SAVI
Social Art Virtual Immersion ("SAVI" for short)
was a pandemic-motivated brainchild of Alex Makes Art:
an interactive group art-making experience with
a carefully curated box component.
Each session of SAVI dives into a new medium.
We explore a variety of art forms through drawing prompts,
group crafting, virtual museum tours, guest artists,
interactive art talks + live demos, studio walk-throughs,
creative challenges, and more!
You will receive a brand new box each session,
complete with a new sketchbook, artist-grade materials
for guided lessons by two full-time artists,
an infographic on how to use your box.
Social Art Virtual
Immersion
Upcoming SAVI Sessions
Be sure to book soon: SAVI spots fill up fast!
(Please note: The same craft is taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Choose the day that works best in your schedule!)
Summer SAVI 2021
Summer SAVI runs from late June - August, and are weekly immersive classes with a fabulously curated box component.
Participants sign up for classes Monday through Friday, five consecutive days, and each week dive into a different mode and medium of making art. Each week of SAVI will be a flat rate of $449 per artist and 15% off per additional artist sibling. You can earn a credit of $25 in the form of a gift card put on your Sawyer account for referring a friend to the Summer SAVI program.
Week 1:
(July 5 - July 9)
Using a variety of different materials informed by
working in 3-dimensions, kiddos will learn to build
and construct sculptural objects.
Some examples include wire sculpture, modeling clay,
miniature magnet making, coil pots.
Week 2:
(July 12 - July 16)
Working with mostly traditional materials like graphite and ink,
this week we’ll be focusing on the illustrative arts.
The focus is character building, landscapes,
comic book formatting, and storytelling.
Composition, line work, and design simplicity.
Week 4:
(July 26 - July 30)
Using nature as a reference and as a vehicle for creating artworks. Examples include building terrariums, using sun for printing, flower still-life with a decoupage mason jar, and spirit animals.
Utilizing from the natural world, art creation that encourages eco-friendly processes and materials.
Week 3:
(July 19 - July 23)
Painting week will be primarily focused on
working with a variety of wet media, from acrylic paints,
to inks, and the process of using old techniques in
new and interesting ways!
Focus on color theory.
Week 5:
(Aug 2 - Aug 6)
Diving into the world of textiles and fabrics,
during this week we’ll be diving into the fiber arts.
Some of these projects included hoop-stitches, embroidery, felting, finger puppets, and more!
Practical sewing, meditative, and folk stitching techniques.
Week 6:
(Aug 16 - Aug 20)
From your phone to analogous modes of photography, students will learn how to not only take great photos with strong composition but utilize these photos in other ways.
Some examples include constructing your own camera, food photography, sun-printing, and composing your own i-spy puzzle. Using and creating a lens building intentional composition, appreciating your own perspective, and learning lighting techniques.
Week 7:
(Aug 23 - Aug 27)
Installations, chalk murals, large-format paper, life-size coloring book pages, learning to translate small objects into large drawings.
Shifting scale up to mural size, growing taller in our skills, building the confidence to work large.
Week 8:
(Aug 30 - Sep 3)
Working with miniatures, shrinky-dinks, sardines, felting,
tiny food sculptures. Focusing on the details!
Channeling focus into the itty-bitty, slowing down, strengthening hand-eye coordination. Emphasis on the micro-process and fine motor skills.
Past SAVI Sessions
January: Science
January's theme is Science! We'll be getting galactic,
designing, discovering, and creating cosmic crafts
in our super secret labo- uh... studios!
Artists will be using both halves of their brains to get into this month's expressive experiments!
February: Travel
Have your passport handy; February is all about Travel!
Artists will take a tour around
the wide world of art as we try our hands at
four crafts from four different continents,
countries, and cultures.
Feb Vacation Week:
Kawaii
February 16th-19th is SAVI's Kawaii week, where we'll be churning out sweet crafts based on Japan's culture of cute!
March: Comics
March is the month of Comic & Cartoons!
Caped caperers are super fun, and there's even more
to the medium than just heroes and villains.
We'll learn about zines, bookbinding, printing techniques,
and of course how to use the unique tools you need to do it all!
April: Illusions
Whoa... April is all about totally trippy Patterns & Illusions!
Get psyched for this strangest of SAVI sessions, where we'll be exploring how to used simple lines and shapes, along with time-tested techniques, to ideate some eye-crossing creations!
April Vacation Week:
Prehistoric
April 20th -23th is SAVI's Prehistoric week! We'll be creating some Cro-Magnon crafts and kickin' it old school
(to the time before school!)
A Day in the Life
of a SAVI Artist
Excited about attending SAVI, but wondering what it's actually like? Join our friend Lil' Frankie as you check out this
simple breakdown of our daily itinerary!
Drawing Prompt
Each day, our artists start with
a fun drawing prompt designed to get their hands moving and their
artistic juices flowing!
Doodles, especially the silly kind,
can be an inspiring start to
an art session!
Mindfulness
We then engage in a few minutes
of mindful breathing, stretching,
and hand exercises.
This helps ensure a comfortable day
of learning and making.
A calmed mind is an open one, after all!
After our morning warm-ups, we kick the day off by learning a bit about the type of art we’ll be making.
Some days we have interactive chats with professional Guest Artists.
On other days we will go on
Virtual Tours of museums or galleries.
Every day, the artists see firsthand how the pros use their equipment and the fundamentals to make amazing art!
Gettin' Crafty
Break Time!
The midpoint of our session is a great time for artists to stand up, shake it off, do another stretch or two, or go to the bathroom if they need to.
It’s also a good time to have a snack! Making art is tons of fun, and it takes energy like any other activity!
Finally, Miss Alex and the artists
get to use the tools and materials
in their weekly SAVI Boxes
to learn, experiment,
and make, make, make!
