This is the first class of a three-part course.

Classes are held on October 28, November 4, and November 11.

Enjoy a creative distraction from all of your worries. Explore the enchanting stories of the Norse, Celtic, and Indigenous People while enhancing your artistic skills. The formal elements of art, design, and composition are taught through storytelling, viewing, and personal practice.

Those who have taken courses with Carrie Finnigan will recall her teaching style and class structure, particularly how she integrates storytelling to organically introduce formal drawing concepts of art, design, and composition. (They will likely also tell you she has a thing about erasers!)

Humans have always had an inherent need to give meaning to our existence, to place our mark, calling out, ‘I was here.’ There is no civilization, regardless of how primitive, that does not have some evidence of the existence of art. Before the written word, art was the universal language that reflected society. Created with the purpose of teaching, soothing, and celebrating, art reflects our life, our joys, deepest fears, and greatest hopes.

I strongly believe that anyone can learn to draw exactly what is seen. It takes practice, time, commitment, joy, and, most of all, self-permission to make mistakes.

Through an organic process that incorporates storytelling with viewing other artists’ interpretations of the subject matter, learners are put at ease to begin reinforcing a basic understanding of the fundamentals of art and the principles of design. Each class ends by replicating a work of art that reinforces the formal concepts of art and design, builds upon each participant’s skill set, trains their eye to see truthfully, and allows them to develop their own creative process.

So, give yourself a break. Have some fun.

Give yourself permission to be creative and try new things.

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Carrie’s Class Arrangement

1. Story Telling

• I use the discussion of mythology to organically integrate the principles of design into the discussion.

2. Viewing

• Viewing other artist representations of the subject matter reinforces the drawing focus of the course

• Thoughtful inquiry and experimentation in many different media and art forms which leads to new visual and conceptual insights

• The learner brings their interests, experiences, and understandings to the process.

• Support intentional learning for the curious mind by teaching artistic literacy - Art History, Art Criticism, Art Aesthetics.

3. Gesture Drawing

• This is a brief, 30-second drawing that relaxes the drawer and trains you to “draw what you see not what you know”

4. Final Drawing

Instructor Bio

Carrie Finnigan uses a playful approach in painting, printmaking, and drawing of abstracted representations of human figures and nature. Growing up in close proximity to forests and water, she developed an affinity with the outdoors and was fascinated by the human-natural environment conflict.

This youthful interest was formally developed in a B.A. in Fine Art. She delved into artistic practice, honing her preference for using color and line to express emotion. In each of her works, a portion is purposefully left undone to “let the light in.” This engages the imagination of the viewer, providing an opportunity for pause, realization, and a reflection of self. The images Carrie creates are only part of the narrative: “My art, like my mind, works like a ball of yarn. Follow the threads, and all things seemingly random will connect.” The theme of an opening, or common thread, opens up collaboration, an artistic exchange between the artist and observer.

Carrie has also formally trained as a teacher, specializing in Art Education. She teaches workshops to youth and adults to foster the enthusiasm that she has for visual art.

Instagram: @cfinnigan_art