18 Nov Say Hello to Claire Munday, Founder of Claire’s Creative Adventures

Tell us a bit about yourself

Claire is a professional artist, muralist, art and music teacher for kids and founder of Claire’s Creative Adventures. She leads art tours and teacher trainings throughout New York City and in France and is a consultant for small- and large-scale children’s events. Her background in theatrical set painting for St. Louis Opera allows for vast material use in class, while her acting and French training inspire and ameliorate dynamic children’s programming and education.

Claire’s excellent reputation is based on her enthusiasm and a genuine respect for each child’s individual needs and personality style. She engages children of all ages to excel in confidence, skill and social development. Having visited, worked in and started many programs in NYC since 1997, she gained a unique perspective of what works, what doesn’t and what to include in her unique Art, Museum, Music and Party Adventures.

Where are you based and what areas does your business cover

Now in our 20th year, we are located at All Souls Church, 1157 Lexington on the Upper East Side at 80th Street, as well as at local museums and galleries.

CCA programs offer myriad art material exploration, artistic development, art & French language exploration (& Spanish), have a 2:1-3:1 teacher-student ratio and serve children ages 2.5-Teens in classes, camps, tours and workshops.

Children are introduced to modern and contemporary artists and diverse cultures using a wide variety of media and techniques including: Paint, clay, charcoal, pastels, wood, plaster, papier-mâché, wire, fabric, 3D dioramas, recyclables and more! Myriad museums and galleries of NYC provide us with ample ideas from which to create, keeping our curriculum current with the art world of today.

Older children are introduced to more advanced techniques, Artists and vocabulary related to elevated media such as a variety of pencils, pastels, charcoals, paint, Stop-motion Animation, Animé, portraits and more, intertwined with the use of the above media exploration. Art Adventures Studio is excellent for portfolio-building.

Visiting artists are also invited throughout the year to share their unique perspectives and techniques. One Museum or gallery visit is included each semester. Although semester enrollment is offered, our curriculum spans the entire year. Parent-Child Workshops are also a great way to spend creative time together.

Languages are also an important part of learning about the world! All Art Adventures include simple French vocabulary and common phrases. Children gain exposure to the French language, accent and utilize basic French pertaining to art, while not even aware they are doing so! Greetings, colors, numbers, shapes, tools and colloquial phrases are included. We share Spanish and other languages as well.

Tell us a bit about your business and what inspired you to start it

Art Adventures is an inclusive hands-on children’s art league that teaches art not just as a pastime, but as a means of individual expression. Children leave with confidence as they develop the courage to tackle the “artistic problems” introduced. Overcoming obstacles, mastering triumphs and reveling in the excitement over newfound ways to use materials creates a freedom of expression is invaluable to human growth.

We believe that learning to think creatively is necessary to everyone’s development. Our program is designed to reach all intelligences, to go beyond school curricula to demystify art, artists and their processes with exciting, advanced materials atypically used in today’s private and public-school environments.

Living in NYC, the children of today have a unique opportunity to learn about Contemporary, Modern and Multicultural art as they can be directly inspired by the pieces themselves, due to the vast collections at local museums and galleries.

Taking ages 3 and up to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Guggenheim, MoMA and galleries soon became a part of Art Adventures, as well as Museum Adventures, for those not in her classes. For many years, she led classes as a music teacher for ages 6 mos.- 4 year olds, applying the nuances and specifics of child development to create Music Adventures. Party Adventures have serviced Manhattan for the past 20 years with creative entertainment for large and small-scale children’s events for children (and adults) of all ages.

Her arts-based programs have been shared with many schools throughout the Manhattan and NYC area, including the United Nations School, the 92nd street Y, the Ramaz School and the Sunshine Kids Club. She has provided art consultation for the Children’s Museum, NYC-Parents in Action and the American Friends of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art for hundreds of children at Family Art Day.

What can we expect to see from you in the future

During the start of Covid-19, Claire teamed with creative professionals to create an all-inclusive Virtual and Live ARTS program called ARTStory Adventures (geared towards ages 3-9, adaptable to older levels) to be shared with those in need of home-schooling, after-school programs and/or virtual learning across the globe. This curriculum is comprised of illustrated picture books, story-inspired movement, dance, exercise, drawing, sculpting and building small mini-sets and the characters which come to life in a 3D environment, while learning about the world, it’s species, landscapes, geography and scientific facts. Bountiful Art Kits are delivered to your home.

Hands-on art-making at museums is a very special opportunity for any family and visitors with children to actively making art, inside the museum.

She invites you to join her in ever-expanding Art, Museum, Music and Party Adventures! Soon we’ll be adding children’s Yoga, Acting and other adventures to the mix!  Even for adults!

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