My Summer Vacation...

I was back at the Worcester Art Museum this year for their Summer program. It's kind of split differently for me this year since I'm teaching the first two weeks and I'm not back again until the first week of the second session in August.

However, I got the change to teach a Comic Book Anthology class I had taught a few times in the past called WAM Comics. Occassionally in the past it has been called Comic Book Anthology or something along this line. But the last couple of times I think it's just gone under the moniker of WAM Comics.

It was something actually started by Mark Lynch, who taught cartooning classes as the Worcester Art Museum when I was there. Mark also hosts a Sunday night show on WICN called INQUIRY. Where he talks to an impressive multitude of guests. I've even been on Mark's show on a number of occassions. It's great fun!!

He produced the book very much the old fashioned way of physical cut and paste. Which I did for the first couple of issues.

When I did the class this year, I decided to take advantage of the technology we have nowadays and go the digital route and actually publish the book online.

There have been a number of WAM Comics before this one. But I don't know where this one would fall numerically. So I decided since I'm going a different route for this book, this would be Volume One of the digitally published series.

I also decided to set up a goal and deadline for the students. It was quite simple. They had seven days to finish their pages up in. The minimum amount of pages I would allow would be between five to ten pages. The last two days would be filled with me doing a demonstration how they would digitally cut and paste their work together and the steps to uploading their book online to have it published.

If they met both the deadline and the minimum requirement their comic would be published in the anthology and they would receive a free copy of it.

It was a small class but most took the challenge admirably. And for those who chose to goof off the seven days, they missed out.

The main statement I wanted to convey over that week was that they're never too young to get their work out there. All it takes is dedication and time. And what I had hoped by giving them a physical copy of their work was that they will leave my class and have a desire to publish their own work.

Proceeds made from the sales of the book will go to the Metrowest Humane Society. A place where my wife Syd adopted our cat Ruben. Click on the link below to order your copy today:

WAM Comics: Volume One

Have a talented kiddo? Sign them up for my Cartooning Class!!

Some very good instructors and very good friends seen in the image above.

The class is about a couple weeks away. But there is still time to sign them up for my sign them up for my  Saturday Cartooning Class for 8 to 10 year olds.

What you can expect from this class is ALL things cartoon. Funny animal, superheroes, pop art, character design, comic book art and comic strip art. I even throw in lessons on how to create drawn animation just for good measure.

Although I do incorporate lessons that teach students how to draw established cartoon characters, I try and encourage them to create their own original characters. Or if they DO have a character they created outside the class, I encourage them to work with that character on projects.

I'm even known to create characters on the spot for them to do a cartoon style story with. Some of the results I've found highly entertaining and even more inventive than I could have possibly imaged.

You can either stop by the Worcester Art Museum when an archaeological team finally unearth the roads from all the snow we got last night and today or you can sign them up by clicking on the link below:

Drawing For Cartoons 8-10 years

Classes can fill up quck so don't delay!!

Winter Classes at WAM

My classes for the Winter Session are officially up and running on the Worcester Art Museum website. Both classes are going to be taking place on Saturdays. I will be teaching The Art of the Cartoon for 8 - 10 Years in the morning and Heroes, Villains and Creatures for 5 - 7 Years in the afternoon.

There is also time to sign up for my December Workshops as well. Spaces tend to fill up quickly so click on the link below sign up today:

Youth Art Classes at WAM!!

Please feel free to print this off and pass it along to anyone who has a talented kiddo or teeno who wants to take an art class!!

Still time to sign up for Traditional Animation!!

Classes start tomorrow and there's still time to sign up your teen for my Traditional Animation class this Fall!! It's going to be a lot of fun as they not only learn out to create their own hand drawn animations, they will also learn the history of traditional animation as well.

It was a class I had the privilege of taking when I was a teen and I am very thrilled to be teaching it at WAM now :-)

Traditional Animation 14 - 17 Years
Combine traditional drawn animation with technology. Design and illustrate your own story from panel to panel. Using computer programs, watch your story come to life.

Click on the link below to sign up:

December Workshops at WAM

Well, there's no time like the present to mention that I have four one day workshops coming up in December:

Comic Art 8 - 10 Years 12/28/2009 12/28/2009 Monday from 10:00 AM to 12 N
Comic Art 11 - 13 Years 12/29/2009 12/29/2009 Tuesday from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Tour the galleries and discover how artists tell stories through their work. In the studio, create your own characters with their own comic adventures.

Mural Painting 8 - 10 Years 12/29/2009 12/29/2009 Tuesday from 10:00 AM to 12 N
Mural Painting 11 - 13 Years 12/30/2009 12/30/2009 Wednesday from 10:00 AM to 12 N
With your instructor as a guide make a larger-than-life painting with your classmates.

Click on the link below to sign up today:

Summer classes at WAM

My list of summer classes is available:

July Workshops

The Art of the Cartoon 8 - 10 Years 07/06/2009 07/17/2009 M, Tu, W, Th, F from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM, 10 Sessions 18

Comic Art 8 - 10 Years 07/20/2009 07/31/2009 M, Tu, W, Th, F from 10:00 AM to 12 N, 10 Sessions 18

August Workshop

Drawing For Animation 11 - 13 Years 08/03/2009 08/07/2009 M, Tu, W, Th, F from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM, 5 Sessions 18

Pop Art Painting 11 - 13 Years 08/03/2009 08/07/2009 M, Tu, W, Th, F from 10:00 AM to 12 N, 5 Sessions 18

To register, click on the link below:

Open Studios at WAM was great!!

If you didn't happen to show up to take part in Open Studios at the Worcester Art Museum, you missed a really great time. Jamie Buckmaster and I were onhand doing art based activities for people who either had kiddo's suffering from cabin fever because the schools were closed or without electricity.

The results were some really great projects and a lot of fun!!

If you missed your chance today, hopefully you will be able to stop in tomorrow before the snow starts to fly. You and the kiddo's will have a blast!!