Summer Art Camp 2023

ICA San Diego offers camps at our two locations in Encinitas and Balboa Park.

Our camps are designed to promote mental health and inspire creativity. The benefits of an art practice will be taught on a small-scale by our talented teaching artists during your week-long camp. Your young artist will have the opportunity to see art and be inspired by working artists on view in our galleries.

Mastering the art of summer fun!

Young artists are invited to develop their creativity in a museum setting through our popular Art Camps. During each one-of-a-kind week of project-based camps, young people have the opportunity to explore various art materials, acquire new art-making techniques, and develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills under the guidance of a teaching artist.

Each summer, ICA San Diego hosts six sessions camps offering different art experiences based on current art trends. Beyond progressing in their art, students spend time outdoors either exploring Balboa Park (ICA San Diego / Central) or around our 6-acre of natural preserve (ICA San Diego / North), meet new friends, and leave each day with lifelong memories.

Scholarships available here!

General Camp Information

Scroll down to select a week

Monday – Friday
9:00 am – 2:00 pm (Drop off begins at 8:45)
June 20, 2023 – August 4, 2023

(no camp on Monday, June 19 in honor of the Juneteenth holiday, no camp the week of July 4)

Aftercare offered from 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Keep the fun going with an artsy Aftercare, includes one extra craft activity and a snack.

Weekly Price: $80 / 4 Days $70 / 1 Day: $20

Discounts

ICA Member save 10% – Log in and use ICAMEMBERSAVE code

If you are not an ICA Member you can sign up here. After your membership purchase, you will receive your 10% unique discount code with you membership confirmation email. (Different from the one published here).

Early Bird discount (through February 28) save 5% – Use EARLYBIRDCAMP code

Purchase 2 or more camps and save an additional 5% each – Use MULTICAMP code

Discounts can be combined. Apply discount codes at the bottom of your shopping bag page before checkout.

End of Summer Camp Celebration: August 19, 2023, from 12-2 pm at ICA San Diego / North

We believe art has the power to inspire change and create a better future for all of us. Welcoming all campers, parents, grandparents, and members of the community for an unforgettable summer event with the family to view work by campers and enjoy music, entertainment, food trucks, and more!

Our End of Summer Camp Celebration at ICA San Diego / North located in Encinitas includes work by artists from the ICA San Diego / Central and ICA San Diego / North camps.

ICA San Diego / North

1550 S El Camino Real Encinitas, CA 92024

Summer Art Camp at our North location in Encinitas includes access to our 6-acre property including our beautiful garden and Sculpture Trail hikes. Please click on the (+) sign to choose a week and then click register here.

5-7 years

8 - 10 years

Teens (11-13)

Teens (14-17)

Week 1: June 20 – 23 - Sold out!

Under The Sea!

This imaginative camp will focus on creating underwater seascapes and the creatures that live within. Campers will use painting, drawing, stamping, and sculptural techniques to create underwater scenes. Dip into this watery week of fun, art, and more!

Skills

Learn how to engage in self-directed, creative art-making.
Make art or design with various art materials and tools to explore marine life, personal interests, and curiosities.
Perceive and describe aesthetic characteristics of one’s natural world and constructed environments.
Use observation and investigation in preparation for making a work of art, and brainstorm to generate multiple approaches to an art or design problem.

Price

$280 / $252 ICA Members
Includes materials

 

Register here

Register here
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Week 2: June 26th - 30th - Sold Out!

Fantastic Animals

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

In this camp kids will learn about fantastic animals used by famous artists in paintings, sculptures, and photography. They will be able to create their fantasy adventures and let their imagination soar. 

Skills:

  • Explore the world using imaginative and expressive art-making.
  • Using innovative thinking, students will create artwork that explores wildlife, the natural world, and their personal perceptions of nature.
  • Practice interpreting the purpose of an artwork by identifying and describing the subject matter.
  • Gain experience in drawing, sculpting, and painting.  

Register here

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Week 3: July 10th - 14th - Sold out!

Hiking through San Diego

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

For nature lovers, this adventurous week will take campers on an exploration of San Diego’s beautiful and unique ecosystem, hiking across campus. Under supervised instruction, campers will observe local plant and animal life while producing artistic journals, collages, and plein air painting. 

Skills:

  • Develop a work of art based on observations of surroundings.
  • Practice using observations to describe patterns in the natural world in order to answer scientific questions.
  • Learn to translate their observations into a drawing, painting, or collage. 

Register here

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Week 4: July 17th - 21st - Sold out!

Sun, sand, and waves

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

A wonderful spot to spend the summer! Before diving into an ocean teeming with fascinating sea life, virtually explore the seashore’s tidal pools, sandcastles, and seashells inspired by the beautiful beaches and spectacular sunsets of San Diego while learning collage techniques, painting, miniature installations, and more.

Skills:

  • Develop their skills in collaging, compositional planning, and using texture and color to create patterns.
  • Uncover information about local marine life and develop understandings of how humans interact with the natural world.
  • Engage in exploration and imaginative play with various arts materials.

Register here

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Week 5: July 24th - 28th

Exploring Nature

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Campers will jump into a world-wide expedition, virtually exploring the different types of biomes that make up our world – forests, deserts, tundras, and how to help preserve them! They will draw inspiration from these biomes to produce their own artworks, using a variety of materials including paint, sculpture, and found objects. 

Skills:

  • Learn the relationship between the needs of different plants or animals (including humans) and the places they live.
  • Through experimentation, students will build skills in various media and approaches to art-making. 

Register here

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Week 6: July 31st - August 4th - Sold out!

Music From Around the World

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Instruments made by campers will represent the numerous nations they virtually travel to. Drawing, painting, collage, and instrument-building will be done with traditional and mixed media. 

Skills:

  • Through making and observing art, students will learn about the lives of people of different times, places, and cultures.
  • Gain experience in handling supplies, making choices, and problem-solving to create artworks.

Register here

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Week 1: June 20th - 23th - Sold out!

FUNctional Art

Price: Price: $280/$252 ICA Members (includes materials) (Only 4 days )

Campers in this week will explore the innovative side of art! Using a variety of approaches, students will create functional art projects that utilize materials in a new way. Old t-shirts into tote bags, birdhouses out of milk bottles, bottle caps into necklaces, and so much more!

Skills:

  • Practice experimenting with a wide variety of materials.
  • Learn how artists experiment with forms, structures, materials, concepts, media, and art-making approaches.
  • Compare one’s own interpretation of a work of art with the interpretation of others.

Register here

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Week 2: June 26th - 30th - Sold out!

Learning From  the Masters

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Campers will create masterpieces inspired by famous artists such as Henri Matisse, Vincent Van Gogh, Georgia O’Keeffe, Louise Bourgeois, Yayoi Kusama, and our own artists-in-residence! A little bit of art history with a contemporary twist and a lot of hands on art-making. 

Skills:

  • Learn to recognize our relationship to art changes based on the knowledge of the time and place in which it was made.
  • Analyze an artists’ processes of creation and use of medium to create subject matter, characteristics of form, and mood.
  • Build on the fundamentals of painting, collage, and drawing. 

Register here

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Week 3: July 10th - 14th - Sold out!

Make Your Own Stuff!

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Enjoy fun and games? This camp is all about creating your own good time! Campers in this week will craft original toys, games, decorations, and more. Lots of hands-on activities for the playful at heart.

Skills: 

  • Explore and invent art-making techniques and approaches to creating toys and games.
  • Practice taking an art project from start to finish, from the initial design to a finished product.

Register here

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Week 4: July 17th - 21st - Sold out!

Cartoon Craze

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Do you enjoy comics or graphic novels? Do you ever wonder how artists create them? Learn how to create stories, characters, collaborative stop-motion movies, and publish your own fantastic comic creations. Set your inner cartoonist free!

Skills:

  • Apply knowledge of available resources, tools, and technologies to investigate personal ideas through the art-making process.
  • Create personally satisfying artwork using a variety of artistic processes and materials.
  • Using a variety of drawing mediums, students will investigate how to illustrate stories through art.

Register here

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Week 5: July 24th - 28th

Hands On

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Discover the inspiring process of handling clay! Campers will create cups, animal figures, boxes, and more. The week will guide campers through a variety of sculpting techniques, including how to coil, slab, and pinch your clay. Campers can also round out their learning by experimenting with paper mache, mold making, and vivid glazes!

Skills:

  • Learn the foundations of sculpture, and build familiarity with clay as an artistic material.
  • Learn how to explore new materials, while making a work of art or functional object to meet an identified goal.

Register here

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Week 6: July 31st - August 4th

Superbly Super

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

Who’s your hero? Campers in this week will create their own superheroes, using a variety of artistic techniques to build all things super. From superpowers to supervillains, costumes to gadgets, campers will explore all the ways a hero can be represented.

Skills:

  • Learn how personal experiences can inform artistic expression, and the importance of representation in media.
  • Learn how to experiment with new materials, and creatively tell a story. 

Register here

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Week 1: June 20th - 23rd

Art as Activism: Printmaking + Ceramics Camp

Price: $280/$252 ICA Members (includes materials) (4 days only)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Printmaking camp invites students to experiment with techniques and processes used in historical and contemporary printmaking, while examining these processes in the light of current social issues. Students will learn about the power of graphic design in confronting and communicating political questions. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Learn printmaking techniques and reflect/revise whether personal artwork conveys the intended meaning.
  • Develop criteria to guide making a work of art or design to meet an identified goal.

Register here

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Week 2: June 26th - 30th - Sold out!

DIY Zine + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Literature, comic books, photography, movies, illustration: our visual art–Zine Camp is for students who love all of these and want to learn how to edit, create, and distribute art into DIY magazines. A zine is a self-published book or booklet that can be reproduced to share or sell. Potential zine content is all-inclusive and can go beyond conventional material. Activities include photography, screen printing, written word, drawing, collaging, and more. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Generate a collection of ideas reflecting current interests and concerns that could be investigated in art-making.
  • Formulate an artistic investigation of personally relevant content for creating art.
  • Select, organize, and design images and words to make visually clear and compelling presentations.

Register here

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Week 3: July 10th - 14th - Sold out!

Art and Fashion + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Art and Fashion camp invites students to explore how art and style go hand in hand! Create your own designs using a variety of techniques.  From crochet to sewing, fabric paint to embroidery, the possibilities are endless! The week will culminate with campers putting together their own fashion show. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Learn how a person’s aesthetic choices are influenced by culture, environment, and personal experiences.
  • Practice collaboratively developing a visual plan for displaying works of art, analyzing exhibit space, the needs of the viewer, and the layout of the exhibit.

Register here

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Week 4: July 17th - 21st - Sold out!

Storyboarding + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Explore the beginnings of animation with this storyboarding and concept-art camp! Campers will learn to effectively tell a story through art. We will practice planning out action sequences, creating original characters, and world-building. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills: 

  • Reflect on, revise, and refine works of art and design in response to personal artistic vision.
  • Learn to synthesize content, processes, and components to express compelling purpose, story, emotion, or ideas in visual arts. 

Register here

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Week 5: July 24th - 28th - Sold out!

Paper Making + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.*** 

Get hands-on experience producing your own paper in this innovative Paper Making camp! Campers will learn the design choices and processes of creating their own paper, then use their new materials to create journals, manuscripts, and original works of art. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Utilize inquiry methods of observation, research, and experimentation to explore unfamiliar subjects through art and paper making.
  • Through experimentation, practice, and persistence, students will demonstrate acquisition of skills and knowledge in a chosen art form (paper making and ceramics). 

Register here

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Week 6: July 31st - August 4th - Sold out!

Painting Fundamentals + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.*** 

Painting Fundamentals Camp is for students looking to learn the important foundations of painting. Campers will  explore the  importance of color theory, value, and proper material care over the course of a week. They will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Practice developing their skills in a particular painting medium, typically acrylic or watercolor.
  • Learn the importance of revision and persistence in art-making, practicing color-mixing and paint application to achieve finished results.  

Register here

Image

Week 1: June 20th - 23rd

Art as Activism: Printmaking + Ceramics Camp

Price: $280/$252 ICA Members (includes materials) (4 days only)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Printmaking camp invites students to experiment with techniques and processes used in historical and contemporary printmaking, while examining these processes in the light of current social issues. Students will learn about the power of graphic design in confronting and communicating political questions. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Learn printmaking techniques and reflect/revise whether personal artwork conveys the intended meaning.
  • Develop criteria to guide making a work of art or design to meet an identified goal.

Register here

Image

Week 2: June 26th - 30th

DIY Zine + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

 

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Literature, comic books, photography, movies, illustration: our visual art–Zine Camp is for students who love all of these and want to learn how to edit, create, and distribute art into DIY magazines. A zine is a self-published book or booklet that can be reproduced to share or sell. Potential zine content is all-inclusive and can go beyond conventional material. Activities include photography, screen printing, written word, drawing, collaging, and more. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Generate a collection of ideas reflecting current interests and concerns that could be investigated in art-making.
  • Formulate an artistic investigation of personally relevant content for creating art.
  • Select, organize, and design images and words to make visually clear and compelling presentations.

Register here

Image

Week 3: July 10th - 14th

Art and Fashion + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Art and Fashion camp invites students to explore how art and style go hand in hand! Create your own designs using a variety of techniques.  From crochet to sewing, fabric paint to embroidery, the possibilities are endless! The week will culminate with campers putting together their own fashion show. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Learn how a person’s aesthetic choices are influenced by culture, environment, and personal experiences.
  • Practice collaboratively developing a visual plan for displaying works of art, analyzing exhibit space, the needs of the viewer, and the layout of the exhibit.

Register here

Image

Week 4: July 17th - 21st

Storyboarding + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.***

Explore the beginnings of animation with this storyboarding and concept-art camp! Campers will learn to effectively tell a story through art. We will practice planning out action sequences, creating original characters, and world-building. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills: 

  • Reflect on, revise, and refine works of art and design in response to personal artistic vision.
  • Learn to synthesize content, processes, and components to express compelling purpose, story, emotion, or ideas in visual arts. 

Register here

Image

Week 5: July 24th - 28th

Paper Making + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.*** 

Get hands-on experience producing your own paper in this innovative Paper Making camp! Campers will learn the design choices and processes of creating their own paper, then use their new materials to create journals, manuscripts, and original works of art. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Utilize inquiry methods of observation, research, and experimentation to explore unfamiliar subjects through art and paper making.
  • Through experimentation, practice, and persistence, students will demonstrate acquisition of skills and knowledge in a chosen art form (papermaking and ceramics). 

Register here

Image

Week 6: July 31st - August 4th

Painting Fundamentals + Ceramics Camp

Price: $350/$315 ICA Members (includes materials)

 

***Pre-teen and teenagers will have a unique chance to take this combo 2 in 1 art-camp. The mornings will be spent with the 11-13 group in an art class and the 14-17 group in the ceramics lab, in the afternoon the groups will switch.*** 

Painting Fundamentals Camp is for students looking to learn the important foundations of painting. Campers will  explore the  importance of color theory, value, and proper material care over the course of a week. They will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Practice developing their skills in a particular painting medium, typically acrylic or watercolor.
  • Learn the importance of revision and persistence in art-making, practicing color-mixing and paint application to achieve finished results.  

Register here

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ICA San Diego / Central

1439 El Prado San Diego, CA 92101

Summer Art Camps at ICA San Diego / Central in Balboa Park include access to partner museums (TBD) and time outdoors enjoying the park. Please click on the (+) sign to choose a week and then click register here.

5-7 years

8-10 years 

Teens (11-13)

Teens (14-17)

Week1: June 20th - 23rd

Under the Sea!

Price: $220/$198 ICA Members (includes materials) (4 days only)

This imaginative camp will focus on creating underwater seascapes and the creatures that live within. Campers will use painting, drawing, stamping and sculptural techniques to create underwater scenes.  Dip into this watery week of fun, art, and more! 

Skills: 

  • Learn how to engage in self-directed, creative artmaking.
  • Make art or design with various art materials and tools to explore marine life, personal interests, and curiosities.
  • Learn to perceive and describe aesthetic characteristics of one’s natural world and constructed environments.
  • Use observation and investigation in preparation for making a work of art, and brainstorm to generate multiple approaches to an art or design problem. 

Register here

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Week 5: July 24th - 28th - Sold Out!

Mystical Makers

Price: $275/$247.50 ICA Members (includes materials)

From dragons to unicorns, mermaids to gnomes, this camp is all about imagination. We’ll make a variety of creations for the kids to enjoy, including puppets using dyed fabrics, wands made out of  fibers, kaleidoscopes, and more. 

Skills:

  • Combine ideas to generate an innovative idea for art-making.
  • Identify and demonstrate diverse methods of artistic investigation to choose an approach for beginning a work of art.
  • Practice constructing original projects out of various materials. 

Register here

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Week 4: July 17th - 21st - Sold out!

Cartoon Craze

Price: $275/$247.50 ICA Members (includes materials)

Do you enjoy comics or graphic novels? Do you ever wonder how artists create them? Learn how to create stories, characters, collaborative stop-motion movies, and publish your own fantastic comic creations.  Set your inner cartoonist free!

Skills:

  • Apply knowledge of available resources, tools, and technologies to investigate personal ideas through the art-making process.
  • Create personally satisfying artwork using a variety of artistic processes and materials.
  • Using a variety of drawing mediums, students will investigate how to illustrate stories  through art.

Register here

Image

Week 6: July 31st - August 4th

Superbly Super

Price: $275/$247.50 ICA Members (includes materials)

Who’s your hero? Campers in this week will explore the world of graphic design and illustration, creating original superhero logos, posters, and all things super. From superpowers to supervillains, costumes to gadgets, campers will explore all the ways a hero can be represented.

Skills:

  • Learn how personal experiences can inform artistic expression and the importance of representation in media.
  • Learn how to experiment with new materials, and creatively tell a story. 

Register here

Image

Week 3: July 10th - 14th

Printmaking and Photography Ages: 11 – 13 years

Price: $275/$247.50 ICA Members (includes materials)

Campers will remix and reinterpret photography and printmaking processes. They will design, create, and capture images, by using a mix of old and contemporary methods. They will capture interesting natural and urban environmental elements by touring Balboa Park. Create realistic or abstract portraits and still life by utilizing studio setups, mixed media installations, and projections.

Skills: 

  • Learn the fundamentals of photography and printmaking.
  • Apply these fundamentals to more experimental work, exploring how mixing processes and media can create unique results and foster a distinct artistic style. 

Register here

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Week 2: June 26th - 30th

DIY Zine Camp
Ages: 14 – 17 years old

Price: $275/$247.50 ICA Members (includes materials)

Literature, comic books, photography, movies, illustration: our visual art–Zine Camp is for students who love all of these and want to learn how to edit, create, and distribute art into DIY magazines. A zine is a self-published book or booklet that can be reproduced to share or sell. Potential zine content is all-inclusive and can go beyond conventional material. Activities include photography, screen printing, written word, drawing, collaging, and more. Campers will also get to dive into the world of ceramics, spending half of their time in the ceramics lab experimenting with pottery and sculpture. 

Skills:

  • Generate a collection of ideas reflecting current interests and concerns that could be investigated in art-making.
  • Formulate an artistic investigation of personally relevant content for creating art.
  • Select, organize, and design images and words to make visually clear and compelling presentations.

Register here

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