Menu
Log in


Log In

Adult Classes

    • Wednesday, March 13, 2024
    • Wednesday, April 03, 2024
    • 3 sessions
    • 3
    Register

    This is an extension of Ann Musto's winter class. Any questions, please email the office at NorthRiverArts.org.

    • Tuesday, March 19, 2024
    • Tuesday, April 02, 2024
    • 3 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield Hills
    • 0
    Join waitlist

    This fun class is designed for experienced painters working in any medium, who want to explore ways to create more modern, bold, and expressive paintings by taking a less representational approach. Each week we’ll explore ways to employ one of the abstract elements of painting; line, value, color, shape, texture to express an unexpected idea or statement. There will be a short presentation, followed by some simple exercises. This is not a “how to paint” class, rather a place to explore and experiment with fellow artists. We’ll be working independently (using materials of your choice) from still lives and/or photos. There will be a quick critique at the end of every class and “homework”. Any specific materials needed will be emailed each week.

    About the Instructor: Nancy Colella 

    Nancy earned a BA in Fine Art from Muskingum University, then studied painting at the Aegean School of Fine Arts in Paros, Greece and at the Instituto Allende in San Miquel Mexico. After a career in the hospitality business and while raising two children, she resumed her studies at Mass College of Art. She teaches numerous on-line and live workshops throughout New England. She lives in Norwell with her husband and yellow lab Limoncello. 

    Materials List: This is an "open medium" class. Please bring whatever materials you need to use in your medium of choice. Each week, Nancy will email students with any specific needs for upcoming classes. 

    • Sunday, March 24, 2024
    • Sunday, April 14, 2024
    • 2 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield Hills
    • 8
    Register

    Ever wondered how the giant puppets for the Festival of the Arts Puppet Parade are made? Here's your chance to find out! Sally and Michelle will be collaboratively working on a new giant puppet for the 2024 Festival of the Arts, and you can join them in making your own "beakie" head. During the workshop, Sally and Michelle will guide you through the process while simultaneously working on the giant puppet. The session will serve as an open studio for puppet making, with personalized guidance from Sally and Michelle. Additionally, you'll gain insights into creating a giant puppet if you're interested in making one for the 2025 festival.

    Sunday, March 24, 9 am-11:30 am: Creating the Form Bring your own cardboard, boxboard, etc. Sally and Michelle will assist you in creating the form for your beakie head. If time allows, you can start painting your beakie; acrylic paint and brushes will be provided. Take your beakie home and continue working on it at your own pace.

    Sunday, April 14, 9 am-11:30 am: Decorating day! Bring all your craft supplies and share with others to create a unique beakie that is entirely yours. Glue on gems, yarn, fabric, flowers—let your creativity flow! If your beakie isn't finished, no worries! Take it home and continue working on it until the Festival. We invite everyone to join the 2024 Puppet Parade, proudly showcasing their brand new beakie! 


    • Monday, April 01, 2024
    • Monday, May 06, 2024
    • 6 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield MA 02051
    • 5
    Register

    This 6-week class is designed for the beginner and intermediate watercolorist, this course will first provide the fundamentals and then explore the many techniques of watercolor. Artworks may be based on still life setups, photos or your imagination. Emphasis will be on color and design with the goal of creating an original emotional statement.

    About the Instructor: Mary Callahan

    Mary Callahan is a Copley Master in the Copley Society of Art, an Honorary Lifetime Member of the New England Watercolor Society and is a member of many other fine art organizations in Massachusetts and New York. 



    Materials List: 

    •  Paper 
      • 140 lb.  Is a good weight.
      • Paper comes in different surfaces.  I prefer cold pressed or rough. Blocks are the easiest.  If you prefer loose sheets, you will need a board to tape it to.
    • Brushes
      • A one inch flat
      • A 12 and a 10 round
    • Pallet
      • John Pike pallet is a good one
      • Or a heavy butcher tray can be used. 
    • Easels (NRAS has easels for use)
      •  You will need a board to tape your paper to if you are not working on a block.
      •  If you like to work flat you won’t need an easel.
    • Water container
    • Paper towels or tissues
    • Tape
    • Pencil
    • Eraser
    • Sponge
    • Pencil
    • Paint 
      • Cadmium yellow
      • New Gamboge
      • Cadmium red light
      • Alizarin crimson
      • Cobalt Blue
      • French Ultramarine Blue
      • Cerulean Blue

    • Monday, April 01, 2024
    • Monday, May 06, 2024
    • 6 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield Hills
    • 9
    Register

    This 6 week course is a fun Paint-Along-and-Learn art class for beginning adult painters with teacher Dianne Legro. Everything you need to know to get started will be introduced along with easy steps to get you started painting with ease and confidence right away. You will learn about the materials and tools you will need to get started, the types of paints canvas surfaces available, sketching your  thumbnail outline, color mixing and color harmony, composing a painting, brush work and the 4 steps to start any painting. 



    About the Instructor: Dianne Legro

    Dianne is a lifelong teaching artist nationally and internationally who teaches privately, she also enjoys teaching  “Painting Canvas Masterpieces” to children at Inly School.  This Fall we welcome Dianne to our faculty at North River Arts Society. 







    Materials And Supplies List


    • Paint Brushes - 1”flat, #6 or #8 filbert, a #4 round and fan brush. Bring any other brushes you have. 
    • Paints - Cadmium Yellow Medium, Cad. Red Medium, Utramarine Blue, Yellow Ochre, Titanium White, Burnt Umber, Alizarin Crimson.  Please bring what you have as well. 
    • Surfaces - 8x10 canvas panel and 9x12 canvas panels 
    • Extras needed - Paper towels, water container, apron, palate knife, tape, pencil

    • Thursday, April 04, 2024
    • Thursday, May 02, 2024
    • 4 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield MA
    • 0
    Join waitlist

    Throughout the ages artists have studied with and learned from masters of the craft.  In this class we will take 4 artists who’s great skill at painting has been inspirational and influential.  We’ll study the different techniques of 4 different artists, some from history, some from the present time, and examine their techniques, figuring out their particular methods of creating paintings.  With this knowledge we will create our own paintings… either a copy of one of their works, for our own edification, or paint a subject of our choice using their methods.  It will be both fun and challenging and we will all grow from this experience! Best for artists familiar with their medium. 

    Monet, Van GoghEdward HopperColin Page

    *please note, no class during April Vacation*

    This class is along the lines of the book ‘Steal Like An Artist” by Austin Kleon, whose book by the same name is a great addition to any artist’s library.  Join us and explore techniques that will inspire you and push you to grow your own style!


    About the Instructor: Kelley MacDonald 

    After getting her Art History degree at Wheaton College, Kelley continued taking art classes at various Art Associations for 10 years before she started painting.  First with watercolor, then oil and now happily with acrylic and mixed media, it has been a lifetime of growing and exploring all things art.  

    Kelley has won numerous awards, and has taught classes and workshops for many years.  While for the majority of her career Kelley has been a literal, representational painter, in the past 4 years she has been diving into abstraction, particularly Intuitive Abstraction.  The history involved on the canvas, the multiple layers, the reveal and conceal and push and pull are what attracts her to this method. 

    A favorite thing to do is to travel, and be inspired by different landscapes and  cityscapes.  Kelley has traveled to Holland to paint, along with many places on this side of the ocean, namely Nova Scotia, Sedona, Santa Fe, St. Simon’s Island, Seattle, San Miguel de Allende, MX, California and Maine. 

    In 2009 Kelley founded the Artists’ Challenge Group “Girls Just Wanna Paint” which is a collection of award winning artists  who post a response to a new topic every month consecutively since July of 2009. Aside from the Providence Art Club Kelley is a member of the North River Arts Society in Marshfield, MA.  She has taught at the Art Club, Bristol Art Museum, and at North River Arts Society.

    Materials List for Learn From The Masters

    You can choose whatever medium you have experience with. Kelley will be painting with acrylics. You will need:

    A canvas or substrate between 9x12 to 16x20.

    A Sketchbook and ‘paintable’ paper such as canva pads or paper for acrylics, etc. to experiment on.

    In your medium:

    • a warm red (cad red light) and a cool red (alizarin crimson or magenta or rose)
    • A warm blue (pthalo or cerulean) and a cool blue (ultramarine)
    • A warm yellow (cad yellow medium) and a cool yellow (lemon)
    • White and burnt umber and black if you like.

    Paper towels, tubs for water, aprons or painting shirt

    Pencils, ink pen, 

    Bring your open heart and a beginners mind.  All levels familiar with their medium.

    • Tuesday, April 09, 2024
    • Tuesday, May 21, 2024
    • 6 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield MA
    • 10
    Register

    Embark on an exploration of creating a portrait with artist and educator, Lauren Bass. Portraiture, a time honored tradition, is commonly regarded as being exact and difficult. However. over the course of this 6-week class Lauren will breakdown the process into simple steps and tricks that make rendering the head easier and help achieve likeness. Students will enjoy gaining a solid foundation in understanding the structure and solidity of the human head. They will learn essential principles such as proportion, perspective, light logic and color theory. Also discussed will be gesture, composition, edge quality, planar division of the head, comparative measuring, the anatomy of the features and more. This class starts with drawing, progresses to monochromatic painting (grisaille), and culminates in the vibrant world of full-color painting. From week to week we will build our knowledge base. Clear instruction will be given weekly through demonstrations, lectures and handouts. Students can progress at their own pace and will receive individual critiques appropriate to their level.

    “Faces are the most interesting things we see; other people fascinate me, and the most interesting aspect of other people - the point where we go inside them - is the face. It tells it all.”  - David Hockney

    About the Instructor: Lauren Bass

    I have been an artist my entire life, but my path as an artist hasn’t been linear. Whether doodling in the margins of notebooks or sketching at home, I was always drawing as a child. However, the high school I went to didn’t offer art so I had no formal training until college. There I took my first painting class and was hooked. I would observe a still life setup, mixed colors, replicate the abstract shapes and then step a few paces back. Incredibly, there was the image on my canvas. It felt like magic! I found that time stood still when I was painting I was so absorbed! After getting a BA in Humanities, I got a BFA in graphic design and worked in advertising for several years. I put my career on hold when I had children but continued taking painting classes. As my children got older and more independent, I was able to be more serious, paint more frequently and study with many fabulous artists whose work I admired. I sought out some of the best artists in the country that work in my area of interest to study with. Luckily, many live locally.

    Supply list.pdf

    • Wednesday, April 10, 2024
    • Wednesday, April 24, 2024
    • 3 sessions
    • 157 Old Main Street Marshfield MA
    • 8
    Register

    This 3-week class will dive into the world of block printing, covering a crash-course on all things blocks for artists of all sorts who want to bring their creativity to life in the printed world. This class will cover techniques for drawing, carving, and printing block prints on a variety of mediums. Rachel will help you bring to life a block and a variety of prints in different mediums of your own imagination.

    About the Instructor: Rachel Nerger (Ray Prints)

    I started block printing in 2020 when I was looking to reconnect with my creativity outside of the everyday hustle and bustle and a full-time job in finance. I have always been an artist at heart, and have continued to explore new mediums even as I jumped into the professional world.

    Over the past few years, all the hours of drawing, carving, and printing blocks has led me to “launch” Ray Prints where I’ve been able to share my love of block prints with the south shore at different pop ups and markets. I have fallen in love with block printing for the way that it fits into life - it is accessible, affordable and has provided me with hours of escape as I work through each step in creating totally unique pieces of art with each stamp and Speedball carve.

    Materials List:

    (1 per student) 8"x10" block, black ink, rollers and paper provided by NRAS. Students should bring a set of carving tools, Rachel recommends this one for beginners. Rachel also suggests bringing watercolor supplies, different ink colors if you want and any old clothing, canvas bags, etc. that you may want to play around printing on! 

157 Old Main Street
Marshfield Hills, MA 02051
P.O. Box 307

781 837 8091
NorthRiverArts@gmail.com

Office Hours
Mondays - Thursdays, 9am-1pm

North River Arts Society follows the Marshfield Public Schools holiday and cancellation policy.

Connect With Us

© Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved North River Arts Society North River Arts Society is a 501(c)6 nonprofit organization. NRAS Privacy & Safety Policy