Each session fills at 16 children and is led by two teachers, promising a group that can grow close. The camps offer a blend of structured arts exploration in the classroom and free play within the building, always under close supervision by the camp teachers.

Our camps are about exploring art and self expression. Children dig into an array of mediums and arts in their own way. No matter the theme, we promise a range of arts integration with movement, song, story, and art.  After or before camp each day, you can stay and play at Art Beast with your child as long as you’d like.

And, as always, when you choose Art Beast, your money supports Tubman House, a community for young, homeless parents and their children. A portion of your camp fee is tax deductible. 

Sessions are filling quickly. Some sessions have only 5 spaces remaining so we encourage folks to register early.

Session Times:   9 am to 2 pm

Please Bring: Lunch, snack, and a bottle of water

Pricing:   $175 a week includes all supplies except dance shoes. Additional siblings enrolled the same week receive a 15% discount.  The 4 day session in early July will be discounted $30.  $75 non-refundable deposit to reserve a space.

Every camp is taught by Art Beast teachers. All are committed artists and experienced teachers.  

We have been lucky to have our favorite teachers from last Summer’s camps agree to return for new sessions of fun, creation, and friend making! 

To Register:  Call the studio anytime to register over the phone at 916-441-1233. You can register right now online at:  http://www.formstack.com/forms/?944583-2ddj6s8Xgc

Full Camp Descriptions and Calendar:   

June 20 - 24:   Playful and Peaceful: Celebrating Life and Friendship with Yoga, Art, and Dance

Children connect with mind, body, and community through the practices of yoga, dance, group share, story time, and team building games. They will also tap into self expression while creating art in a variety of mediums each day.   This camp aims to provide tools that will benefit for a lifetime: respect of individual differences, peaceful ways of listening and speaking, and the importance of self-expression, taking care of the earth, and loving and honoring yourself!  Yoga for children is designed to welcome giggles, silly ideas, playfulness, and spirit. This camp will be energetic and great fun as it develops important skills.

Teacher Bio: Jenna Maggard is dedicated to practicing and teaching yoga, raising her son, studying early child­hood education, buying local, eating healthy, riding her bike, making art with friends, playing the guitar, working for non-profits, and being an integral part of her midtown Sacramento community. Jenna’s been working with children for 6 years and sees no end to this journey. Her long term goal is to become a child therapist, but in the meantime, providing ArtBeast and Center of Movement with yoga, creative movement, and art classes for kids is an honor.

June 27 – July 1:  Camp Mud: A Journey into Sculpting and Creating with All Things Ooey Gooey

Get creative with all things that squish and ooze!  Each day we will explore and create with a new type of modeling medium.  We will play, build, and wonder at clay, sand, mud, cob, and a variety of homemade doughs and slimes.  Among our projects will be sandcastles that never wash away and volcanoes that bubble with lava. 

Teacher Bio: Whether she is leading a group of children in a parade around the block or dancing and acting out stories, Melinda Quick believes dancing, singing and creating should be a part of every child’s and every adult’s daily life. She has a bachelor’s degree in elementary/early childhood education, and she has spent her life finding ways to include music and art in all learning.  Melinda believes that stimulating learning and creativity in children is her calling in life.

July 5 – 8:   Printmaking Party: Explore Every Possibility of Printmaking

This camp is specially designed to introduce kids to the fun and versatility of printmaking.  Campers will experience a variety of printmaking methods such as mono type, lithograph, silkscreen, stencil, and numerous stamping mediums to produce brilliant works of art. Each child will bring home a stunning portfolio at the end of the week, as well as some wearable art! 

Due to the shortened week, this camp will be discounted $30 to $145 a session.

Teacher Bio:  Sonja White is an enthusiastic artist who en­joys drawing, watercolor and acrylic painting, multi-media projects, and textile design. She is co-owner of Lydia’s Kids, a children’s clothing line, as well as a private art Instructor. Sonja has been dancing for over 30 years. Although she was raised on Russian Ballet, her current affair is with Cultural Folkdance. She performs all over the greater Sacramento area with Lincoln Village Dancers, celebrating culture, and sharing the joy of dance! Sonja has a great passion for sto­rytelling. She’ll spin a story whenever given the opportunity- from the Waldorf- inspired education she shares with her six children, to performing at local events.

July 11 – 15:   Imaginary Worlds: Travel into the Realm of Magical Animals, Fairytales and Folklore with Art and Dramatic Play

We will share traditional folk songs, games, and act out storytelling that is found in all its richness both in our region and around the world. Together, we will share stories of turtle, beetle, and coyote.  We will bring to life fairytales and folklore as we create costumes, masks, and art to bring each magical world to life.  We will dance, sing, and create each day!

Teacher Bio:  Amy Reed is a painter, musician, writer, and naturalist. She has collaborated with artists across this country and Internationally. She currently teaches painting and drawing in Oak Park at the Language Academy, a two-way, Spanish Immersion, Charter school. You can find her with her students painting under the orchard trees or singing ‘Abiyoyo’ in the garden.

July 18 – 22:   Dinosaur Discovery: Create a Prehistoric World with Science, Art, Story, and Play

This camp is all about the dinosaurs! Children will create a prehistoric world and explore art and science through dino sculpture, volcano eruptions, fossil casting, collage, mosaic, and much more. Games, stories, and playtime are all part of this wonderful camp.

Teacher Bio:  Sonja White is an enthusiastic artist who en­joys drawing, watercolor and acrylic painting, multi-media projects, and textile design. She is co-owner of Lydia’s Kids, a children’s clothing line, as well as a private art Instructor. Sonja has been dancing for over 30 years. Although she was raised on Russian Ballet, her current affair is with Cultural Folkdance. She performs all over the greater Sacramento area with Lincoln Village Dancers, celebrating culture, and sharing the joy of dance! Sonja has a great passion for sto­rytelling. She’ll spin a story whenever given the opportunity- from the Waldorf- inspired education she shares with her six children, to performing at local events.

July 25 – 29:   Camp Bang: Drum, Rattle, Stomp, Dance, and Sing to Create a Community of Rhythm

Another camp that promises arts integration, as campers drum, dance, tell stories, sing, create rattles and drums, and explore the world of percussion. Each day children will build a community of rhythm in drum circles, clap and stomp lines, and voices raised.  Stories, poems, movement, and song will be woven into the beats so children fully experience the power of music. Each camper will also create a range of percussion instruments to take home for further rhythm making.

Teacher Bio:  Deborah Cardoza has been a percussionist ever since she played the pots, pans and wooden spoons in her parents' kitchen as a child! She studied Percussion Performance under Dr. Daniel Kennedy at Sacramento State where she earned her B.A. in Child Development and has been a member of the Sacramento State Symphonic Orchestra, the Sacramento State Percussion Ensemble and the Bay Area Women's Percussion Troupe. She currently performs with Gamelan Dharma Santi and enjoys teaching percussion to a wide variety of community members including high school students, developmentally-delayed adults and Art Beasties!

August 1 – 5:   Song and Music Playground: A Week of Playing and Creating with Song and Music

What happens when you take a playful, spirited drummer and a ukulele playing music therapist?  You create a week for children to discover there’s so much more to music than Itsy Bitsy Spiders and dogs named Bingo!  In this camp, children will learn to play, invent and create with a range of percussion instruments, the power of their own voice, and the stomp and snap waiting to burst out.  Campers will play games, build songs, and grow close as they all sing and claim music together.

Teacher Bios:  See Deborah Cardoza above.  Deborah will be joined by Rose.

Rose Fienman feels so lucky that she gets to make music all day, every day! She earned her Bachelor of Music Therapy from Loyola University New Orleans and completed her internship at Music to Grow On in Sacramento. Rose is trained as a singer, and also plays guitar and piano - and even a little ukulele! She has been a Board-Certified Music Therapist (MT-BC) since May 2010. In her spare time, Rose sings with the Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra and loves to ride her bike around Midtown.

August 8 - 12:  3D Art Extravaganza: Create Eye Popping Creations to Explore Art in a New Way

In this amazing camp, children will experience the endless possibilities of 3D Art. Mediums such as clay, wire, wax, wood, plaster, paper, and recycled finds will be utilized to model, mold, and build eye-popping creations! Art making will never be the same again.

Teacher Bio:  Sonja White is an enthusiastic artist who en­joys drawing, watercolor and acrylic painting, multi-media projects, and textile design. She is co-owner of Lydia’s Kids, a children’s clothing line, as well as a private art Instructor. Sonja has been dancing for over 30 years. Although she was raised on Russian Ballet, her current affair is with Cultural Folkdance. She performs all over the greater Sacramento area with Lincoln Village Dancers, celebrating culture, and sharing the joy of dance! Sonja has a great passion for sto­rytelling. She’ll spin a story whenever given the opportunity- from the Waldorf- inspired education she shares with her six children, to performing at local events.

August 15 - 19:  Dance Camp: Explore Ballet, Tap, Jazz, and Hip Hop in Dance, Art, and Dramatic Play

Campers will explore ballet, creative movement, tap, jazz, and hip hop with two dedicated, energetic young dancers. Ballet basics provide a base for all the dance styles as the campers develop coordination and balance, and relish the twirls and frills. Creative movement allows children’s inner voices and imaginations to be expressed in original and organic ways. And who doesn’t love to make loud noises with their feet?! Tap is fun and exciting. Tap basics help with feet isolations and articulations in other dance styles and in sports like soccer. For a child looking for a style less formal than ballet but less funky than hip hop, jazz is a happy medium. Finally, hip hop invites inventiveness and beat driven movement. This dance sampler highlights the fun of moving the body and shaking off gravity for a moment, while introducing some of the specific skills a child will develop if s/he plunges into a specific dance genre.

Teacher Bio: Maya Haines loves to dance. She has been taking ballet lessons since she was 6 years old. Maya studies ballet, tap, contemporary and jazz at the Northern California Dance Conservatory. She is a member of their pre-professional company and has performed at the Mondavi Center. Maya was also invited to attend dance intensives with Alvin Ailey America Dance Theatre and Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet Co.