Studio Policies

How do I sign up for a class or camp ?

Please follow the REGISTER instructions on the website to sign up and pay for a class. If a class or camp is marked full or email, contact us via email to discuss options. Please don’t just drop in. The Studio is only staffed when teachers are teaching, and they shouldn’t be disturbed without an appointment. You must have received confirmation email to be at class.  If you don’t receive a welcome email day prior, contact us after checking your junk folder. We do have last minute changes that are out of our control. Thanks in advance for your patience and understanding. Connecting with you is very important to us, and we do that best via email at studioartsregistrar@gmail.com.  

Please check our updated schedule before registering. The registration form will at times let you sign up for a class/camp section when it shouldn’t. If you register in error, Registrar will contact you with alternatives.

Can I try a class?

We do not have any need to evaluate a student prior to enrollment. We typically can easily move an artist from one class to another if they seem to not take to a specific class offering or grouping for any reason. We do offer full money back refund, after first class if it isn’t a fit. We cannot offer for you to ’try a class’ as classes are very sensitive to drop ins and are either starting, in the middle of, or finishing up a 3-4 week long project. Teachers cannot accommodate a one day trial due to their commitment to the group. We ask that you pay in full for classes and rest assured you can leave after the first class. No trials for camps.

Refund Policy

We do not offer refunds or for any reason. We reserve the right to cancel or change a camp or class at any time for any reason.We will provide you alternative class or camp options available in case of an unforeseen issue on our part.

Can we tour the studio?

We have many requests for a studio tour, which is difficult for us to offer as we are teaching and focused, or the studio is closed with no one to show you around. Please enjoy this virtual tour created for your insight and delight by our students. We often draw both inside and outside of our facility. Luckily we have a very unique and interesting building to pose for us as a model with loads of inspiring ‘things’ laying about to draw or to simply stimulate the eye and the imagination. Please enjoy this virtual tour: https://studioartsdallas.com/a-studio-tour-inside/

Where can I drop off my tuition?

If you are not paying via PayPal, use our very safe locked drop box—an unmarked silver mail slot in our brickwork to the left of the front door. The sooner we have your tuition, the easier it is for us to ‘make’ your class. Please have all fees and forms ready before class. Form must accompany payment!

Can I stay and watch my kid work?

We invite you to come in 5 minutes before class time ends to experience the student’s excitement and delight as they share their latest art work. We do not offer a waiting area for parents. The White Rock area abounds with local cafes, coffee shops and recreational opportunities all within walking distance. Most parents chose to drop off/ pick up via our circle drive.

Which clothes are best for making art at the studio?

It’s always a good idea to have some special art clothes to wear to class—we all love to get as messy as possible! Some folks like to keep an old t-shirt in the car for easy transition from school clothes. We provide smocks, but we do use Artist Quality materials. Their awesome quality tend towards permanence AND permanent stains.

When will my art student bring something home?

Our projects are designed to take more than one lesson. We teach lots of classical technique when exploring each new medium, and we encourage our artists to take their time and savor this beautiful process. Most projects last 2-4 weeks, and you will have something lovely for your walls when we’re done! A special note: All artwork must be picked up by the end of the last class. We have many students and limited space so we cannot save work after a class or camp is complete. It is your responsibility to contact us regarding late pick up of work before class/camp ends.

Can my child or a friend sign up after the start of the semester?

Absolutely! We offer prorated continuing enrollment. See ‘Can I try a class’. We cannot accommodate drop-ins, sorry.

What if I’m running late?

We introduce the lesson 5 minutes into class time. If you are late, your child will miss today’s techniques and critiques. If you are running late for pickup, you will get a call from us after class (in case you cannot contact your child on their phone). Our instructors go directly into teaching other classes after your child’s class time, or have other obligations, so prompt pickup is essential. We levy a $1 per minute fee for the habitually late.

What if my child has special needs?

We are here to try to support any child’s learning process with information you provide on the registration form to optimize their study with us. We are available for a private chat after art class to discuss the day’s events, and we will connect with you if we have any concerns. Our instructors are professionals and are sensitive to your child’s needs. If you are willing to share even the smallest observation about how your child is doing that day especially if they are stressed or sad, we can support. We are pros at communicating with all sorts of learning different artists. Being an artist almost assures you have a unique learning style! It helps us enormously if you note specific learning differences/preferences which minimize confusion and guessing on our part, and it allows your child more direct immediate support. Art class is where barriers come down and kids are free to make and emote—a great environment for learning.

What if my kid had a fever or vomited earlier in the day?

KEEP THEM HOME. If your child had a fever or vomited in the last 24 hours, they are contagious and we beg you not to bring them until they have cleared the 24-hour fever-free mark. It’s our duty to send them home if they are ill, and you can expect a call asking you to pick them up immediately. Contact us to organize a make up. Please wear a mask if there is any chance of conveying covid or flu or cold to our population.

What about snacks?

During our Spring/Fall CLASSES we prefer for kids to finish snacks and drinks before entering the studio for the safety of other’s artwork. It is a good idea to give them a snack before class, as they seem to get really hungry making art! IN SUMMER please bring a peanut free snack and a drink if you don’t like Brita filter water. We will have a quick open air snack break outside if student desires during summer camps only.

For ALL Art CAMPS please bring a nonrefrigerated snack daily and something to drink. 

We provide Brita filtered tap water. We get really hungry and thirsty making art 3 hours in a row. Due to allergies, all snacks must be peanut free. We will have a quick open air snack break outside if student desires during summer camps only.

Do I need to come into the studio at drop off and pick up?

You may certainly come in to say hello first day – or drop off. Pick up – you are always welcome 5 minutes before class ends. Most parents use circle drive for pick up/drop off these days. We do not have a parent waiting area.

When does class start?

Our teachers are busy preparing for the day’s activities and will open our doors precisely when scheduled class time starts. The intro to the first project begins at 5 after the hour. Our doors remain locked at all times, which is why we ask you not to “drop by.” We get in a total art zone, and we like to keep that energy bubble intact until time for classes to change.

Those side doors sure seem handy!

Yes, but they are reserved for staff entry, unless we specify to use entrance for some reason. Please make sure your family uses our double-wide front door.

Can we puhleeeeze make-up a class we miss?

If you need to keep a child home due to Covid concerns we will try to find a makeup for you. Otherwise, we assume each child will need to miss a class or a day of camp now and again, so we have made allowance for that in our semester fees. We are pros at modifying projects so your child won’t miss out on the lesson. Each class becomes it’s own unit, working at it’s own pace with it’s own teacher. Hence the “no make up’s rule” makes sense as it is highly interruptive to a group for a new student to show up once. If the weather is to blame, or an instructor is ill, we’ll contact you to organize a group make-up. Otherwise, there are no makeups for missed classes.

What about bad weather days and holidays?

We follow most DISD/RISD school closings and holidays. Check our Facebook page for updates on the weather. We will email you to cancel if there is time. It is Texas weather after all!

What if I missed the last day of camp and didn’t pick up my child’s artwork?

We cannot keep artwork after your child’s camp or class is over unless you email us to pre-arrange this service due to emergency or travel. If work is left by accident, we will attempt to call and keep it for one week. Keep in mind we have over 100 different students each week swing through our doors! If it’s clay, and we didn’t get everything fired—sometimes the case with this unpredictable medium—you can find it on the back table – by the back door in a box with your kid’s name on it for up to a week after the camp or class. The teacher will try to contact you when it’s ready. We hope you understand. We make a LOT of art and our art storage cup truly runneth over.

Little House on the Prairie: older and younger kids in class together.

What a great stroke of luck for your child to be the oldest kid in class! Art class isn’t like a usual classroom. The oldest student in a classroom of younger students gets the opportunity to escape comparison and self doubt. They get to riff off of the usually somewhat wilder and freer younger child’s imagination and lack of inhibitions and remember how great it was (just last year most likely) when they weren’t experiencing crushing peer pressure and could just play. Art lessons begin with play and within this kind environment enormous leaps of technical learning can occur. The youngest get really inspired to try harder to improve as well. Our teachers teach the same techniques no matter the age group. We know what we are doing. Please don’t try to sneak your younger artist into an older classroom, or insist that your advanced artist needs an older kid situation. Trust us, we are experts with concerns of this nature.

Please note: Studio Arts Dallas is not a Texas Licensed Child Care Facility. We are a single purpose, single skill art instruction facility. There are risks associated with making art, although we make every attempt to create a safe environment. We conduct background checks on all instructors who instruct here.

We are so happy you are making art with us!

Please let us know how we’re doing. Please join us on Facebook and Instagram for posts of student work and for emergency closings.

Thanks for choosing Studio Arts.

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