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541.773.1444        101 N. Central Ave. Medford, Oregon 97501
MON-FRI: 10-6 | SAT: 10-5 | SUN: Closed

ELDER: Youth Workshop (ages 12-18) - Expressive Portraits in Pastel with Jenay Elder



Join a five-day intensive workshop with artist Jenay Elder, designed to provide pastel and portrait drawing techniques to youth while practicing and exploring self-expression. Classes are two hours each, for five consecutive Saturdays.
 
With generous funding through The Haines and Friends Visual Arts Grant Program, these classes are offered to the community at no cost with priority given to youth who can make all five classes.
 
Over the course of five days of instruction, students will brainstorm, design, and complete an expressive self-portrait with provided artist-grade pastels. The portraits may use realism, symbolism, color, and expressive strokes to convey how they feel.
 
As a celebration of their creativity Central Art will host a Third Friday Portrait Art exhibition (TBA).
Instructor Name:
Jenay Elder
Instructor Bio:
Painter Jenay Elder (b.1985) resides in Southern Oregon where her impressionistic oil paintings are known for their textured notes of color, representational quality, and sensitive subject matter. Jenay sold her first Monet-inspired, impressionistic landscape online at the age of fifteen in 2001 and has been making and selling art ever since. Her artwork can be found in regional gallery shows and plein air events as well as in private collections around the world. She is a recent recipient of the Haines Foundation grant and has participated in numerous paint-outs and shows, including the UVAA 30 under 30 exhibit.

Jenay grew up in a family that moved more often than not, living up and down the Pacific Northwest in places like Anchorage Alaska, Spokane Washington, and San Diego California. Her childhood shaped her mind?s eye with fields of wild daisy flowers while getting lost on unruly bike rides. These experiences helped build sensitivity to nature and allowed her time to soak in stillness with imagination. This deep appreciation of nature brought her to the art of picture making where subjects are depicted with insight and familiarity. During her process, she attempts to express to others the joy that life offers by being present.

Jenay developed a sharp eye for portrait drawing after studying cast and figure drawing with Soviet-trained teachers at The Ashland Academy of Art. Since graduating from the Academy (2010) she has pursued plein air painting and specialized workshops with today's leading artists. This practice has further shaped her artistic vision.

In 2020 Jenay lost her studio and home in the Almeda wildfire in Talent Oregon. She estimates the loss of several hundred paintings, as well as academic studies. Since then, Jenay has taken some time to rebuild her painting and set up a new outlook and direction with her art. Jenay often teaches locally through studio to school programs and privately. Her teaching style is to balance encouragement and creativity with take-away fundamentals and technique.

ELDER: Youth Workshop (ages 12-18) - Expressive Portraits in Pastel with Jenay Elder

Cost:
$ FREE
5 Sessions