FOUNDED IN 2011, INSTITUTE FOR VISUAL ARTS (IVA) OFFERS A CORE PROGRAM OF ONGOING COURSES THROUGHOUT THE ACADEMIC YEAR AS WELL AS SHORT TERM SESSION CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS FOR STUDENTS OF ALL AGES
IVA’s approach to learning in and through the visual arts centers instruction on the foundational disciplines that contribute to the creation, understanding and appreciation of art. IVA’s curriculum is designed sequentially and provides students with deep and meaningful learning experiences in a broad array of multifaceted art concepts, styles, methods and media. Students are provided with specific project-based learning objectives while being encouraged to develop their own voice and generate original ideas and subject matter from their personal experiences, observations, imaginations and memories.
IVA students study the visual arts in an in-depth, sequential, academic, rigorous manner; learn vocabulary, history, concepts, elements, principles; develop creativity, self-expression, independent and critical thinking skills; explore processes, materials, tools, techniques; expand artistic knowledge, skills and abilities; create original artworks in varied and mixed media; learn within a small, diverse, creative peer group.
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SHANNON RAE FINCKE
FOUNDER/DIRECTOR
INSTITUTE FOR VISUAL ARTS IS LED BY SHANNON RAE FINCKE, A VISUAL ARTIST, ART EDUCATOR AND ADMINISTRATOR, CURATOR AND GALLERIST—WITH 30 YEARS OF ART PROGRAM LEADERSHIP, CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT, AND TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Prior to founding IVA in 2011, Shannon designed and implemented original PreK-12 art programs in numerous public and private schools and nonprofit organizations, and instructed visual arts to students of all ages and levels in a wide variety of capacities.
Shannon spent 8 years providing art education and professional development as a Visual Arts Specialist for Los Angeles Unified School District. She also gave private lessons and conducted custom-designed classes, workshops, and camps at residences throughout Los Angeles for over a decade. Shannon also formerly served as a Visual Arts Examiner for the International Baccalaureate, an Art Instructor at Wildwood School and Windward School in Los Angeles, and a Project Arts Coordinator and Art Department Head in New York City High Schools. She also worked as a Museum Educator and Teaching Artist for various organizations including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, the Albright-Knox Museum in Buffalo, NY, Henry Street Settlement Abrons Art Center in New York City, and the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.
Shannon was selected to attend the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts in high school and completed her undergraduate studies in Studio Art at Susquehanna University in Pennsylvania and The Marchutz School of Art in France. She holds a Master's Degree in Painting and Art Education from New York University, where she was the recipient of a Gallatin School Dean’s Scholarship and studied intensively with the renowned artist Arnold Mesches. Her teacher training was completed at New York City’s LaGuardia High School of Music & Art & Performing Arts and Hunter College Elementary and Secondary Schools for the Gifted & Talented. Shannon holds PreK-Adult Art teaching credentials in New York and California.
Shannon’s artwork has been exhibited in solo and group shows in Los Angeles, New York, and Internationally, is in private and public collections throughout the U.S., and has been featured in print, film, and television. A mother of three daughters, and originally from the East Coast, Shannon has lived in the Silverlake/Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles since 2002.