Emily Banner ’27 is not sure what she’s going to major in at William & Mary but it probably won’t be studio art. “I love art. I want to create stuff and learn how to make everything but I don’t think I want it to be my job,” said the sophomore.

That explains why she was thrilled to learn about Art After Hours, a series of monthly workshops hosted by the Muscarelle Museum of Art specifically aimed at students who are not studio art majors.

One month, it’s learning how to make relief prints from woodblocks. The next it’s using pastels to create portraits. The goal of the three-hour classes, says the Muscarelle’s Director of Engagement Steve Prince, is to keep students engaged in the practice of art.

“This class is for people who may not necessarily want to become full-time artists. But, then again, you may find that it’s so interesting that you say, ‘Hey, I want to sit with it. Let me think about it,’” Prince said. “The goal is to inspire you and keep you connected to the arts.”

Art After Hours workshops are free. Enrollment is limited depending on the workshop topic. They are open to William & Mary students not majoring in Studio Art who want to learn more about disciplines such as drawing, painting, sculpture and printmaking.

The idea is to expand the reach of W&M arts programs and provide more students with opportunities to explore creativity through artistic expression. The program is made possible through a generous gift from Jean Berger Estes ’75, P ’06, an artist herself, and Rob W. Estes ’74, P ’06.

Jean Estes said she believes the exercise of creativity is at least as important as physical exercise for a person’s overall health, but it can be difficult for students who are not majoring in art to fit studio classes into their academic schedules.

“I wanted to be sure that students are given an opportunity to play with art a bit — not to be competitive and not to worry about being graded on it, but something that they could do for their souls,” said Estes, a member of the W&M Alumni Association Board of Directors.

The value of creating art is a discovery she made decades after graduating from William & Mary. As an elementary education major, she had taken one perfunctory studio art class that left her feeling discouraged about developing her artistic side.

“It was the very first art class I’d ever taken and it took me 30 years to get over that and take up a paintbrush,” she said. “I’ve been painting regularly ever since, and it has added so much to my life.”

When she visited an Art After Hours workshop on drawing this fall, she was impressed by how much students were able to learn and apply during the three-hour session.

“I’m just grateful that William & Mary was willing to do this pilot project. It seems to be going well and I hope we can make it a permanent part of the university,” she said. “For what we considered a small investment, they have turned it into a fabulous opportunity for a lot of students.”

Jean Estes personally encouraged Lelia Cottin-Rack ’28 to participate in Art After Hours. “I ran into her the last time she was here, but I hadn’t signed up for the workshop. She said, ‘Oh my gosh, you must sign up for the next one,’” Cottin-Rack recalled. “So I did. It’s really so generous of her to make this available. Such a cool opportunity for people who aren’t studying art to get art instruction.”

The series will continue in the spring 2025 semester with workshops taking place in the newly-expanded and reopened Muscarelle. Topics will include watercolor floral painting, black walnut ink drawing, metal mask-making and silverpoint drawing. Registration is now open at wm.universitytickets.com.

Though priority will be given to non-Studio Art majors and students who have not yet declared a major, Studio Art majors may register in the week preceding the workshop if space remains available.

Banner, who has gone to every workshop offered this fall, will be signing up again.

“I want it to remain my hobby, remain passionate about it as opposed to something that I’m relying on for my living,” Banner said. “This is just such a great way to try different media and have access to materials I otherwise wouldn’t have.”

In her first semester at William & Mary, Victoria Fekete ’28 says the workshops are a welcome break from a rigorous workload. She has courses in philosophy, public policy, geology and art history. “This just seemed like it would be fun, to do something artsy. It’s a stress reliever in some ways,” she said.