The Drawing Studio Inc

The Drawing Studio is a nonprofit, creative arts organization in Tucson, Ariz., that inspires people of all ages and backgrounds to embrace art practice as a pathway to personal growth and healthy community. We offer affordable, fee-based and free classes and workshops, host free events and exhibits, and bring widespread awareness to the positive effects of creativity on individuals and the entire community.

The Drawing Studio (TDS) is a nonprofit visual arts center that brings art, and the benefits of creating art, to our community.

Started in 1992 as a small project to offer instruction and fellowship for artists and students outside traditional institutions, the number and diversity of people served by TDS quickly grew. In the early 2000s our philosophy and model became increasingly rooted around community and social change, which included launching an immersion program for underserved teens (later expanded to include younger children) and establishing our first outreach program for isolated seniors unable to access or afford our regular programs.

In years since, we've continued to grow our programs and impact, spurring our main studio move to a larger, more accessible location in midtown Tucson, and to develop satellite sites throughout Southern Arizona. Today, TDS has a transformational opportunity to build on these past successes and thoughtfully take the next steps of our journey.

At TDS we offer classes and workshops (led by accomplished, well-respected professional artists), host events and exhibits, and foster awareness of - and advocacy for - the positive effects of creative practice. We offer these programs for youth, adults, and seniors, working to ensure that everyone can benefit from art practice as a pathway to personal growth within a supportive creative community.

Broadly speaking, our services include the:

• Adult Programs, which offers a wide variety of classes in drawing, painting, printmaking, and other media;
• Art of Summer immersion and school-year arts programs specifically designed for youth and teens;
• Outreach Art Tutoring for Seniors program held in libraries and group living facilities throughout the region;
• ArtMoves, which integrates instruction in visual art, dance, and other art forms to reconnect people of all ages to artistic expression as a source of healing and strength; and
• Exhibition Program which reaches several thousand viewers through exhibits at our own gallery and at community venues.

In the past year, we have continued our an innovative new program, the Student Opportunity Artist-in-Residency (SOAR) Program. In partnership with local Title I schools, our teaching artists are paired with underserved schools throughout the city: bringing skills, expertise, and high-quality art programming directly into the classrooms of children across Tucson.

Testimonials

"Updated testimonials"

"These classes allowed me to feel comfortable trying something new. I loved it, and learned to look at the world differently." -Drawing Fundamentals student

"At The Drawing Studio, no matter what your age or skill level, you are treated as an artist." -Youth Art of Summer student

"At my age, I never thought I'd say something changed my life, but this program has." -Senior Program student

"If someone told me to rate Tad Lamb's watercolor class from 1-10, I'd give it a 27. Its out of this world fabulous! [Besides the watercolor] people could take this class to learn how to teach art!" - New Watercolor Student

"The Drawing Studio has been an integral part of my development as a person and the expansion of my own consciousness." David Baker