions.
Develop a working familiarity with a variety of illustrative techniques and apply them to their illustration project.
Employ basic awareness of professional ethics and practices.

INTRODUCTION AND SPECIFICS OF THE ILLUSTRATION ART

Serial Art form, Visual Narrative, Research, Collaboration, Production Process
Different types of illustrations – Book Illustration, Children’s Book Illustration, Educational Illustration, Editorial, Graphic Novels, Cartoons
Specifics of Book Illustration and of Children’s Book Illustration
Illustrative Techniques

ANATOMY OF THE BOOK

Book Cover – Specifics
Dust Jacket
Front Matter
Book Body – Formats, Paper, Design Solutions
Back Matter

WORKING ON A BOOK PROJECT

Visual exploration of ideas- thumbnails
Character design development
Chapter illustrations, Single page, Spread, Spot/ Vignette, Frontispiece
Graphic design solutions, Working with type
Selection of technique, Technique exploration, Final art

Image: King Rabbit on His Throne, 1988 from More Tales of Uncle Remus, by Julius Lester (New York: Dial Books, 1988). Jerry Pinkney (1939–2021). Watercolor and graphite on wove paper, composition: 10 1/2 × 14 1/4 inches, sheet: 13 3/8 × 17 1/16 inches. Delaware Art Museum, F. V. du Pont Acquisition Fund, 2007. © Estate of Jerry Pinkney.

This “Loper Method” class is designed to provide students with methods and techniques taught by the   late Delaware artist Edward Loper Sr. Students will learn about achieving rich color through direct observation and the use of a limited palette by painting a still life while focusing on light, line, color, and space.      

This “Loper Method” class is designed to provide students with methods and techniques taught by the late Delaware artist Edward Loper Sr. Students will learn about achieving rich color through direct observation and the use of a limited palette by painting a still life while focusing on light, line, color, and space. 

Enjoy the fun of sketching the world around you with ink and watercolor — a technique that has the visual appeal of both drawing and painting! The class will guide you through choosing a subject, creating a composition, line quality, paint handling, and both a methodical and loose approach. Instruction will include a simplified introduction to linear perspective.

These techniques are also useful for personal or travel journaling and for “urban sketching” on location. The class will include demonstration by the instructor as well as individual attention at each student’s level of experience.

Pastel, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor painters, are you looking for some studio working time with fellow artists? This open studio is a warm, casual, environment and opportunity for experienced artists and students to come paint, create, and spend time sharing studio space. There is no instruction, this is not a class.

Open your ways of seeing and enjoy expressing yourself through drawing. Learn basic techniques for interpreting the three-dimensional world onto a two-dimensional picture plane. Topics include sighting and measuring, line, shape, value, perspective, figure and ground, and communicating with a variety of traditional drawing media (graphite, charcoal). Whether you’re new to art or looking to expand your skills, my class program is designed to meet you where you are.

Using either still life set-ups or photographs, students will focus on composition and value before applying color. Learn to block in large flat shapes of color, usually starting with the darkest colors first and using a limited palette which will then give paintings harmony and the artist a cohesive body of work.

This painting open studio is a warm, casual, environment and opportunity for experienced artists and students to come paint, create, and spend time sharing studio space.

Discover the vibrancy and realism you can achieve with colored pencils! Topics in this class will include descriptive and expressive line quality, color relationships, cross-hatching, capturing light, volume, and texture. Learn about the science of color theory and diverse applications of colored pencils. We will be drawing from botanicals and your favorite photographs of landscapes. Previous drawing experience required. Build a strong foundation in drawing and gain an understanding of cinematic color to help you develop confidence and skill. Level is intermediate.

For artists interested in exploring their inner voice and getting in touch with their creativity, this class is for you! Students will learn the basics of acrylic painting alongside expressive brushwork and color application.

This watercolor class will focus on the traditional landscape with painting demonstrations for skies, water, greenery, and buildings in a relaxed setting.

This class will offer all the basic techniques and tricks. Materials will be discussed, as well as setting up a palette. Bring supplies to first class.

Students are invited to work on their own, with teacher instruction. We will learn how to paint different types of snow. Still life will be painted using a limited color palette. Class has background music, along with gentle group critiques. Please bring your own drink. Teacher gives one new lesson every week and students frequently paint the lesson.

Practice basic drawing techniques. Gesture, contour, quality of line, composition, form, and perspective will be emphasized. 

Learn the essential ingredients for abstraction and what makes abstraction interesting and important. This class will help the student understand abstraction and give them a firm foundation in how to do abstract painting.

During this course, we will learn about all of the materials and surfaces for painting with pastels. We will cover many of the techniques for various strokes, mark-making, value studies, and color sketches to apply pastels including hard pastels, soft pastels, pan pastels, and pastel pencils. You will learn the methods of underpainting using watercolor, gouache, alcohol, pan pastels, and pipe insulation. Throughout this course, we will be learning about the five steps to making a great painting – composition, values, color, atmosphere, and edges. Also, we will cover techniques and methods for plein air painting. We will explore techniques for painting skies, mountains, trees, rocks, water, grasses, figures, and city scapes. Vibrant color photo references will be supplied so you can complete three to four finished paintings. Come and learn about this wonderful rich color pastel medium for painting beautiful scenes of the National Parks.

Stephen has been painting watercolors, pastels, and oils around the world since 1996. He has studied with the artists at the Cape Cod School of Art and many of the top artists internationally. His paintings are in many private collections, Veteran Homes, and Museums.  Stephen regularly exhibits his work in various events in DE, PA, NJ, MD, and VA.  His paintings have appeared in a number of local publications.

Join a class that fosters experimentation and building artistic confidence while drawing in a supportive, creative environment from artworks in the Galleries. Whether you’re picking up a pencil for the first time or deepening an existing practice, we will relax while studying expressive mark-making as well as honing your observational and abstract drawing skills while interpreting artworks in graphite/and/or color pencil. We will practice and study issues of color relationships. Pencils and sketchbooks only in the galleries. Please meet at the front desk.

Join a class that fosters experimentation and building artistic confidence while drawing in a supportive, creative environment from artworks in the Galleries. Whether you’re picking up a pencil for the first time or deepening an existing practice, we will relax while studying expressive mark-making as well as honing your observational and abstract drawing skills while interpreting artworks in graphite/and/or color pencil. We will practice and study issues of color relationships. Pencils and sketchbooks only in the galleries. Please meet at the front desk.

Students will learn a clear step by step progression from Realism to Abstraction and Expressionism. This class is for the student interested in discovering the wonders of Abstraction and the powers on non-representational work.

This class will focus on the importance of Composition and how to make effective and powerful compositions. It will also cover the formal elements such as line, texture, shape, tone, value, space, rhythm, etc. Students will learn how to improve one’s use of these aspects in one’s painting. This class is open for those working in any style.

This class is a must for those who want to understand color and learn how to use it for good effect in painting or drawing.  The class will explore the different kinds of ‘color worlds’ and how to use them.  It will also look at how to mix, harmonize, and integrate color for both powerful and subtle artwork.  

Try the fun, friendly and forgiving medium of gouache, an opaque version of watercolor that dries very quickly to a beautiful matte finish. Like watercolor, gouache thins and cleans up with water. Unlike watercolor, gouache is opaque and includes white paint, so you can paint light colors over dark, like oil, requiring much less planning than transparent watercolor. We’ll work from photographs (supplied, though students are welcome to bring their own) and explore some of the basic techniques in this versatile painting medium.

This is an opportunity for experienced metals students to work independently in the Museum’s metalsmithing studio. A monitor is present for safety and to help guide students with their projects. Completion of Beyond Beginner Jewelry Making or approval by a Museum metals instructor is required to attend. 

This class is for the beginner student. Students will learn how to use essential jewelry-making tools to create their designs. They will also cover all essential metal jewelry-making techniques, including cutting metal, filing, hammering, cold connections, textures, soldering, and beginner bezel settings. Each week, a new project will be explored using a new technique. Students are encouraged to attend all classes, as this is an info-packed class. Please bring a notepad. The class runs for 10 weeks. Adults and Teens 16+.

This is an opportunity for students familiar with enameling to work independently in the studio. A monitor is present for safety and to help guide students with their projects. Completion of a beginner Enameling course or permission from a Museum instructor is required to attend.    

In this multi-week class, students will learn how to combine enameled forms and even flat backed stones or found objects with fabricated metal jewelry. This class will expand on introductory metalsmithing and fabrication techniques, so while acting as an advanced metals class, no prior enameling experience is required. Primary techniques demonstrated include introductions to fusing enamel, surface decoration, bezel setting, hydraulic forming, eutectic soldering, ear wires, ring making, brooches, and more. Students are expected to explore narrative and connections between the enameled forms and the jewelry created to house them, making planning and sketching an important part of the process.    

Students of any background or enameling level will be able to participate in this multi-week class. For beginners, this means basic fusing to introductory techniques such as graphite drawing, glass etching and wet-packing, among others. More advanced students will be able to continue building on their projects while techniques such as luster, overglazes, underglazes, and various other surface decoration techniques are incorporated. Techniques covered: fusing, counter enameling, wet-packing graphite drawing, glass etching, under and overglazes, basse-taille, luster. 

Participants will create mixed-media collage using found vintage materials and personal imagery, exploring composition, color, and texture to express a theme such as memory, identity, or transformation. This 2.5 hour workshop emphasizes creative exploration, storytelling, and hands-on process over perfection.

Learning Objectives

Understand collage composition (balance, layering, focal point).
Learn techniques for integrating imagery, texture, and text.
Explore how personal meaning can be expressed through found materials.
Create an original collage that reflects a personal theme or memory.