Art Classes at Studio Art 1229

by Charles McGuigan 12.2023

Right next door to Little House Green Grocery in the heart of Bellevue there’s Studio Art 1229 which offers classes in painting, from acrylics to oils to watercolors, for beginning, intermediate, and advanced painters. The two instructors at the studio are owner Brenda Stankus, and her fellow artist Elizabeth Eubanks,

Brenda, who has a long history of teaching adult studio painting classes, opened her Northside classroom studio about ten years ago. She had previously taught adult painting at the Pine Camp Arts and Community Center, and the Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen.

“I stress the individual, their learning style and how each student can progress in their own way, minimizing vulnerabilities and helping students learn what the materials can do,” says Brenda. “Color is my love, but painting is my passion and teaching others is my joy.”

Brenda’s 10-week session classes run four time annually. These three-hour classes begin with group instruction and then move into individualized instruction.

This January Brenda will be teaching Fundamentals of Acrylic and Fundamentals of Watercolor, both weekend workshops. These workshops are meant to be a fun way for beginners and long-term students alike to fill in the blanks and get an organized appreciation of the basics in each medium. 

Elizabeth Eubank is a classical painter and works with her students individually, giving them a good foundation in design principle and composition, using critiques, and one-on-one instruction, which helps her students reach their goals.

Elizabeth also stresses planning before actually painting. She encourages her students to use thumbnail sketches that simplify value and shapes; color ledgers and color mapping to determine harmonies; and careful attention to accurate lines, angles, and scale. “This preparation allows students to paint more freely because the technical details have been addressed first,” Elizabeth says.

Both Brenda and Elizabeth both enjoy meeting their students before they begin classes to find out more about what the student wants from the studio art class experience.

For more information on classes at Studio Art 1229, call or text (804) 564-6979, or drop by the Studio at 1229 Bellevue Avenue, Richmond, VA 23227 and ask for Brenda.