SUMMER IS HERE….NAA is the central address for the ARTS

The Naples Art Association (NAA) is celebrating 21 years of inspiring young artists through ARTScool and
ARTScool2U. These STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) based programs offers children ages 5 to 14 years old the opportunity to be creative and meet new friends – all while learning. Participants enjoy courses like Magical Realism, Uno, Dos, Tres, Arte Ole!, Bugs & Botanicals, Styled Sculpture and Florida Wildlife, along with favorites CLAYScool and Photoshop Fun.

To reinforce the connection between art and science, this year ARTScool will partner with Logiscool to offer coding classes for all ages. These  classes will be available during the weeks of July 29 and August 5.  ARTScool runs weekly from June 3 through August 5, with two class times daily – one in the morning from 9:00 a.m. to Noon and one in the
afternoon from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Classes are $125 per student per week for one class or $250 per week for  two classes.

According to ARTScool parent, Letitia Accarrino, “My daughter Charlotte, who is 11, has taken part in ARTScool  classes for the past four summers. She mainly takes CLAYScool classes with Mrs. Nesbit, but she has also taken Acrylic Painting for kids,  Watercolor Wonders, and Just You, Me and the Beautiful Sea. Her favorite thing about ARTScool is that she has the time to indulge her creativity without rushing. I tell friends all the time that ARTScool is a mellow, relaxed, fun, and creative way for kids to spend time together, to learn about and enjoy art and creativity.”

New this year, the NAA will be exhibiting a kid friendly exhibition in all of the ground floor galleries. The exhibition will feature artwork on loan from the Children’s Museum of Naples (C’MON) and the NAA’s collection. Families will be able to enjoy artwork that showcase animals or children along with interactive play areas in the gallery. To help foster an appreciation of the visual arts, the exhibition will be hung at a child’s eye level and there will be themed activities to guide families through the exhibition.

Join us on Friday, July 12 for the opening reception starting at 4:00pm. The exhibition will be on view from July 15-August 2, 2019. Participation in the arts is beneficial in helping students achieve higher grades, develop critical thinking skills and become tomorrow’s leaders in our creative economy. To this end, the Naples Art Association  has partnered with Collier County Public Schools to offer ARTScool2U to over 400 students attending summer programs in their schools.

ARTScool2U offers the same great STEAM program free to economically challenged students in these Title 1 schools. “We can only offer this opportunity because of the support of our community” says Aimee Schlehr, Executive Director. Fundraisers like “For the Love of Art” and “Scene to be Seen” provide the necessary monetary support that allow us to offer these programs free of charge. If you are new to the community and want to get involved there is still time.

We invite you to visit https://shop.naplesart.org/donate and pledge $125 to sponsor one child for a half day of ARTScool classes for a week or $250 to sponsor one child for a full day of ARTScool classes for a week. 

You may also contact Elle Young, development manager, at Elle.Young@NaplesArt.org or 239.262.6517, ext. 107 to pledge your support.