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Since the summer, 12 Bay Area high school students have been gathering in a room at Pacific Art League in Palo Alto to learn classical oil painting. Instructors began with gesture drawing, observational techniques and the fundamentals of working with oil paint.
The free, 15-week-long atelier, which began in July, is a unique opportunity rarely available to teens. The classical methods of oil painting instruction are generally difficult to access without moving to Florence, Italy or New York City, said painter and atelier instructor Dustin Adamson. This program changes that.
He said that the word atelier, which refers to a private workshop or studio of a professional artist, can have stuffy or exclusive connotations.
“The word atelier is kind of a loaded thing in the artist community because it specifically references French academic methods of the 18th- and 19th-century,” said Adamson, who himself trained at the Florence Academy of Art US. “It (the atelier) looks back at the past tradition of art, but makes it accessible for people, and it lays a good foundation for artists. Classical training does not mean they have to paint in a classical aesthetic. It just means they have the skill set to go on to do any sort of creative endeavor.”
To join the atelier, students did not need to have previous oil painting experience. They were required to submit essays describing their interest in art as part of the application. They also needed to demonstrate willingness to commit to attending the entirety of the program.
As part of the program, the students, who are 14 to 17 years old, could bring home a full palette of paints, paintbrushes and a portable easel. Instructors began the program by teaching students to create a copy of a master painting. This practice allowed the students to gain still-life skills and “strengthen their understanding of composition, color, light, shadow and form,” according to a class description. They then moved on to landscapes, followed by portraits.
Palo Alto resident Yumiko Tsumura, a longtime donor to the Pacific Art League, has made the atelier possible, funding instructor pay and class materials.
“I wanted to create something that does not exist anymore in the entire Bay Area,” said Tsumura, who has published her own books of poetry and practiced Japanese Shodō calligraphy. She holds a master of fine arts in poetry and translations from the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop. “Oil painting can be prohibitive to get into and you don’t get anywhere with one lesson.”
Learning classical oil painting can be costly. For example, a four-day long classical figure-painting class can cost nearly $800 in the Bay Area.
Tsumura said there are few people in Silicon Valley willing to invest in music, art and poetry, so she felt the need to step in. She noted that there have been significant cuts to funding in these areas. She plans to fund the atelier long term, she said.
She said the program is also a way to honor her late husband, physicist Paul Mathews, who was an oil painter.
Tsumura also sees the atelier as an opportunity for art teachers to earn extra income.
“This program really represents what Pacific Art League is all about: giving people opportunities to explore art, learn new skills, and connect with others through creativity,” said Aly Gould, the organization’s executive director.
“Especially now, when so much of the conversation is about AI (artificial intelligence) and technology, I think there’s something really valuable about going back to the traditional skills of artists and artisans,” she said in an email. “Oil painting takes patience, practice, and a willingness to make mistakes.”
The students have made significant progress since their first lessons, Tsumura said.
“I’m proud I made it possible for these talented youth to get exposure (to oil painting) and make progress without the price,” she said. “It’s money well spent.”
Sophia Tanphaichitr, a sophomore at Palo Alto High School, is part of the atelier’s first cohort and said she has enjoyed the variety of things she learned to paint. Tanphaichitr previously took an art class at the Pacific Art League and her mom thought she’d enjoy the new atelier for teens after reading about it on the nonprofit’s website.
“Because it is free, it can be very helpful to those who don’t want to spend a lot of money on the supplies, or really want to, but can’t,” she said in an email. “The class is structured in a way where independence in art is encouraged in a low-stress environment, but the instructors still offer plenty of help and guidance. … Getting to have my art be in the Art League exhibition in November is super cool!”
The deadline to apply for next year’s atelier program is Dec. 15, 2026. Learn more at pacificartleague.org/atelier. Tsumura said the upcoming program, which will be 12 weeks long and starts in January 2027, is worth $1,000. Weekly sessions will be two and a half to three hours long.
Students will exhibit their final projects at the Pacific Art League’s 105th Anniversary Exhibition, at 668 Ramona St. in Palo Alto, from Nov. 6 to Jan. 12, 2027. The opening reception is Nov. 6 from 5:30-8 p.m. Find out more at pacificartleague.org/105-anniversary-and-fundraiser.
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