P'AINT HISTORY A hands-on art history class | John Rogers Cox "Gray & Gold"

This Wednesday evening art class is designed to teach you some art history and give you confidence in painting, whether you’ve never picked up a brush or you’ve been painting for years. Each class breaks down art concepts into easy-to-follow, guided experiences that feel accessible, playful, and freeing. Advanced painters and total newbies consistently enjoy the class together, side by side.

Every class begins with gentle instruction and storytelling around the inspiration, followed by generous painting time. We close with a review where your artwork is described as if it’s one of the most significant paintings in the art world—because in that moment, it is.

You’ll leave feeling relaxed, smarter, and maybe a little proud.

Past participants have called the class “life-changing” and “the perfect blend of instruction and freedom.”

Location:
4321 Bridge Ave — in the community room of a beautiful old church with tall ceilings, candles, and twinkle lights. The building sits directly across from Mason’s Creamery, which also serves gourmet ramen, making this the perfect cozy, creative evening out.

Walk-Ins welcome to come and pay in cash or venmo.

Instructor

Your instructor is a lifelong artist who specializes in quieting the inner voice that says you’re not good at art. She creates a welcoming, safe space where creativity feels natural, and judgment disappears.

Come feel cozy.
Come paint.
Come surprise yourself.

In This Class:

Cox painted Gray and Gold shortly after the United States joined the Second World War, and its image of amber waves of grain threatened by ominous storm clouds likely has symbolic overtones. The painting's foreground features an intersection of two dirt lanes, as well as a telephone pole emblazoned with political campaign posters. The artist seems to imply that American democracy is at a crossroads during this time of combat against the spread of fascism in Europe and Asia. Interestingly, the work was inspired by the landscape around Cox's hometown of Terre Haute, Indiana, a location nicknamed "The Crossroads of America" due to the junction of major north-south and east-west national highways within its city limits. The museum purchased this painting out of a traveling exhibition entitled "Artists for Victory," which consisted of works by artists who wanted to assist in the war effort. The exhibition opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York on the first anniversary of the bombing at Pearl Harbor.

-Description from the Cleveland Museum of Art

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Harbor and Bridge, 4321 Bridge Avenue, Cleveland, United States

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

Get App