Place des Arts offers students of all ages and skill levels the opportunity to develop a deep appreciation of the visual arts. Our objective is to provide a friendly, non-competitive environment where creativity and innovation can flourish.

Explore the mysterious world of abstract art in Place des Arts’ first online visual arts series! View five videos by artist and educator Marlene Lowden to discover how artists use the elements of design to express themselves while experimenting with materials you have at home. Through a series of fun activities in each video, you will be introduced to each element of design and learn how to interpret these elements when looking at abstract art. This video series is suitable for all ages and ability levels, gather your household or tune in with friends virtually and begin creating! 

The first video is available here.

To access these videos, you will be prompted during registration to enter a Gmail email address. You cannot register without one! Once registered, you will receive an email from YouTube every Thursday by 12:00 pm (noon) with the link to the latest video. If you register after April 30, you can expect to receive the link(s) to each available video the Thursday following registration. Registration includes the following videos:

• Video 2: Learn about colour and texture by playing with paint and experimenting with mark-making tools. Released: Thursday, April 30 
• Video 3: Explore how shape and size create meaning through collage activities. Released: Thursday, May 7 
• Video 4: Learn how value can create a mood or feeling in a work of art and practice with painting. Released: Thursday, May 14 
• Video 5: Review the seven elements of design and learn some techniques to create art with intention. Released: Thursday, May 21 

Marlene recommends between 20-30 minutes to complete each activity, and each video contains 2 activities. Playback options include the ability to pause, go forward or backward as well as closed captioning. 

You will need some basic art supplies to complete the exercises. View the complete list of supplies and video resources here. 

Fees for our online visual arts series are non-refundable.