Art classes for Teenagers

Traditional & Digital Art Programs

Designed to Inspire Teenage Artists.

At ART + Academy, our teen art programs are designed to help young artists grow skills, confidence, and creative independence. We offer two distinct learning pathsTraditional Art Classes or Digital Art Classes — allowing students to choose the medium that best fits their interests and goals.

Across our Austin and Cedar Park locations, teens work on personalized projects at their own pace in a supportive, small-group setting. Rather than following a rigid curriculum, students receive individual guidance from professional instructors who help them strengthen technique while encouraging creative exploration.

Beginner-Friendly Approach

Teens new to art typically begin in our traditional art classes, where strong drawing skills form the foundation for all future learning. Using principles from Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Dr. Betty Edwards, students learn how to truly “see” what they draw.

They explore:

  • Contour and cross-contour lines

  • Perspective and negative space

  • Basic shading and value

As confidence grows, students deepen their skills through value studies, observation exercises, and shading with charcoal or pastels. Projects may include composition studies, still life, and master-inspired work, while also incorporating color theory and the use of watercolors and acrylic paints to support creative growth.
(See what can be learned.)

Digital Art Classes & Advanced Skill Development

For teens interested in digital illustration, ART+Academy offers dedicated digital art classes. Students work using digital tools (such as iPad and Procreate) while learning essential art concepts like composition, color, value, and design — all applied specifically to digital media.

For experienced students (traditional or digital), instructors begin with an assessment of skill level and goals, then guide students through projects that challenge their abilities and expand their portfolios. This focused approach helps teens develop confidence, refine technique, and grow creatively within their chosen medium.

Our Commitment to Quality

With small class sizes and low student-to-teacher ratios, every teen receives meaningful, personalized instruction. Our caring instructors provide timely feedback and encouragement, helping students see real progress over time.

✨ You can view that growth in our Before & After Gallery.
If a class is currently full, families are welcome to join the waitlist, and we’ll notify you as soon as a space becomes available.

Before
After

What you get?

START ANYTIME.
Yes, you can enroll at any time, as long as there’s space available in the class. Additionally, we prorate your first month tuition  based on your start date.

PROFESSIONAL INSTRUCTORS
Also, all our teachers have a college degree in an art-related field.

SMALL CLASS SIZE
Specifically, we limit each class to a maximum of 8 students.

GALLERY DAY EVENT
Above all, every April, we celebrate our students’ progress with an art show we call “Gallery Day”. This event is open to all our enrolled students and their families & friends!

What if I miss a class?

We understand that sometimes things come up—unexpected events, travel, or illness—and you may need to miss a class. Not a problem! As long as you are enrolled, you can make up a missed classes by attending another class listed in our schedule at any of our locations.

However, keep in mind that there is absolutely no prorating or refund for missed classes. In addition, missed  classes cannot be used as class credit for the next session, other classes, or camps.

google

I love learning at this studio. As an adult, the classes are just what I need. Monica (and all the teachers) meet each student where they are at. You bring your own project or thing you’d like to learn and they create a wonderful learning environment! 10/5 stars!

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Our daughter loves her lessons!

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The personalized tutoring I received at Art Plus Academy helped me get into my top art school choice. To do this, I worked on a number of portfolio pieces (including still life drawings and drawings of nude models), and Monica gave me suggestions on how to refine and improve my work. She also recommended books to study and techniques to practice, all of which I learned a great deal from. Monica and her team are top notch art teachers. The prices they charge are a seriously good deal for your money (In fact, I would gladly pay double, the teachers here are that good). From what I saw while I was there, they are willing and able to help artists at any skill level. Usually classes are filled with both beginners and intermediate level artists, and artists of every age. I was impressed by the teacher’s ability to help all students improve. I am sure Monica can’t promise that you’ll get into an art college if you take classes with her, but I did, and I couldn’t be more thankful to her and her team.

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My daughter has been attending classes here for the past three years. She loves it! They have taught her so many techniques not available to her in the standard art class at school. She has grown as an artist and has developed confidence in her work. All of the teachers are knowledgeable and encouraging. It has been a wonderful experience for her and us!

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My daughter started last month with Ms. Morgan and she loves it so far. Morgan is a great teacher, very encouraging and spends personal time with student. She paid attention to my child interest and provided just right the amount of support while ensuring my daughter can be herself 🙂 thanks so much!

google

My children have thoroughly enjoyed the art instruction they have found at Art + Academy. They love the in-person classes as well as the online offerings. Actually, the online art classes during this season of staying at home have been true gems! We have been so impressed with how the classes have translated to an online format. We highly recommend this local art instruction option!

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My daughter is shy about taking classes where Mom can’t be right next to her. She loves Miss Erin and the class so much she doesn’t even care that I go run errands while she is at class. Unbelievable change in her!

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Fantastic to have this school on south side of town. Teachers knowledgeable, caring and pleasant!

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Fantastic teachers, right on task with age appropriate activities and always enriching the creativity. Going back this summer.

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Excellent teachers and great classes. My 5 year old got to make new friends and enjoy a week of summer art camp with Ms Adria. We got to set up a nice shelf at home to display all the art she created at camp.

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Excellent place for art lessons

google

If you want to learn to actually “see” as an artist, I recommend this art school for a wonderful learning experience. In the last 3 years I have seen my focus improve, my techniques expand, and my enthusiasm for creating beauty through art grow tremendously. Thank you, Monica Araoz and your excellent teaching staff!

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This place takes their job seriously and really does a great job teaching and immersing kids into their art. Great and fast communication when there is any sort of issue. They really try and accommodate any personal requests to make things work for the student and get them involved. I do find their rates slightly expensive, BUT they really deliver on the quality of their studio and lessons and we’ve really loved it!

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Summary: Very impressed with quality of artwork both of my boys (6 & 9) brought home. They were enthusiastic everyday to go to camp, and my 6 year old would come home and “play art teacher” and show us the techniques he learned that day. The teachers were very positive, encouraging, and nurturing with the kids. As a mom, I liked that both of my kids were able to attend a summer camp at the same time/location, even though they are different ages with different interests. Great value for a summer camp with the skills taught and confidence boost my kids received! Specific to Sculpting summer camp: My 9 year old does not really enjoy drawing or painting/coloring. He enjoys math, reading, sports and engineering. It is the engineering part of him that led me to sign him up for the sculpting class, with the elements of “building” using clay, recycled/found objects, etc. He absolutely LOVED the class, and his creative side was able to shine! The summer camp sculpting class gave him a comfortable and fun environment for him to explore his “not knowing” / creative side. Specific to 5-7 drawing summer camp: My 6 year old loves to paint, draw, color and get messy. At home, he was frustrated when trying to draw certain objects, but couldn’t figure out how to get what’s in his mind onto paper. He has taken two Art+ Academy classes now (safari animals and dinosaurs) and I can not believe how much he learned in such a short period of time! His raw talent was really nurtured and has improved immensely with new skills and techniques that he’s proud to show off.

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My daughter Vedika was in the 7-9 class for clay design and she had an absolute blast. Apart from just learning something new with great instructors, she just found the environment really friendly and fun which is all you can ask for a summer camp. She will definitely be heading back next year.

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My kids have been taking art lessons at this studio for five years. They practice their drawing skills while having fun playing with different art materials. The teachers are professional and passionate about teaching. My kids love their art teachers. The studio provides many time slots for each age group and a flexible make-up option so that the art lessons can easily fit into our schedule. The gallery day in the studio was one of the most exciting days for our family when we cheered for our kids’ progress in the past year. The studio also provided art lessons for adults. I took one year of art lessons at Art Plus Academy. They were very relaxing and satisfying.

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My daughter goes here after school and she really loves it. She enjoys every sessions and learnt a lot. My husband and I are thrilled that we have found this school. The teachers are very talented, organized, and you can really tell that they really love teaching the kids. We highly recommend this place.

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We love this art studio. My daughter has been taking classes here for several years. She has had wonderful instructors and has improved her skills with every course. Most importantly to me, her love of art and her ability to express herself creatively has grown by leaps and bounds. The owner is responsive, provides great instruction, and is truly passionate about sharing her love of art with her students. I highly recommend this studio!

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These art classes are wonderful! They teach real technique and use multi-media. We are so excited for the upcoming art show they put on every year! I’ve been trying not to look at my daughters art so I can be surprised! One suggestion is that their scheduling system links up to your phone calendar. I’ve made multiple make-up class appointment. But they are all at different times and I’ve missed them since they don’t have an option to link up to my calendar.

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My girls love ART+ Academy! Last fall, I put my daughters in the in-person ART+ classes and they loved it. They learned new techniques, they flourished, and they were so excited to show me their progress each week. Then in the spring, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit, I turned to the online ART+ classes. Their teacher, Johanna Heilman, made the transition to virtual learning so easy at a time when my daughters needed the consistency, routine, and familiarity of their art classes the most. I now have them enrolled in the online summer ART camps and they couldn’t be happier.

Tuition & Fees

Your tuition provides four(4) consecutive weekly art classes. If you start in the middle of the month, we’ll simply prorate your tuition based on your registration date.

For Kids and Teen Classes, a quarterly admin fee applies in September, December, and March. We will also prorate the admin fee in you enroll in the middle of the quarter.

Materials

We provide all materials for kids and teen classes; you only need to bring your student.

Students will explore a wide range of materials, including watercolor, tempera paint, pastels, charcoal, ink, acrylic paint, and more.  

5.0
google

I started art lessons in December in the three hours every Tuesday adult class which Monica was teaching. I have grown and learned so much! I basically started at zero, with a love for trying craft projects and doing artistic things without any real knowledge of drawing. I feel like Monica always intuitively knows what to draw my attention to and where to push me. I would recommend this class to anyone! We even had some subs in May when Monica had to be out and each of the teachers were highly knowledgeable and great at teaching. If you’re thinking about taking a class, just do it! You won’t regret it 🙂

google

Great teachers and superb extracurricular academy. My kids love it!

Nicolas Gutierrez July 30, 2021
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Excellent art classes, my teen loves it! Easy scheduling, friendly service and fair pricing. Highly recommend. Support your local small businesses too!

De Ayr August 6, 2024
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My daughter loves this place! We started with a summer class in 2021 m, on the 5-7 bracket and she liked it so much we came back for the full year in August/September. I have already signed her up for next year. The teachers are great, the kids get to learn different types of painting, color scales, they have art display events every year, and their make up classes/absences policy is the best I’ve ever seen! We have always been able to get make up classes when we have had to miss any. Her drawing has improved so much!!!

Mell Fogliatto June 2, 2022
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Excellent teachers and great classes. My 5 year old got to make new friends and enjoy a week of summer art camp with Ms Adria. We got to set up a nice shelf at home to display all the art she created at camp.

Kim Dela June 11, 2018
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Great experience! Kiddos loved it and they came home with some frame-able work. Thank you!

Jodi Garner June 25, 2019
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I’ve been taking adult drawing/painting lessons for the past 3 years now. Every teacher I’ve met has been excellent, kind and very knowledgeable. The other students that I’ve met are also always very nice and wonderful people, and it’s great to be able to learn from other adults who are coming from different levels of experience. I just love this place

Eduardo Sanchez August 14, 2024
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Our daughter began attending Art + Academy last year as a kindergartner, and it quickly became her favorite extracurricular activity. We’ve explored various programs, but Art + Academy stood out for its ability to introduce her to new and creative drawing and painting techniques that she wouldn’t have tried on her own. We’re thrilled to start again next week after her summer break!

Christian Flores August 14, 2024
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We have been going for two years with the kids and the teachers are wonderful, the classes are small and peaceful. It’s a perfect place to learn art. Highly recommended.

Violet Stoyneva February 4, 2024
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It’s a great place to express creativity and branch out to different types of art. My daughter learns and enjoys every class. I highly recommend it.

Juliana Fayad August 6, 2024
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My daughter loves Art+ Academy. She has been going for years and always looks forward to it. it is a warm welcoming environment, and the instructors are knowledgeable.

John Kelly July 8, 2016
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One of the best studios and platform for some one who is a budding or experienced artist. Art teachers are very methodical in their approach and keen on developing details of students. I definitely recommend them.

Preetam Mishra August 14, 2024
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My 5 years old has been attending this art studio over 1 year and he really like it. The teachers have been so patience and personal with my 5 years old – he just turned 6. The studio provide all the materials and painting supplies that is a big plus. All we do was to drop him off and pick him up. We recommend this place to all parents!

Eve Zou May 25, 2022
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My son has attended Art+ Academy (North) for several years. He loves the classes and is always excited to start a new art project. He is in Mrs Marlene’s class and loves working with her! He tends to get frustrated by not getting things “perfect” and the supportive atmosphere has helped him embrace imperfection and working hard to develop a new skill.

Elizabeth Fajardo March 29, 2025
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So happy with this Art Academy, my 8 and now 9 year old girl has learned little by little how to use watercolors and tempera, as well as mix the colors and make it natural, this is her second year and from the first class in the group ages 9-12 I can see her learning new drawing techniques and painting as well. The teacher is so sweet and is constantly giving them feedback on what is good and what they should change. I appreciate her for this.

Verónica García September 6, 2023
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I very much enjoy my classes at ART + Academy, with a wonderfully talented teacher and a studio conducive to creativity and exploration of styles.

Darla Nelson August 6, 2024
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The team are very focused on individual learning needs. My 6 year old son always looks forward to his weekly lessons! Marlene is very kind and gentle with the children.

Jules TJ (JTJ) February 3, 2022
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The quick move by the Art Academy from in-person instruction to online classes was remarkably smooth and effective. At a time like this, we need the flexibility and creativity of organizations like the Art Academy. I am particularly please with the online help and guidance I have been receiving from Luz Marie, the instruction at the SouthWest Austin studio. It has been overall a very rewarding experience to work with Art Academy. I highly recommend this art school.

google

This is an Art Academy that teaches children and adult classes. Students have beginner to advanced knowledge in drawing and painting. There are several locations, great instructors and a goal to teach YOU to be a better artist. You will like it here!

Cecilia Richardson February 7, 2025
google

Amazing art classes. My daughter loves her class and her progress is impressive. Teachers are so professional and nice with the kids.

Start
Today

We will prorate your tuition if you join mid-month.

Professional
Artists

Learn from professional artists who are also experienced, passionate educators.

SMALL
CLASSES

With a small class ratio (1:8), students explore their creativity with personalized attention.

Improve
your Skills

No matter your starting point, we help you build strong techniques and reach the next level.

Missed
a Class?

No problem! Make it up in another class as long as you're still enrolled.

Locally
Owned

Over 16 years of service since 2009 — fostering creativity and community growth.

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Cedar Park · NW Austin · SW Austin
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ONLINE
Online art classes | Traditional or digital using Procreate