One of the epicenters of creativity on campus is offering a wide variety of classes and workshops that can enrich the culture and artistic techniques of those who participate.

In the basement of the Mulvane Art Museum one can find the ArtLab as well as art rooms where classes and workshops are held throughout the year. During the fall, winter and spring, activities are hosted on Saturday afternoons and usually only have one or two meeting times.

During the summer season, the Mulvane hosts the Summer Razzle Dazzle sessions.

“Those classes meet sequentially,” said Kandis Barker, the Mulvane Art Museum’s curator of education. The summer programs are tuition based, but scholarships are available for people with financial need.

“We try not to turn anyone away based on financial need,” said Barker.

The fall, winter and spring workshops average $13 for non-members based on the class and whether it is a family or individual workshop. All Washburn students can register for classes and workshops at the member price. For a $13 class, the member price would usually be $11.

The types of classes offered change each season. This fall, the workshops scheduled will cover relief print cards, family finger painting, Dia De Los Muertos ceramics and fused glass ornaments.

The age range for classes varies with the difficulty of the techniques being used. There are classes for children as young as four and classes for adults. Children under the age of four are welcome to participate in family workshops or in children’s classes as long as an adult accompanies them.

“Our kids classes tend to focus on a wide variety of techniques,” said Barker. “All held together by an overarching theme. This allows children to dabble in a little bit of everything and then go on to explore particular disciplines in more detail.”

According to Barker, some classes focus on particular disciplines of art.

Those classes are usually aimed toward adults and although they may have a theme, such as the “Day of the Dead” theme of the fall ceramics workshop, they focus on only one medium of expression or one technique.

Artist educators teach classes; some are licensed, while others may be on the way to completing a license or be working artists without an education emphasis. The wide variety of instructors allows for the varieties and specifications of the workshops without losing any expertise.

“Each of our educators produce their own art,” said Barker.

The classes and workshops at the Mulvane Art Museum offer unique experiences and low-pressured education.

“We offer people in the community a chance to take art classes that delve into a media, or work on skills that they already possess, without a lot of pressure,” said Barker. “We are very much creativity driven.”

Art doesn’t have to be a life consuming process or interest. Classes and workshops offered on campus can inspire creativity and allow someone to create a work of art in just a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon.

To find out more about classes and workshops being offered now and in the future, check out the Mulvane Art Museum website at www.washburn.edu/mulvane or join the ArtLab mailing list by leaving a name, address and zip code on the ArtLab voicemail at (785) 620-2429.