It's my only source for taking classes. It def has a preference for pottery over paintingread more

My history with IS-183 goes back 23 years with our introduction at the time of my impending…read moredivorce. I was thrilled, to say the least, when I found the Open Sketch group. So many fantastic, working artists and then me; untrained with only a desire to create. I couldn't have been more welcomed receiving suggestions, directions and good old fashioned comradery. All n a serene New England setting. What a wonderful place to send children and young adults for a creative summer! I love IS-183 with is sensational energy. Highly recommended.

I applied to Bard, got in, and it was in my top ten, but ultimately, I didn't feel a deep…read moreconnection to the college when I spent a weekend there. It was the EXACT opposite experience when I visited Hampshire College (which is why Hampshire was my top choice and is now my Alma Mater) comparatively. I also found Western Massachusetts FAR more beautiful than the Hudson Valley. Bard's campus is indeed beautiful, BUT, isolated in my opinion. It's a single institution, surrounded by small hamlets of towns. It's fairly close to some good skiing at Hunter Mountain (skiing in New England is better) than a lot of the Catskill Mountains though, if you ask me. I prefer the Adirondacks. All that aside, Bard just didn't "connect" with me entirely. I don't think it was the right college for me, but it does have a GORGEOUS campus.

A remote place, even though it's only a couple of hours' drive from NYC. The students are for the…read moremost part personable and well prepared, and the faculty has many stars on it. They just lost President Botstein, though, so the college's future seems uncertain.

Catskills secret getaway art center with world-class workshops, and public classes. I was surprised…read moreto see the lineup of some of the best artists in the field of ceramics on their roster. Not only does it feel lucky to have access to these artists, but the workshops are also surprisingly affordable. The on-campus housing is clean, private, and affordable, as well. Because workshops take place in Summertime, in an area that is typically a wintertime destination, there are plenty of good restaurants, accommodations, and extra activities to do while in the area. Grateful to have found this place. This will be my third workshop here.

I took another wonderful oil painting weekend with Eileen Murphy! learned much from Eileen and…read morewatched her paint perfect landscapes! thanks Eileen for sharing your gift with us! Your guidance and instruction were inspiring and motivating! Maria Elena Papson

How can i forget Women's Studio Workshop???…read more There's no way I could gush enough praise of this place that would come close to describing how wonderful it is! gosh, where do i start?? 1) The studios: They transformed an old hardware store from the 1800s into a two story art studio that includes areas for: paper-making, printmaking, letter pressing, bookbinding, ceramics, photography and silk screening. It's set in the woods and surrounded by nature 1 mile outside the small, Hudson Valley town of Rosendale, NY. 2) The artist opportunities: They offer fellowships, studio rentals, residencies, paid-internships and grants for artists (mainly women, but not exclusively female) to come use their studios and create work. --- I, myself, was accepted as a studio intern and lived and worked on the premises for 6 months in the fall of 2005. I learned more in that six months then i did in 4.5 years in art school. 3) Classes: For artists who don't have the time to take off 4-6 weeks to work as a fellow or resident The Summer Arts institute offers 3-5 day classes (lunch included) in all of the studios areas: paper-making, printmaking, letter pressing, bookbinding, ceramics, photography and silk screening. 4) The women: Ann, Tana and Anita (the founders and owners) are all talented artists, friendly, compassionate and inspiring women. ... for everything i missed their website is a wealth of additional detailed information on classes and artist opportunities: http://wsworkshop.org/ .... sigh... I have a little piece of my heart set aside for this place.

From the owner: Women's Studio Workshop is a visual arts organization that runs residency and internship programs,…read moreintensive Summer Art Institute workshops, year-round ceramics classes, an award-winning art education program, and a sustainable ArtFarm for growing papermaking fibers. Since 1974, WSW has operated studios for printmaking, hand papermaking, silkscreen, ceramics, letterpress, photography, and book arts.

I debated quite a long time about whether I should write a review about our experience at Woodland…read moreHill (WH). After talking to so many other parents that experienced and are experiencing similar issues as we did. I would feel remiss to not help another family trying to make a difficult decision to either put in or remove their child from WH. WH has a beautiful property and facade, there are some good people that work there. However, that is where my praise for WH stops. There are a few main issues that I and others have had with WH that I feel should be shared. They do not give you a good idea where your child is academically. There are very few points of contact from the teachers. They send home 2 very vague progress reports a year with "WH language" by which I mean they tend to use words that are very neutral or ambiguous. The 2 parent teacher conferences throughout the year are very short, and there is little time to discuss. When I was able to meet with the teacher, they would revert to a thing my child said which seemed to divert any attention from the teacher. Every meeting we had they said the same thing, anything else they said was generic and neutral. Multiple parents that I have spoken with that left the school were astonished about how far their child was behind. They were embarrassed to not have noticed it and had to hire tutors. More importantly. There is a MAJOR BULLYING PROBLEM. The concerns that I had brought up to the teachers were actually about bullying and not academics. Again, these concerns were brushed off with generic language like talking to a politician. We were assured that a specialist was going through every class, and urged to wait for that to happen. It was months before that specialist got to our classroom, and nothing changed. Several parents have contacted us with the same issue, asking to get together so that our children can play so they can feel better after being bullied all day in school. For two years my child told me when he walked into the school that he felt "empty inside". They would come home and tell us that it was the worst year of their life. They saw a child from WH and literally ran and hid because of how they had been treated. You can see the school trying to bring in faculty to address this problem. Ironically from my experience, the faculty that were tasked with this were the same faculty that clearly had no experience in child education and were the very faculty that made my child afraid and uncomfortable to walk into the school daily. There is a yearly fundraiser for WH where they hire a professional auctioneer. There are people that pay $30,000 for a reserved parking spot, that you will never see a car in. Do you really think they would tell the parent of that child that they were bullying other children or do anything about it? What some other parents said to me rang so true. WH is more like a daycare than a school. Sure, some children will thrive in this environment, and WH will be sure to prop them up on a pedestal when contested. If for any reason you are trying to decide if you should make a financial sacrifice to give your children, then I urge you to not make this choice. WH will make you feel like you can't get an education anywhere else, and if your child leaves you are doing them a huge disservice. It is a multi-level marketing \ cult mentality. Once you see through it is nothing but BS. If this review sounds jaded. It is. The experiences I was promised from WH were all false. They claim that the older children will build the younger children up, bring up their confidence, and foster a love of learning. In reality, mine's confidence and spirit was crushed. My child was frozen with panic, forced to skip recess and lunch. These false promises go right down the extra curriculars. You sign up for a cooking class and make brownie mix from a box. Leaving the school was the best decision we ever made for our child, and they are finally healing from the years of turmoil by attending there.

I'm grateful every day that we found WHMS! Where do I start?…read more This school encompasses everything that is good about Montessori school---they teach kindness and self-sufficiency and self-directed learning. My daughter learns so much there every day. Her teacher, Nancy, is the embodiment of calm and awesomeness--she's like a Zen master! We visited another school and my three year old daughter cried through the entire visit. When we visited Woodland Hill, she was calm and happy and said, "Mom, I really want to go to school there." I love their values around sustainability, peace, and treating others with respect. The school itself is exceedingly well-run, organized, and structured (in a good way). I feel that it is the best of all worlds, and the tuition is beyond reasonable for what they offer. There's a great community of families; I haven't met one single person I don't like, and people really work together. It's fun getting to being a part of this.

We arrived well after the school was closed and there was no one here. I'd read on…read morehttps://www.atlasobscura.com/places/woodstock-school-of-art-sculpture-garden about the sculptures and so we managed to find our way. To the right of the school building, there's a "Welcome to our Sculpture Park and Nature Tail" sign but not much nearby. Yep, the nature trail part and you'll end up walking at least a half mile and maybe more before you start to spot the sculptures on a trail that branches off to the right. If you're here in the warmer weather, you'll want to be prepared with some bug repellent spray as they were all around us today. But we managed to find the sculptures and enjoyed the trail. I'm definitely a fan. Note that there is going to be limited cell coverage in this part of Woodstock, so as always, bring a friend when you're hiking! [Review 11493 overall, 1273 of 2019.]

Wonderful instructors, knowledgeable and welcoming. Wide variety of classes to choose from and the…read morestaff is so helpful. Easy to register on line and a wide variety of basic classes and advanced classes, depending upon where you are in your practice. A mix of professional artists continuing to hone or learn new media and first time or returning artists who have had other careers. Fantastic environment and equipped studios.

Wow! What a gem of a place to have arts and crafts! I love the program here, and I wish I had found…read moreout about it much sooner. They offer a lot of classes, from small children to adults! The staff are all incredibly friendly, and they are very flexible in accommodating to your needs. I took a pottery class for three weeks, and I had a blast! It was incredibly fun, and the instructor was super awesome! I really loved it. I wish I had more time to work with the instructors, but my schedule did not allow. Love the friendly atmosphere, and I got to meet so many creative people while practicing during the open studio hours. I do wish they had longer hours so it was more convenient for me schedule, but I understand this was mainly fitted around school-going children. They have a lot of cool workshops for kids, and the instructors are all very amazing from the art that I see the kids produce. There are so many different things they offer! They also allow adults a lot of resources and space to exercise their own creative projects, which I think is excellent. Everything is pretty reasonable, too! I definitely I wish I had found this place sooner! Their mascot cat is also incredibly friendly, and I adore her!

We just had a birthday party for my daughter here. It was great! Karen (the owner) did a great job…read moreleading the kids through three little projects. All of the kids really had a lot of fun. Everyone left with big smiles. Hopefully, we'll be back again for some open studio time.

Drove around campus after having lunch in Poughkeepsie, beautiful little campus right next to the…read moreHudson River, some beautiful buildings on campus.

Another bummer for the college search. Great admissions presentation, very nice campus, admissions…read moretour guide was great, but there was such an unfriendly vibe on campus it turned my son off. Twice we saw girls look at the tour group and roll their eyes in disgust and while on tour there wasn't a single friendly hello from students walking around the campus. It's a shame because Marist has some great programs and was close enough for my son to come home once in a while. They say you can't make a second first impression and vibe from the current students we saw walking around just didn't make the place seem like the right fit. I'm 100% SURE this isn't the entire student body, but it is what it is. The search continues...

I decided to take a sewing class this summer because I already had an interest in fashion and had…read morebeen gifted a sewing machine, but I had no idea where to start. Nerissia made sewing accessible and fun. The environment was very friendly, and I felt comfortable asking questions. We had multiple fun projects, including making a sweatshirt and a skirt. All the things we were taught have helped me do my own projects and have given me the confidence to take on my own sewing projects. Since the class, I can now read patterns, easily follow sewing videos on YouTube, and troubleshoot issues I may run into with my personal sewing machine! If you've ever thought that sewing may be something you'd love, give it a try!

From the owner: Life's too short to sew alone in a corner. Welcome to SiaDezigns and Workroom, where you don't…read morehave too! Our design studio is filled with sewing tools, awesome design books, and friendly faces. Whether you're a beginner or a pro, young or old, everyone's welcome. No experience required—join our community and take a class today