BEST art class in the Bay Area! If you're serious about improving your technical skills in drawing…read moreand painting, and want to create works that resemble the old masters', this is the place for you! I came here last summer (I haven't been back since due to school, unfortunately), but this place is amazing! You get one-on-one personal instruction with the wonderful grandfatherly instructor, David Hardy, who you can always strike up interesting conversations with! He was reading us a book on Southern Belle manners in a mock-Southern accent while we were drawing at one point, which was so funny! It's a serious class, but not stuffy, and it's a great experience! I hope to be able to come back in the future and improve some more!

The Atelier is an incredible school, one unlike any other in the Bay Area. Between the owner David…read moreHardy, instructor Rob Anderson, and the students, there is so much raw -ability- compressed into that small studio! And it rubs off on you! I have been a student here for six months, and in that time I have seen my work reach new heights of depth and realism. I've learned a new way of -seeing-, of using my materials, that I can hardly recognize my work from last year as belonging to me. When you enroll at this school, rather than simply throw you in 'art 101', what happens is that the instructors will sit down with you, talk with you, and spend a good while getting to know you personally and figuring out where you're at, developmentally speaking, in your artwork. Then when they're pretty sure of where you need to be, you're set up with a station all of your own, and you can begin working. And not in grim silence, either - while it's still quiet enough to work, there's usually conversation, and music. It puts you at ease. And that's possibly my favorite thing about this school - the atmosphere at the Atelier is very friendly, with every student an ally and friend who can help you figure out any difficulties you might be having and provide another point of view. You don't have to feel isolated. There are two separate, slightly different courses taught. The students in the daytime hours study under Rob Anderson, who I have not yet had a chance to learn from. My experience comes from the evening classes, the Old Master program. Which is, as it happens, taught by the old master himself, David Hardy. This program is designed to transition you smoothly from drawing, to monochromatic oil stains, to limited color painting, to full color painting, over the course of about two or three years. You'll be working from still life arrangements and plaster casts of sculptures, under lamps which replicate the spectrum of sunlight, but you have the option of coming on certain other days of the week and working from live models. The student sets his or her own pace - when you seem to be ready to move to the next phase of the program, you do so. there's no waiting for the following semester. There's so much I could go on about regarding this school. Since I've enrolled, I've made more friends than I ever did when I took classes at Laney, or Berkeley City College, or even the Academy of Art. I've never, not once, felt like I was going it alone. And that's such a rare and valuable thing. This school is really special.

My 6-years-old son likes the drawing classes at Art Corner Academy. I took him there in late April…read morethis year when I saw him not knowing what to do with his drawing project at school. The instructor Susan is excellent. She is well-knowledged and talented in illustrations, picture books, and wall paintings. She is very patient and knows how to teach. As a beginner, Susan asks my son to do one drawing project including coloring in each class which lasts about one hour. He likes the achievement when he finishes. He has gained great confidence in drawing after several classes. He now loves drawing!

My 8 years old has been taking Saturday morning classes with Mr Doug. She really enjoys every class…read moreand always brings back masterpieces! Mr Doug is a truly amazing with children. He is passionate about teaching young artists. Mr Doug is also a nice person to chat with, always patient with everyone.

My 12-year-old has been taking art classes with Doug for several years now. There was the lost…read moreCOVID stretch, of course. To give you a sense of how much my kid loves this art class, I'll say this: There were precisely two things she missed the most during COVID, and that was going to Disneyland and Doug's Sunday morning art classes. Doug is really knowledgeable--I did art reviews at the Rhode Island School of Design for a while, so I have a sense of elements that make up art. Doug knows this really well, and this allows him to help people develop their art. Because he can break down what makes art, he can demystify the process for his students. Doug's intelligence really shines through when he helps his students focus on technique. Doug is also incredibly terrific with kids. He's not some dictator or sergeant. He gives gentle advice (again, advice that is *really* smart), and he knows how to push, how to inspire, and how to let a kid's imagination run. He's patient and calm, and he smiles and laughs. This is a person who really does love art, and he wants to share that love with others. Dropping my kid off at Doug's place, I see kids who are younger, teens, and adults. He has a capacity to speak to each of these age groups. It's impressive, and we're really appreciative that our kid gets to attend his classes.

I took a ten-week session of private lessons with Trius in drawing and watercolors/acrylic and I…read morefeel it has brought a dramatic improvement in my visual thinking. Trius is a hands-on teacher, and gives you the right amount of guidance without being patronizing, which I think is very important. His passion is palpable in his instructions, and his discussions and examples from the masters have been very informative to a beginner like me. At times, when I've given up on a sketch that I've been working on, he has motivated me to keep at it. He is immensely patient, has a keen eye for problem areas and gives constant feedback, which was highly encouraging for me throughout the classes. His knowledge is immense, and he focusses on the fundamentals and gives you a solid foundation to build on, which I think is the most important reason I'd recommend him over other instructors. Besides being a great teacher, he is a wonderful artist and his works are an inspiration in itself. And as another review mentioned, he is a very very interesting person to talk to :)

I took private drawing and pastel lessons from Trius for well over a year, and I think my work…read moreimproved greatly during that time. Trius is classically trained but not hidebound, and he is willing to help you work on the areas you choose. I always learned from his assignments, and he had lots of useful book recommendations, as well. He is very patient, and can teach at all levels, from very young children to experienced adults. I had already had years of college-level art classes before I started working with him, but he had a lot to contribute. I always felt his plans for our lessons were personalized to me. He was very inspiring, and encouraged me to work. I would definitely recommend him as a drawing teacher. In addition, he's just a very interesting person to talk to!

I took a 6 week intro to pottery course here and overall had a good time. The location is solid and…read morethe building is really beautiful. The front opens up into this garden area which is amazing in the summer, but in winter the studio gets pretty cool so your pieces take longer to dry The class was good but stayed pretty surface level. The space itself is super clean and organized though, and they have a great selection of glazes which was nice. They also offer memberships and more advanced classes if you want to keep going. Overall I'm looking forward to taking more classes there in the future.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Space is beautiful, but the classes are mixed level and should be better marketed to the correct…read morelevel so that if you are a beginner, you get the right level of instruction

My child learned new techniques and mediums at this establishment. When the owner was still the…read moreinstructor it was a better environment. My child came home with some nice pieces when the owner was the instructor. The owner has since retired. Assistant Kathryn took over all instruction. Kathryn clearly has some personal issues that needs to be taken care of privately, not taken out on children and parents. EVERYONE has problems. No one needs to hear about how you taking over this business is stressful and that your husband is sick and that you have to take care of them. I take care of my father in last stages of Parkinson's but Im not screaming that at every Tom, Dick and Harry. If you want your child( (12 years old) to be told to their face in front of you, that your child does't take art seriously and that they will be a failed artist, then go throw away your money here. Why kill a child's spirit, confidence and ambitions? My child had no idea what she had done wrong. If you do not enjoy helping/working with children then you should not do this category of work!! My child has found great success at Kala Art Institute, Kids "n" Clay, Liv & Chiu and the Richmond Art Center and Academy of Art College SF programs. I told several families looking for drawing education to go to Monart in which this provided new revenue for them. I have no idea if the business owner has knowledge of this behavior. I have never reviewed anything before, but felt this needed to be.

I love Monart! Ms. Mona the owner is extremely talented and has a great method for teaching any and…read moreall ages and skill levels how to draw. I took some of her classes (someone who takes pride in the fact that I can't even draw stick figures) and I was able to easily follow Ms. Mona's instructions while enjoying myself. Previous comments mention Katherine, an assistant for Monart who is NO LONGER with the program. I have been involved with Monart for years and they have a zero tolerance policy for behaviors such as what Katherine had been demonstrating. While the owner does currently live in an assisted living situation (also previously mentioned in other comments), she has recently expanded her Monart crew with some AMAZING individuals. I highly suggest if you are considering signing up yourself or your kiddos for art classes to go with Monart and her methodology.

Summer runs a great program! My daughter came back from her session glowing and enthused about the…read moreproject they worked on. She went in nervous about sewing and came out confident and curios to do more. All the kids with her seemed to also have a great time. Summer was easy to work with and has a great rapport with the kids. I am looking forward to another visit!

We enjoyed our time at the awesome Print Festival taking place at the Kala Art Gallery & Community…read moreClassroom this past Saturday, which included Heinz Print Studio tours, print demos, and a gallery exhibition with art vendors and displays. So many different rooms and workshops to engage in and explore, including quilt making in the Textile Lab and a ceramic sgraffito workshop in the Sculpture Lab. We even got printing done on a tote bag we were able to take home for free. Though we also made a couple purchases while there, including a lovely print by artist Quinn Keck, "It's All About Attention", a unique and interesting piece which includes lots of bunnies if you look closely :D All of the vendors and artists here were so friendly, and definitely talented and passionate about their work. We had a pleasant experience, and loved the venue for this free event at the Kala Art Institute.

Had a very disappointing experience with my oil painting class . Attended only 2 sessions out of…read morethe 4 session only because I am not learning anything. It's like a fend for yourself. Learn on your own. There was no teaching of techniques especially for beginners like me who knows nothing about painting. It was a waste of money which is not cheap and I didn't even get reimbursed when I told them about my situation. I was just completely ignored. I had to make my own research and learned more from you tube and other websites which has given me more information and a lot of advices and techniques which could help develop my painting skills. I highly not recommend this class..