Draw and Paint Your Favorite Animal with Amie Southers

Bring your favorite animal to life on canvas! Find a photo you love and save it to your phone beforehand — we’ll use it as your starting point for a playful, expressive painting. We’ll break your animal down into basic shapes, then build it up using painting techniques like shading, blending, and detail work. Want to get creative with the background? You’re welcome to paint it as shown in your photo, or use an AI app like ChatGPT or Gemini to reimagine the scene first. Bring a snack and a nonalcoholic drink to enjoy while you work, and make sure your phone is fully charged so you can reference your photo throughout class. Can’t wait to help you turn your animal into a work of art! Artist Bio: Amie graduated from James Madison University in 1999 with a Bachelor’s degree in Art Education. Teaching art in the public schools let her give back creatively. She is continuing this journey as she creates and posts artwork for sale and hosts paint parties and art classes in her community through her small business, Paint Parties of Rockridge! She truly enjoys seeing people of all ages light up when they create something of which they are proud. Her interests encompass many types of art but whimsical mixed media and acrylics are her greatest joy! ​ All supplies provided. Adults and teens welcome. Registration required. Sign up here: https://www.saartcenter.org/adult-workshops