Firstlight Arts Academy

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Do you know someone who loves to draw or paint?

I do. Several hundred of them in fact! My name is Dennas Davis, and I am an artist, a son of an artist, a father of artists, and a teacher of artists. My mom (the artist) always told me that I could do anything if I really tried hard. She encouraged me and it worked. I am blessed to have illustrated 23 children's books.*

Several years back, I founded Firstlight Arts Academy. I noticed that there were great programs for dance, theatre, music, sports, martial arts, and gymnastics, but absolutely nothing of that on-going nature for young artists. I hadn't thought about it before, but when I did, it seemed like a big problem. Only a few people were teaching art to kids, and none of them did it in the long-term training way like all of those other activities. So I came up with a couple of things, that are our core beliefs, that keep Firstlight on a steady course.

Foremost, we encourage artists. We do this to the point where we have actually eliminated the words, mistake, correct, right & wrong, in the classroom. Encouragement, however, is not just saying good things; it is saying good things that are absolutely true. We only speak truth when we praise, and we work with students to improve their work when they ask for help. This is encouraging to them.

Secondly, we take a view that is big-picture oriented, long-term, and all about the artist - as opposed to all about the teaching. Most art instruction has always been set up as short courses. Each class teaches only one small aspect of art, or medium, that an artist must choose one at a time. After the class, they're on their own. Our vision, however, is to walk along side of artists in their journey and work with them; helping each one find what works best for them by being involved in the process.

That's why we offer small, on-going classes that are student oriented, with the goal of long-term personal development. Our 3-D learning model lets students express themselves, and develop their own unique style, as they also discover new ideas, learn specific techniques, and gain time-saving insights. Our classes are really fun too!

"I realized not only that she was being taught the same things I learned in art school, but that she was getting it - at only age 9."

Shea Williams