Masterclass Series

Date: Sunday, June 7, 2026
Time: 9:30 – 4:30 PM
Location:  FVAC Annex 8C at 8 Canal Court, Unit C, Avon, CT 06001, across from FVAC campus
Level: All levels
Registration fee: $180

Members save 10%

Material fee: $10

There’s No Place Like Home: Painted Paper Collage with Kristi Colbert

Explore the whimsical world of painted paper collage with Kristi Colbert. Everyone can do it! In this engaging workshop, you’ll create your own papers using a variety of media and application techniques. From this paper, you’ll cut and illustrate a home that is special to you, either real (bring a reference image) or from your imagination. Learn to approximate color, texture, and composition to get a painterly, expressive, and illustrative aesthetic through collage. By the end of the session, you’ll leave with at least one small, framed house portrait and a feeling that home is where the art is! Participants may create as many pieces as they wish. No two collages are ever the same! 

About the Artist

Kristy Colbert is a mixed media artist based in Leverett, MA, inspired by rural life and travel. Working with painted paper collages made from recycled materials, gouache, and crayon, they blend realism and abstraction to create textured, playful works that reflect a sense of repair, resilience, and quiet joy.

Date: Sunday, August 9, 2026
Time: 9:30 – 4:30 PM
Location:  FVAC Annex 8C at 8 Canal Court, Unit C, Avon, CT 06001, across from FVAC campus
Level: All levels

Materials: all included in tuition
Registration fee: $220

Members save 10% on tuition

Imagining your Pied-a-Terre: Painting Interiors with Sandy Welch

Step inside a world of beauty, light, and imagination. In this immersive full-day painting experience, you’ll create your own dream interior—whether it’s a sunlit Parisian apartment, a chic Manhattan escape, or a cozy room filled with personal treasures—working on a 24″ x 30″ canvas.

Inspired by artists like Pierre Bonnard, known for his intimate, color-filled interiors, we’ll explore how to bring warmth, mood, and life into your paintings. Through guided instruction, you’ll learn how to compose a room, play with color and pattern, and capture that magical sense of being there.

Come ready to imagine—you have the keys.

About the Artist

Sandy Welch brings a sense of magic and joy to her work, inspired by 25 years in the cosmetics industry. Known initially as “the shoe artist,” her portfolio has grown to include fashionable figures, vibrant gardens, lively beach scenes, and beautifully decorated cakes. Through her colorful, playful subjects, she invites viewers into a world of imagination and delight.