This week was the second teen session of the summer and the projects that the campers completed this week were detailed and expressive. I loved watching them develop into finished pieces! The structure of Teen Camp is similar to that of the Young Masters Camp, with a few variations. The camp is in session from Wednesday to Friday and campers can work on the same project for the entirety of the camp, allowing them to produce detailed final works of art. 

In the morning and afternoon, there are two groups of campers with very different projects. In the morning, the two sessions were called Plant Creature and Lino Block Party. In the Plant Creature class, the campers were given small terracotta pots and epoxy clay to create creatures that are emerging from or living in the pots. Throughout the week they decorated their creatures with paint, marbles, random beads, and any other materials they felt would develop the personality of their creature. The Lino Block Party class was taught by a former high school art teacher who has taught the craft of printmaking to her classes in the past. Each student was given a piece of foam on which to practice their design by imprinting the negative space of the design that they would like to print. After practicing their design, each camper was given a block of linoleum and specialized carving tools to complete the creation of their stamp. 

The afternoon sessions were called Here, Fishy Fishy and Dessert Party. Here, Fishy Fishy was taught by the Plant Creature class artist, who led the campers through the creation of individual fish sculptures, each with unique appearances. This artist instructor specializes in detailed, unconventional sculpture work, often centering around the theme of Halloween, and the campers leaned into this style. Dessert Party was also a sculpting class. In this class, campers fashioned large-scale replicas of their favorite sweet treats out of cardboard and expanding foam, and then painted their work to add detail and dimension. 

Project-wise, this session has been my favorite. Each camper has produced such amazing, detailed work, and their creativity and individuality has been incredibly inspiring. I love seeing how each teen’s personality and individuality shine through in their art. 

Next week will be our final week with campers, a Young Masters Camp themed RecyclArt. Each lesson centers around the idea of using recycled or repurposed materials for their projects. We have several campers from previous weeks returning for the final week of camp and I am so excited to see some familiar faces again!