Young Explorers Cycle 1: Who I Am

Welcome to Cycle 1 of Miss Ash's Art Classes for Young Explorers — and we are starting with one of the most important contemporary artists working today.

Amy Sherald is a portrait painter best known for her official portrait of Michelle Obama and her luminous paintings of everyday Black Americans — painted in rich grayscale skin tones against bold flat backgrounds, wearing intricate patterned clothing. Her work asks a question that has run through all of art history: who deserves to be seen? Who gets to have their portrait hung on a wall? Sherald answers that question with every painting she makes.

Over four connected days, Young Explorers will dive deep into Sherald's work and build their own mixed media self-portrait in her tradition.

Day 1 opens with a full material exploration — watercolor, graphite, colored pencil, and pen — and students create a patterned background that represents their identity through repeating motifs and personal symbols.

Day 2 focuses on the portrait figure itself — a grayscale self-portrait on a bold background of their choosing, with at least one symbolic object in the composition.

Day 3 is Full Expression Day — students combine all elements into a unified portrait and begin their written artist statement.

Day 4 is the Art Showcase — families are invited in for a make-and-take and each Young Explorer presents their portrait and statement to the room.

Every class includes an art history presentation, a discipline-based learning game, a skill-building demo, and real studio time with genuine creative freedom. This is real art education — not simply crafts!

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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