Without a school to keep them busy kids are eager to flex their creative muscles, perhaps at the expense of your freshly laid rug and freshly painted walls. But encouraging artistic kids doesn’t have to mean living in a messy house. Instead, drop them off at one of the city’s many art camps, where they can paint, sculpt and stain the tables to their heart’s content. Whether it’s creating watercolor landscapes at Houston School of Art and Design or sewing their own summer outfit at Monart School of Art, the sky’s the limit for your little artists.
Here is our list of the best summer art camps and classes Houston has to offer:
Houston School of Art and Design
Available until August 12 | register online | 6 to 18 years old
If your child is an aspiring artist, enroll them in the Houston School of Art and Design’s summer program. Daily lessons cover everything from painting with watercolors and tempera to working with colored pencils and pastels. Classes are designed to provide students with a comprehensive art education that prepares them to create stellar works of art, regardless of their skill level. And the learning doesn’t stop at summer camp: the school also offers daily classes in the fall.
Kidcreate Studio
Available until August 19 | register online | from 3 to 12 years old
For kids who won’t be satisfied until their hands are dirty, Kidcreate Studio is the place to be. One-day workshops and one-week camps offer artistic activities such as sculpting a fairy house or creating unicorn slime. Some camps even offer participants the chance to paint or sculpt their favorite character, such as Pikachu from Pokémon or Mirabel from Encanto. The studio also offers weekly classes in subjects like painting and fall glitter crafts.
Monart art school
Available until August 19 | register online | 3 to 18 years old
While all of École d’Art Monart’s themed art workshops will excite your kids, the gems of its summer program are its fashion camps. From drafting their designs to using a sewing machine, kids will learn the basics of fashion design and create their own wearable designs. Whether they end up making a party dress, shorts, or a mesh top, each of Monart’s campers will walk away with a valuable life skill and a new outlet for their creativity.
Treehouse Arts and Crafts
Available until August 29 | sign up by email | 3 years and over
At Tree House Arts and Crafts, kids can let their crafty side shine with unique art activities like designing doghouses for their stuffed animals or painting mosaics on tote bags. Each camp week features a different theme that brings with it new crafts, coloring sheets, and stories. And don’t think the theme is limited to day-to-day activities – kids are always encouraged to dress according to the theme too, with their camp-provided aprons protecting their costumes from stains.
The mad potter
Available until September 2 | register online, in studio or by phone | 5 to 17 years old
Interested in an art lesson with a souvenir for life? Look no further than weekly Mad Potter summer camps, where kids will play games, do crafts and, best of all, paint their own pieces of pottery to take home with them when camp ends. With choices like ice cream cone piggy banks, dragon figurines and bulldog mugs, there’s a project for every child in the pottery studio. And if camps don’t fit your schedule, you can always take a family visit to Mad Potter any day of the week.