Art Classes in New York City

There are art museums all over New York City, and each one of them is a hotbed of art education.
Many of them offer free classes and programs that are worth a try, and several of them engage high profile artists to teach classes for a fee.
In a worst case scenario, even if they don't have the art classes that you're looking for, it's very likely that you can be put in touch with providers who are affiliated with the museum - and I'd certainly trust that referral.

Here are a few museums worth checking out:
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Museum of Modern Art
- Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
- Whitney Museum of American Art
- The New Museum
- Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art

I know it's no surprise, but right now, this is the single best way to find art classes in New York.

Tips:
1. Be really specific with the keywords you use. Always include New York (or even the borough name), and be specific about the type of art class you want (pottery, drawing, painting, etc.).

2. Open each link in a different tab. Websites of local providers of arts classes span the full gambit from impressive, flash based, clean looking websites to HTML kaleidoscopes that make it difficult to find what you're looking for. Either way, each website is going to take some time, so opening them in different tabs definitely helps.

3. Go further than the first page of results. There are so many providers of classes that the first page of Google alone cannot suffice - you'll have to dig deep on this one to find the class that you want.

This website, CourseHorse, is actually your best best to find awesome art classes in NYC - definitely worth checking out.

Here are some others:

Idealist.org
This website is one of the best directories of local arts organizations and educators out there.
If you filter its lists by New York City and by Arts Programs, you'll be hand picked a list of providers that you can work through one by one in order to find the perfect class.

Alliance for the Arts
Check out the alliance for the arts website for a complete guide to some of the top arts events in New York City.
Clicking on 'Organizations' and then filtering by the type of organization/provider you're looking for is likely the best way to narrow this huge list down.

New York City Learning Guide
If you Google this term, you'll find a website that claims to be the "The world wide web's premier directory of recreational, personal, and professional classes". While it's not quite as glorious as that, it does actually have a solid number of arts classes. Filter by the type of class you're looking for, and at the very least, you'll be provided with a list of art class provider that have paid to be a part of the directory. It's not perfect, but it's certainly a start!

Sadly, Craigslist is one of the few other options available to those searching for classes locally.

A few quick tips to those using Craigslist to find the classes they're looking for:

1. If you're looking for formal classes, this may not be the place for you. Posts on Craigslist are typically created by individuals who are seeking to sell their art-making services, which means you can't be sure of how credible they are. Don't respond to any posts that don't include a website that shows a primary location.

2. If you are looking for private instruction, keep in mind that a lot of formal schools do offer private instruction - though the prices may not be within your range. When it comes to selecting a teacher for private art classes, ask for references and examples of their work - even private art instructors should have websites displaying their work, if they're serious about it .

SquiDirectory Squidoo Directory - A categorized Squidoo directory featuring an interesting variety of different subjects ranging from arts and literature, shopping, and eco friendly tips, to vehicles for sale, travel, and everything in between.