Learn about SVA Continuing Education’s fall courses and events
Looking to revamp your artistic drive after a tough year? This fall, SVA Continuing Education is offering a trove of (mostly virtual) courses in the many visual arts disciplines that can help expand your perspectives and renew your creativity. Whether you're a novice looking to explore new interests or a professional wishing to fine-tune a specific skill, you are sure to find a class to satisfy your desire to learn and grow. And with weekly courses available on evenings, weekends and mostly online, CE's offerings are conveniently tailored for those with busy schedules. Check out some highlighted courses below, and browse the full course catalog at sva.edu/ce.
Not sure about making a weekly commitment? CE also offers one-off workshops and thought-provoking events throughout the year for free. On September 2, join them for a round of drawing challenges with cartooning instructor Tom Motley and an introduction to watercolor with instructor Andrew Chang on September 9. You can also check out their upcoming information sessions on CE’s Interior Design and Visual Narrative course offerings.
This fall, you’ll also be able to find CE at the Photoville Festival in Brooklyn Bridge Park and the Affordable Art Fair. Plus, they’re hosting their annual Art and Activism event, centered around climate change, in November. Check out the CE blog for additional details soon!
Lights, Camera, Stop Motion
Sundays, 10:00am – 1:00pm ET
September 26 – December 5 (10 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Katherine Llewellyn
Stop-motion animation made simple! In this studio course, students will explore how to animate and shoot a stop-motion sequence and finalize their animations with live-action or illustrated backplates or simple sets. The course will cover all aspects of stop-motion animation.
Visual Narratives: Many Ways to Tell a Story
Tuesdays, 6:30 – 9:30pm ET
September 21 – November 23 (10 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Elise Engler
This hands-on course will explore various ways to tell a story or present information through forms that include drawing, painting, sewing, printing and collage. We will look at the history of visual narrative from around the world, studying graphic novels, comics, cartoons, contemporary narrative painting and drawing, and use these forms as a source for our own work.
Interaction Design: Interactive Stories
Wednesdays, 5:00pm – 8:00pm ET
October 6–November 10 (6 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Lindsey Scott Alexandra Daniels
In this course, students will rethink how we compose narratives and illustrate scenes when elements like lighting or sound become a variable within the storytelling experience. The course will introduce students to the basics of physical computing and embedded electronics. Through hands-on experimentation, Interaction Design: Interactive Stories will explore the fundamentals of working with microcontrollers and consider how interactive components may be incorporated in future work.
Graphic Memoir: Crafting Life Stories
Wednesdays, 6:30 – 9:30pm ET
September 22–December 1 (10 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Sarah Shaw
How many stories can we tell from a day, a relationship, an encounter? The stories we choose to tell from our lives define who we are and what we believe in, whether they are tales of love or tragedy. Students will envision themselves as the main character and transform their life events into engaging visual narratives in this course.
Creating Great Portraits: Selfies to Studio Glam Shots
Saturdays, 10:00am – 1:00pm ET
October 9 – November 13 (6 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Barbara Nitke
This course will teach you the skills needed to create better portraits of yourself and your clients using your existing equipment. We will explore available light, continuous light sources, on-camera flash and studio strobe lights, emphasizing the equipment each student already owns.
Contemporary BIPOC Artists and Historical Erasure
Saturdays, 11:00am – 1:00pm ET
September 25 – November 13 (8 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Catherine Rosamond
History and world history textbooks have largely edited, obliterated and whitewashed the past lived experiences of indigenous and historically marginalized people. The course highlights contemporary visual artists who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC). We will study their works and practices that push viewers to critically engage with and excavate histories, which have been buried by the dominant history written through the lens of settler colonialism. All are welcome; educators who are working on further decolonizing their curricula are encouraged to participate.
Creative Constraints as Tools for Making
Creative Constraints as Tools for Making
Mondays, 6:30 – 9:30pm ET
September 20–November 8
Online
Instructor: Sohee Koo
We are living in a world of uncertainties and constraints. This course encourages various ways of making and thinking by reflecting on our day-to-day practices inspired by creative constraints. Each session will challenge participants to work with constraints to push boundaries by creating small works and projects via digital and physical materials, followed by lectures, engaging discussions, and hands-on activities. Learn more here.
Radical Gestures: Performing in the Age of TikTok
Thursdays, 6:00 – 7:30pm ET
October 7 – November 11 (6 sessions)
Online
Instructor: Marianna Ellenberg
In the age of the 24-hour news cycle, how does an artist make their voice heard? This course will examine how contemporary performance artists use technology to infiltrate mainstream media and challenge sociopolitical conventions around gender, race and sexuality. Alongside an investigation, students will hone their own performance practice by exploring various methods, including site-specificity, media performance and livestreaming.