Since the 1920s the Provincetown Art Association and Museum has participated in outer Cape Cod’s tradition of offering instruction and studio art classes to visitors and members of our community. In 1982 PAAM’s educational mission was furthered when the Museum School at PAAM was officially founded, with an onsite studio classroom. Modeled after the Art Students League of New York, the Museum School has provided students of all levels the opportunity to work with local, professional artists in a variety of settings and mediaworking en plein air and in the traditional, studio classroom environment.
PAAM was renovated in 2003-05, creating greatly improved studios for the school which are naturally lit with skylights, ventilated, and handicapped accessible. The space includes a drawing studio, painting studio with moveable wall, and a non-toxic print studio featuring three printing presses.
In 2009, the school was named to honor the late Lillian Orlowsky and William Freed, who were artists, teachers, and active members of PAAM and the Provincetown arts community for over 50 years.
Over the past 29 years, programming has evolved to year-round offerings, featuring four months of summer classes, as well as fall and spring workshops. Media covered includes Art History, Drawing, Film, Mixed Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, and more.
To deepen participation in our artistic community, students are invited to become members of PAAM. As PAAM continues its commitment to support and represent contemporary artists, each new artist/member joins a long roster of distinguished American artists who have studied, taught, and exhibited at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum over the last century.