Art Classes for the New Year

The Morris Museum will offer classes and workshops for children, teens and adults in its new Studio Art Program.

Courses will be taught by New Jersey-based artists. All classes and workshops will begin in January and February. Registration information is available on the museum website, www.MorrisMuseum.org or by calling 973.971.3740 or emailing StudioArt@MorrisMuseum.org.

Art Experiences I is for ages 6 through 8, taught by Nina Nemeth. It will run on Sundays Jan. 8, 15, 22, 29 and Feb. 5 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Children will explore and experiment with a variety of visual art techniques and mediums through simple projects and hands‐on activities. Various art materials and techniques will involve pastel, watercolor painting, drawing, and collage.

Art Experiences II is for ages 9 through 12 and is also taught by Nina Nemeth on the same Sundays from 3 to 5 p.m.

This class is developed for a slightly older group and these children will have an opportunity to continue exploring and experimenting with a variety of visual art techniques and mediums through simple projects and hands‐on activities. Materials and techniques will involve painting and collage, experimenting with mediums such as pastel, watercolors, and drawing.

Nemeth will also offer "Masterpiece Studio" for ages 6 through 10 on Thursdays Jan. 19 and 26 and Feb. 2, 9 and 16 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. This class will introduce art history to children through a hands-on integrated artist study. Students will be exposed to a variety of art techniques and styles while learning about famous artists such as Picasso, Degas, Monet, Kandinsky, O’Keeffe, and others.

The fee for each class is $125 plus a $5 material fee payable to the instructor on the first day of class.

 Other children’s classes are called “Little Sculptures for Little Hands.”

The "Under the Sea Workshop" for children ages 6 through 10 is taught by Don Thieberger and will be held on Saturday, Jan. 21 from 9:30 to 11 a.m. The fee is $55

Thieberger is known as “Mr. Nose of Platypus Pottery School” and will feature animal sculpting techniques he has used with many students Themes can range from sea creatures at a party, dogs driving sports cars, penguins surfing, or a bear watching TV while eating honey. Each student receives a chunk of white clay and concentrated colored clay. They will tweak, twist, and blend them into fantastic creations. They are to be baked at home for lasting results.

The second “Little Sculptures for Little Hands” class will be “Fishes & Faces Sand Casting Workshop,” also with Don Thieberger on  Saturday, Feb. 4 from 9:30 to 11 a.m. The fee is $55. This class is sand art sculpture casting (sand casting).Sculpting will be done with sand as a negative form to cast plaster into a bas‐relief sculpture. Students take a painted, finished work of art home at the end of the workshop!

Classes for teens are also offered.

Lighting and Composition for Digital Photography Workshop is taught by  Nancy Ori, on  Sunday, Feb. 5 from 1 to 5 p.m. The class fee is $90. Students should already have an awareness of the camera basics and should bring a camera, accessories, the camera instruction manual and a notebook. The workshop will combine lecture and hands‐on opportunities with a goal of balancing the technical with the creative. Topics will include the use of natural and indoor lighting, how to control the light, getting good exposures, and tips on good composition. Discussions will feature the art of seeing photographically and heightening awareness of light within photographs. While working with a variety of favorite subject matters, students will be introduced to the design elements in order to create effective compositions.

Figure Drawing will be taught by Laurie Harden on Thursdays: Feb. 23 and March 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29 from 5 to 7 p.m.  The class fee is $150, including the model’s fee. A materials list will be provided upon registration. Techniques will be taught in drawing the figure from life, beginning with quick, gesture sketches from short poses, concluding with completed drawings from long poses. Harden will teach  proportions and how to achieve the correct relationship between the parts of the body, using guides like plumb‐lines and negative spaces.

Classes for adults are also offered.

“I got a new digital camera…NOW WHAT?!” Workshop with Nancy Ori will be  Sunday, Jan. 8 from 1 to 5 p.m. for $90. Bring a camera, the camera instruction manual and a notebook. Ori teaches proper use of a digital camera. Topics include the creative choices that can be made through proper use of shutter speed and aperture controls, resolution and quality options, use of available light, in-camera light meter, white balance, composition tips, camera accessories and flash. Ori will use demonstrations and provide hands-on practice to understand how the camera works and thinks. The workshop is designed to introduce beginners to the creative possibilities while demystifying the language of the technical features. Ori will supply a handout on using the camera’s instruction manual more effectively.

Acrylic Painting: Landscape & Still Life wll be taught by Edward Sprafkin on Wednesdays, Jan. 11, 18 and 25 and Feb. 1, 8 and 15 from 2:30 to 5 p.m. for $160. Materials list will be provided upon registration. The class will create paintings from  photos or work from a still‐life that will be set up for reference. Sprafkin will teach composition, color mixing, value and form. Acrylic painting techniques and mediums will be explored. Demonstrations with be provided. Beginners to experienced painters are welcome.

Portrait Drawing will also be taught by Edward Sprafkin on Fridays, Jan. 13, 20 and 27; Feb. 3, 10, 17 and 24 and March 2, 9 and 16 from 2:30 to 5 p.m. for  $260, including the model’s fee. The materials list will be provided upon registration.  Sprafkin will teach how to create a likeness through direct observation of a live model; the structure of human head, proportion, facial features and rendering form will be covered. Various types of dry media will also be explored. Demonstrations provided. Beginners are encouraged. All levels welcome.

Tunisian Crochet 2-week class is taught by Carolyn Hanson on  Saturdays Jan. 21 and 28 from 9 a.m. to noon. Class fee is $135. The materials list will be provided upon registration. This is an old technique of crochet that is very popular today. Crocheting with a long hook works up very fast, creating a fabric that looks woven but uses less yarn than traditional crochet. Tunisian crochet is versatile, giving the freedom to create a wide variety of projects. This class starts with an accent scarf. The class is suitable for new and experienced crochet students. Knitters are welcome.

A “Fashion Under Foot” workshop will be taught by Freddie Johnson on Thursday, Jan. 26 from 6 to 8 p.m. The fee is $40 for museum members, $45 for non-members. There is a $10 supply fee  payable to the instructor at the beginning of the workshop. The workshop celebrates the works on view in the Morris Museum’s new exhibition Modern Tapestries and Floor Coverings Conceived by Picasso, Calder & their Contemporaries (Thursday, Jan. 19 through Sunday, April 15). Fashion designer Freddie Johnson will teach students to create decorative floor covering. Johnson will teach how to add texture and dimension by weaving fiber into floor covering.

A “Treasure Book Workshop” will be taught by Alice Harrison on Saturday, Jan. 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Class fee is $100. A materials list will be provided upon registration. In this workshop, students man create a simple accordion book structure or bring a book to alter and make an artist book with collage pages to be viewed page by page or open to view as a panorama. Both book making and collage techniques are taught. Students can personalize with photographs of  trips, memories and/or special occasions. The process is easy and the result rewarding. The instructor will supply boards for book cover and the paper needed, but students may bring their own if they choose. She will also have some collage materials available.