PCA Offers Arts After School Program for Ages 7-12

WESTFORD, MA: Parish Center for the Arts (PCA) is bringing back classes to their upstairs “Arts After School” program this Fall for ages 7-12. Welcoming visual artist Mary O’Connell as instructor, two new sessions will be starting October 28 and will run on Tuesdays thru December 16th. You can take sessions one by one, or sign up for a few (or all) at a time. This Fall’s programs include:

Arts After School’s “Creative Expressions,” for ages 10-12 from 3:30-4:45pm will strengthen technical art skills such as drawing, painting, perspective and 3-D art, while encouraging personal expression and creativity. Choose your sessions or sign up for all 7! All supplies provided.

• Week 1 – Elements of Art & Creative Warm-Ups Focus: Review/expand on line, shape, form, color, value, texture, and space. Warm-Up: Gesture drawing of objects around the room (2 minutes each). Project: Abstract “Elements of Me” artwork—combine at least 4 art elements to express personality. Goal: Drawing. Set a creative foundation and get comfortable experimenting. Supplies: Paper, markers, colored pencils, charcoal, pastel
• Week 2 – Color Theory & Expressive Painting Focus: Primary, secondary, complementary, and analogous colors. Warm-Up: Paint swatches—mix secondary and neutral colors. Project: Create an expressive painting (landscape, abstract, or symbolic) that uses color intentionally to show mood. Goal: Painting. Understand color relationships and their emotional impact. Supplies: acrylic paint, brushes, painting paper, paper plates
• Week 3 – Perspective & Cityscapes Focus: One- and two-point perspective. Warm-Up: Practice drawing cubes and streets with vanishing points. Project: Draw a cityscape (real, imagined, or futuristic) using perspective. Goal: Strengthen spatial awareness and technical drawing skills. Supplies: paper, rulers, markers, colored pencils, erasers
• Week 4 – Portraits & Identity Focus: Facial proportions, shading, and expressive features. Warm-Up: Practice drawing individual features (eyes, noses, mouths). Project: Create a self-portrait or “alter ego” portrait (pencil, colored pencil/marker, or acrylic paint). Goal: Build confidence in portrait drawing and identity expression. Supplies: paper, pencils, colored pencils, erasers, charcoal, markers, acrylic paint/paper
• Week 5 – Mixed Media & Storytelling Focus: Combining materials to create layered artwork. Warm-Up: Quick collage challenge (5–10 min with magazine scraps). Project: Mixed-media piece (drawing, paint, collage, and/or text) that tells a personal story, dream, or memory. Goal: Encourage narrative thinking and creative risk-taking. Supplies: paper, scissors, magazines, glue, markers, pencils, colored paper, etc.
• Week 6 – Sculpture Focus: 3D form, structure, and presentation. Warm-Up: 5-minute clay challenge—make an animal or object blindfolded. Project: Art out of found objects, recycled materials (animal, character, or abstract). Goal: Use creative brainstorming to create art out of objects meant for the landfill. Supplies: found objects, recycled objects, scissors, hot glue, markers, square cardboard for mounting.

Arts After School JR’s “Art Adventures,” for ages 7-9 from 4:30-5:30pm will explore art fundamentals (line, color, texture, space, form) while encouraging imagination and personal expression.

• Week 1 – Lines, Shapes & Patterns Focus: Introduction to elements of art: line & shape. Warm-Up: “Line Olympics” – draw as many types of lines as possible (zig-zag, wavy, dotted). Project: Create a patterned “line creature” made entirely of lines and shapes. Goal: Recognize how lines and shapes create designs. Supplies: paper, crayons, markers, pencils, colored pencils, erasers

• Week 2 – Color Mixing & Feelings Focus: Primary & secondary colors, warm vs. cool. Warm-Up: Mix paints to create new colors. Project: Paint an “emotion landscape” (choose colors that express happy, calm, or stormy moods). Goal: Understand how colors express emotion. Supplies: watercolor/tempera paint, heavy paper, brushes, paper plates
• Week 3 – Texture & Nature Prints Focus: Visual and tactile texture. Warm-Up: Rubbing textures with crayons (wood, leaves, fabric). Project: Leaf printing or textured collage using nature finds + paint. Goal: Explore textures in nature and translate them into art. Supplies: paper, crayons, heavy paper, acrylic/tempera paint, brayer, paint brushes, fabric, plastic wrap
• Week 4 – Space & Simple Perspective Focus: Foreground, middle ground, background. Warm-Up: Practice layering objects (tree in front of a house, etc.). Project: Create a landscape drawing or collage with a horizon line. Goal: Introduce depth in artwork. Supplies: paper, pencils, markers, colored paper/scissors, glue
• Week 5 – Collage & Storytelling Focus: Narrative art using mixed media. Warm-Up: Look at an illustration, then tell a short story about it. Project: Make a “story collage” using magazine clippings, drawings, and paint. Goal: Blend creativity and storytelling through art.
• Week 6 – Upcycling to Sculpture Focus: 3D art & sharing work. Warm-Up: 5-minute explore and play with found objects/recycled material Project: Create a character- alien, robot, or a functional piece from found objects Wrap-Up: Show and tell the story behind your creation. Goal: Create art from objects meant for trash, and gain confidence in talking about your art Supplies: recycled materials, scissors, glue, hot glue and cardboard mounts.

For more information about what is happening with the Arts-in-the-Loft program, call (978) 692-6333 or visit https://parisharts.square.site/arts-in-the-loft. For more information about the PCA and their season of performances running September through June, visit pcawestford.org, email admin@pcawestford.org or find them on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram!