While only fans of Pokémon and DragonBall Z used to like anime, the Japanese animation-inspired art form, it is now more mainstream. The Carnegie Arts Center is helping to foster the next generation of anime artists with a series of classes this spring.
“We have been offering anime classes the last few years and they are quite popular among our pre-teen and teen students,” said Carnegie assistant director Megan Hannes. “We plan to offer an anime class this summer as part of our Art Camp schedule.”
Instructor Christopher Garcia hopes to teach the kids the basics and for the more advanced students, will provide lessons that will allow them to express their creative muscles.
“A lot of these kids coming in just have an interest in drawing, so I try to keep things very entry level,” he said. “I do have kids who are more experienced, so I try to gauge where they’re at and work with them from there.”
He noted that the anime section in book stores seem to be more popular than American comics, speaking to the rise in interest with this art form amongst children and teenagers.
“I have a 16-year-old niece and she’s really into anime,” said Garcia. “I was into it at their age too, but anime has definitely become a lot more mainstream the past couple of years.”
The first class offered is Anime & Anatomy on March 10, 17, 24 and 31 from 4:30-5:30 p.m. The classes are for ages 11-14 and cost $60.
“Explore and discover the characters you can create. Starting with some anime and cartooning basics we’ll look at and draw the human body and learn how to use those skills to create your own anime characters,” said Hannes.
The next class offered is Anime and Animals on April 7, 14 and 28 from 4:30-5:30 p.m. The classes are for ages 11-14 and cost $55.
“Starting with some cartooning and anime and basics we’ll look at and draw different types of animals and learn how to turn them into creative anime creatures,” said Hannes.
The final class offered is Comic Book Creations on May 5, 12, 19 and 26 from 4:30-5:30 p.m. The classes are for ages 11-14 and cost $60.
“Don't miss out on this unique class that will expand your imagination and help you create new worlds,” said Hannes. “Explore examples of anime and then jump into creating your own narrative through storyboarding and comic book creation.”
A full class schedule and how to register can be found at carnegieartsturlock.org/current-schedule.
