Registration now open for Holiday Classes
Give yourself time to create; give loved ones gifts they will treasure! Check out our new class offerings and sign up soon; spaces fill fast. Click here for class descriptions and registration.
WINTER PEACE CAMP
“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.” – Thich Nhat Hahn Universal stories of compassion and action will lead the way into welcoming, discovering, and celebrating the many ways we can cultivate peace and loving kindness, individually and together. Alongside Grace Art Camp […]
GAC week 7 finale!
. . . a unique animated look at Issun Boshi, among other tidbits of the week . And Thank you everyone for another fabulous summer of Art Camp. See you next year when you come again!
week 7 has begun!
Yesterday returning campers recalled, and shared with new campers, the many things we do at Art Camp together each year — make art, listen to stories, dance together, be “dramatic”, sing — lots of singing, and just being together while doing all these things. We sang […]
week 6 – the week of wishes
Thursday and Friday were chock full of Star Festival activity — miniature shoji screens, glass furin, koi ponds, fishing poles, sumi painted scrolls, hanko (stamps with designed and personalized signature), clay olympics, accessories inspired by Japanese streetwear known as “fruits”, polka dotted collages and giant block printing of […]
week 6 – taiko wednesday
Sashiko literally means “little stabs” and is a kind of embroidery campers have been learning in the fibre arts studio. Taiko is the word for “drum” and Portland Taiko graced Art Camp today with many kids of Japanese style drums in the Music & Dance Studio […]
tuesday week 6
We started the day with a singing medley of our top morning songs followed by the beginning of Tanabata, the ancient legend behind the Star Festival celebrated in Sendai (in August according to the lunar calendar). Storyteller Anne introduced us to a set of twins and two stars […]
welcome to the top of festive week 6!
Today, old and new friends came together to sing the cherished Grace Art Camp tune and share the Four R’s of Community. An old Japanese favorite makura (pillow), Under the Cherry Blossom Tree, set the tone for the week, about a mean old grumpy man who ends up […]
week 5 animation link and then some
A camper quote from the week and a few parting images: “On Tuesday morning I asked my 8 year old grandson if any of his friends from school were at Grace Art Camp. He said ‘No, but that’s okay. Grace Art Camp is one of those places where […]
week 5 homestretch
Veiled in a smoky layer of heat, and amidst a unique plethora of studio choices, origami artist Yuki Martin taught campers how to make useful utilitarian objects from paper and this week’s storyteller, Alton Chung, made a guest appearance in the Theatre Studio to play out slow-motion theatre […]
week 5 and keeping cool
Art Camp photographer Sonja Bales’s quote for the day: I’ve noticed kids laugh less as it gets hotter. And yet . .. . her pictures speak for themseleves. Today we heated up Art Camp by just being art camp cool with clay finger puppets, animated floating moon worlds, […]
week 5 – Momotaro!
Today, we heard the first days of four parts of Momotaro, where otasa (father) and okasa (mother) find an oh so oshi (delicious) peach floating along the river and take it home to eat only to find they now have a small child in their lives […]
top of week 5 – monday
Old and new friends came together today to sing the cherished Grace Art Camp tune and share the Four R’s of Community. We were all entertained by Under the Cherry Blossom Tree, a favorite ancient rakugo, or “joke tale”, about a mean old grumpy man who ends […]
week 4 animation link and end of the week pics!
Week 4’s Animation Studio video made by art campers! And a few vignettes of Friday . . .
last minute tidbits week 4
Over the past four days, art campers have folded themselves into an incredible origami community that we will share and honor tomorrow. The gate will open tomorrow at 2:45pm for families to join this week’s celebration at 3pm. Unfolding over the last two days were a guest appearance […]
week 4 hump day
Wednesday brought Portland Taiko to camp for the whole day demonstrating that perseverance, respect, and collaboration are essential to creating a cohesive community beautiful sounds, and learning new skills of all kinds!
Three local Japanese-American events, family style!
Vibrant, joyous, colorful! The American obon festival is a kaleidoscope of sights and sounds with Buddhist rituals, hanging lanterns, food booths and games, music, and bon odori, communal dances encircling a central platform. Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center’s museum exhibit, American Obon: Dancing in Joy and Remembrance, explores the roots […]
week 4, midsummer
Konichiwa GAC Kazoku! (Good Afternoon GAC Families) Yesterday old and new friends came together to sing the cherished Grace Art Camp tune and share the Four R’s of Community. We were all entertained by a very old makura or “pillow story” to set the stage for the week. […]
week 3 animation and then some
Thursday and Friday brimmed with activity culminating in the weekly Friday matsuri (festival) celebrating our week of community that blossomed out of folding, printing, sewing, threading, cutting, painting, dancing, moving, beating, gluing, tying, wrapping, unwrapping, shaping, pulling, dipping, smoothing, clipping, carving, firing, speaking, singing, and smiling. Amazing what […]
Kaguya-hime wrapping up week 3
Today Guest Artist Yuki Martin lead the Origami Studio with folded paper accessories fit for royalty. Everyone else offered a variety of projects involving fish, puppets, or fans, and then some! Tomorrow, Friday, we are all looking forward to finding out just what Kaguya-hime, born from the hollow […]
week 3 – wednesday notes
Daily blog posts include photos from the day before and details about today. Today, the middle of week 3 at Grace Art Camp, we were serenaded by Portland Taiko who graced the Music & Dance Studio all day and performed after recess demonstrating that perseverance and collaboration […]
terrific tuesday week 3
Yesterday old and new friends were entertained by a very old makura or “pillow story” to set the stage for the week. Under the Cherry Blossom Tree, a favorite ancient rakugo, or “joke tale” about a grumpy old man who ends up turning inside out and into […]
week 3 kick off!
Today at camp we had a sampling of many studios and campers got familiar with their color groups and our talented staff! Tomorrow campers will be choosing from 10 different studios and starting our week’s story entitled Kaguya-hime, which begins with a bamboo cutter discovering something unexpected… Ja […]
week 2 wrap up and matsuri!
Grace Art Camp Kazoku! Over the past three days, art campers have learned how to say their color group in Japanese, Good Morning (Ohiyo Gozaimas), Good Afternoon (konichiwa), and “see you soon” (ja mata). We enjoyed spending a day with Portland Taiko, who performed with a variety […]
week 2 day 2
Yesterday old and new friends came together to sing the cherished Grace Art Camp tune and share the Four R’s of Community. Monday we were all entertained by a very old makura or “pillow story” to set the stage for the week. Under the Cherry Blossom Tree […]
mid-week 1 details
Over the past three days, art campers have learned a variety of Japanese words, my personal favorite being mukashi banashi, very old stories, one of which we will find out how the two brothers reconcile. Based on the story and a variety of Japanese art traditions, campers […]
day 1, week 1, GAC in Japan
Today was the first day of the first week of Camp! Old and new friends and colleagues came together to brush off the cherished Grace Art Camp tune and be entertained by a very old makura, or “pillow story” to set the stage for the week, entitled Under […]
Summer Waitlist Questions
To date, we have responded to your individual email waitlist requests. (Emails were answered in the order received.) Please click HERE for waitlist information. We appreciate your patience as we work with these requests. We love that you love Grace Art Camp!
Grace Art Camp Japan – Summer 2017
Our community Blossoms in story, art, song… Grace Art Camp haiku Celebrating the arts and culture of Japan through mukashibanashi – very old tales from Japan, known as “tales of long ago.” Develop skills and express ideas through a variety of daily studio projects offered and led by […]
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