Indulge your inner artist!
Refine your technique, try something new, meet fellow artists, and join us for our 2025-26 Centennial Season of art education.
From October through April, we offer workshops and classes in watercolor, oil, and acrylic painting, collage and paper arts, photography, mixed media, and more.
Artist Workshops
These popular, immersive 1 to 3-day learning experiences are led by in-demand, acclaimed artists who are experts in their medium and known for presenting engaging instruction.
Bookbinding , Lilli Jones
Thursday, Jan 15, 2026, 1:30-4:30 pm
Members $75, Non-Members $115
All Skill Levels Welcome
In this hands-on class, you’ll learn to create your own custom journal or sketchbook completely from scratch, using the durable longstitch binding method. We’ll guide you through crafting a hard, decorative cover with a reinforced spine, then assembling your pages using your choice of lined recycled paper or medium-weight watercolor paper. By the end, you’ll walk away with a unique, 100-page journal made entirely by you; ready to hold your thoughts, ideas, sketches, plans, and anything else you can dream up.
Printmaking Exploration
Cheri Sheridan
Jan 15 & 16, 2026
Thursday & Friday, 9:30 am-12:30 pm
Members $150, Nonmembers $195
Medium: Printing
All skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Each session explores a theme or technique, guiding students through the layering process to create unique, expressive prints.
Pastels and Pirouettes, in the Style of Degas
Laura Pommier
Jan 19 & 26, 2026
Monday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $115, Nonmembers $160
Medium: Pastels
All skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Inspired by the works of Edgar Degas, this class explores figure drawing, movement, and layering techniques to bring dancers to life on paper.
Collage & Mixed Media
Liz Cole
Jan 22 & 23, 2026
Thu 1:30-4:30 pm
Fri 9:30 am-12:30 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Paper/Collage/Mixed media
All skill levels welcome
Make your own creative papers then turn them into colorful mixed media collaged paintings.
Space is limited
Watercolor, Keeping it Simple
Visiting Artist Diane Klock
Jan 29, 30, & 31, 2026
Thu, Fri, Sat, 10 am-4 pm
Members $475, Nonmembers $525
Medium: Watercolor
All skill levels welcome
Learn to break down the essentials of value, color, composition, and paint handling into clear, manageable steps.
Space is limited
Travel Journaling
Visiting Artist Diane Klock
Feb 6 & 7, 2026
Fri and Sat, 10 am-4 pm
Members $225, Nonmembers $270
Medium: Watercolor, Mixed Media
All skill levels welcome
Learn to combine quick sketches, loose washes, and handwritten notes to create beautiful, personal travel journal pages.
Space is limited
Beginner Paperweave Workshop
Gail Eisenfeld
Sat, Mar 7, 2026
10am - 1pm
Members $75, Nonmembers $115
Medium: Mixed Media
All Supplies Included!
Education Policy
In this hands-on, beginner-friendly workshop, participants will create a one-of-a-kind framed artwork using a layered painting and collage process. Participants will explore color, texture, and composition by creating two abstract paintings—one as an underpainting and one to be cut and reassembled into a dynamic grid design. Through guided demonstrations and step-by-step instruction, participants will learn simple color principles and creative techniques while experimenting freely. Each participant will leave with a finished framed artwork and the skills to continue exploring this process on their own.
Beginning Oil Painting: Landscapes
Willem van Osnabrugge
All supplies included
Tue-Fri, March 10, 11, 12, and 13, 2026
1 – 4 pm
Members $225, Nonmembers $270
Medium: Oil Paint
Beginner skill level
Have you always wanted to learn oil painting but thought it was too complex and complicated? Paint from life or photos? Sunlight or overcast? Cotton or linen canvas? Soft or hard, round or flat brushes? Refined or unrefined linseed oil? Fat over lean? Do you need a dozen expensive color tubes, or double that for all the gradations and different tones? Do oil paintings really take a year to dry? Which toxic solvents to use? Well, worry no more.
We’ll paint landscapes, but the technique can also be used for portraits and still lifes. You will proudly take your first masterpiece home. You’ll also receive digital documents with extensive notes, explanations, color graphs, and precise methods learned in the course.
You will discover how to:
Easily transfer your design (from real life or photo) onto the canvas at any size
Understand value, tone, and chroma, and how to easily apply them
Create any color and shade from just five colors (yes, 5 only)
No toxic solvents for thinning paint.
No need to buy or bring anything for this workshop
Space is limited
Advanced Collage Composition
Liz Cole
Mar 19 & 20, 2026
Thu 1:30-4:30 pm
Fri 9:30 am-12:30 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Collage/Mixed media
All skill levels welcome
Discover new ways to layer and incorporate various papers to create collaged works ready for show.
Space is limited
Freedom of Acrylics Workshop
Jane Slivka, Visiting Artist
April 9, 10, and 11, 2026
Thu, Fri & Sat, 10 am-4 pm
$500 Members | $550 Nonmembers
Medium: Acrylic Painting
All skill levels
Jane Slivka shares her own unique and energetic free-form technique, combining fast, bold, loose strokes in a signature tropical palette. In a lively and easy-to-follow fashion, she exhibits the freedom, energy and spirit of her painterly style. Jane inspires students to complete several finished pieces which manage to capture a certain “happy” decorative quality without sacrificing the underlying principles of true art.
More about the Artist
Intro to Gelli Printing Workshop
Ellen Kantro
Fri, Apr 17, 2026
10AM - 1PM
Members $75, Nonmembers $115
Medium: Mixed Media
Supply List
Education Policy
Gelli printing is pure creative play — fast, fearless, and wildly fun. With just a few simple materials, you’ll be pulling vibrant prints in minutes — no art experience required. Seriously. Beginners are always amazed at how quickly they go from “just trying it” to “look what I made!”
In just three hours, you can create dozens of colorful, one-of-a-kind prints — perfect for framing or layering into mixed media work. Expect painted fingers, happy surprises, and a whole stack of art you’ll be proud to show off.
Classes: Commit to Improving Your Art
From October through April, Weekly Classes Meet for 3-Week to 6-Week Sessions
Watch your skill and technique improve each week as you learn from talented local artists and experienced instructors. Students are required to purchase their own supplies for most classes.
Brush Strokes of the Masters
Renee DiNapoli
Jan 6, 13, 20, 27, 2026
Tuesdays, 1:30-4 pm
Members $130, Nonmembers $175
Medium: watercolor, acrylic, oil
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn simple techniques, caring for your brushes, blending, mixing, and more.
Fine Art Photo: Beginner
Amy Karki
Jan 7, 14, 21, 28, 2026
Wednesday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Photography
Beginner friendly; All skill levels welcome.
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn how to use your DSLR cameras utilizing manual and automatic features.
Step by Step: Mixed Media Collage Portraits
Keenan Perren
Jan 7, 14, 21, 28, 2026
Wednesdays, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: collage, mixed media
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Create expressive portraits using a mix of papers, textures, and found materials. Explore composition, layering, and mixed media techniques to bring faces to life.
Brushes & Breezes: A Plein Air Painting Introduction
Maggie Bosco
Feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2026
Monday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $110, Nonmembers $155
Medium: Painting
Some experience suggested
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn how to capture light, atmosphere, and landscape with confidence as you paint on location each week.
Drawing: Figures and Portraits
Craig Carl
Tuesdays, 1:30-4:30 pm
Feb 3, 10, 17, 24, 2026
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Drawing
Some experience suggested
Supply List
Education Policy
Draw the human form with live models to enhance your technical skills through figure drawing.
Brush Strokes of the Masters
Renee DiNapoli
Feb 3, 10, 17, 24, 2026
Tuesdays, 1:30-4 pm
Members $130, Nonmembers $175
Medium: watercolor, acrylic, oil
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn simple techniques, caring for your brushes, blending, mixing, and more.
Abstract Interpretive Landscapes and Seascapes
Linda Finnerty
Feb 4, 11, 18, 25, 2026
Wednesdays 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: painting and mixed media
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Interpret natural landscape with shapes, patterns and texture while playing with color.
Fine Art Photo: Intermediate
Amy Karki
Feb 4, 11, 18, 25, 2026
Wednesday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Photography
Some experience suggested
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn a wide range of photography skills from portraiture to landscape to documentary photography.
Dreamy Blooms: Abstract Florals with Watercolor
Sheila Golden
Feb 4, 11, 18, 25, 2026
Wednesdays 1:30-4:30 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Watercolor
All skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Explore loose, abstract floral techniques as you play with color, shape, and flow to create dreamy, one-of-a-kind blooms.
Altered Book: A Mixed Media Collage Workshop
Elizabeth Goodwill
Feb 5, 12, 19, 26, 2026
Thursdays, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Mixed Media Collage
All skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Turn an ordinary hardback book into a unique work of art. Explore mixed media techniques—cutting, folding, layering, painting, and collaging—to transform and reimagine the book’s pages.
Vibrant Watercolor Techniques
Gail White
Feb 6, 13, 20, 27, March 6, 13, 2026
Friday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $200, Nonmembers $245
Medium: Watercolor
All skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Classes include instruction and demos onplanning a composition, using photo references and live setups, and discussion of color usage.
Pastel Creations: Unleash Your Inner Artist
Laura Pommier
Mar 2, 9, 23, 30, 2026
Monday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Pastels
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Explore blending, layering, and mark-making techniques as you create bold, expressive artwork—no experience needed.
Brush Strokes of the Masters
Renee DiNapoli
March 3, 10, 24, 31, 2026
Tuesdays, 1:30-4 pm
Members $130, Nonmembers $175
Medium: watercolor, acrylic, oil
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn simple techniques, caring for your brushes, blending, mixing, and more.
Intuitive Abstract Painting
Linda Finnerty
March 4, 11, 18, 25, 2026
Wednesdays 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: painting and mixed media
Beginner friendly; all skill levels welcome
Learn abstract painting basics while experimenting with materials like collage, stencils, and oil pastels.
Fine Art Photo: Advanced
Amy Karki
March 4, 11, 18, 25, 2026
Wednesday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Photography
For advanced levels only.
Supply List
Education Policy
The course will emphasize the process involved in generating a portfolio of images, a cohesive body of work based upon a theme, concept, or selected subject matter.
Block Printing 101
Lisa Ficarelli-Halpern
March 5, 12, 19, 26, 2026
Thursdays 10 am-1 pm
Members $140, Nonmembers $185
Medium: Printmaking
All skill levels welcome
Discover relief printmaking using soft cut linoleum blocks. Design, carve, proof, and print using water-based ink.
Brushes & Breezes: A Plein Air Painting Introduction
Maggie Bosco
April 6, 13, 20, 2026
Monday, 10 am-1 pm
Members $110, Nonmembers $155
Medium: Painting
Some experience suggested
Supply List
Education Policy
Learn how to capture light, atmosphere, and landscape with confidence as you paint on location each week.
Open Studio Sessions
Grow creatively with fellow artists
Open Studios
New this year! Members Only Open Studios welcomes supporters and artists with some prior experience. It is an opportunity to enjoy the freedom to work at their own pace, without an instructor, amongst other artists. Students must bring their own supplies. Studio fees are nonrefundable.
Life Sessions
Members Only Life Sessions Open Studio with Live Models
Indulge your passion and hone your skills - studio space is available for experienced artists to work in pencil, charcoal, pastel, or ink with live models, draped or undraped. Open Studio sessions are nonrefundable.
Registration opens for each month on the 15th of the month prior at 10 am.
If you have questions about our classes, please call 941-365-2032 or email info@artsarsota.org
If you are interested in becoming an instructor or figure model, visit our careers page.
Refund Policy
WITHDRAWAL after the last day: Written notice must be given if you need to withdraw from a class/workshop. If written notice is given after the last day to withdraw (see education policy), the class/workshop cost (fee) and the non-refundable deposit will not be refunded. Art Center Sarasota understands that last minute emergencies, illnesses, or conflicts come up that cannot be controlled. Due to administrative and contract expenses on the part of the Art Center, we are not able to make exceptions.