Teenagers sketch a portrait during the first Teen Art Atelier at Badgerhound Studio and Gallery. Courtesy photo

SHEPHERDSTOWN — Teenagers with a desire to strengthen their artistic abilities will soon get the opportunity to do just that at Badgerhound Studio and Gallery, located at 110 West German Street in Shepherdstown.

Applications are currently being accepted for the Teen Art Atelier, run by fiber artist Emily Vaughn and her husband, classical realist painter Michael Davis. Vaughn has 10 years of experience in art and teaching, after earning a bachelor’s degree in general fine arts from the Maryland Institute College of Arts. Davis, with 20 years of professional experience as an artist and teacher, has a bachelor’s degree in painting from Shepherd University and a graduate certificate from the Schuler School of Fine Art.

Their combined experience and contrasting perspectives on art have enabled them to provide students with a top-notch, immersive artistic experience.

“Our third annual Teen Art Atelier will take place this Aug. 4 through 8,” Davis said, mentioning each day’s class will last three hours, from 1-4 p.m. “In this weeklong intensive, young artists will explore figure and portrait, with a focus on classical drawing techniques. Participants will work in charcoal, graphite and conté to develop a better sense of composition, light, structure and likeness, while creating portfolio quality work.”

Anyone ages 14-18, with a serious interest in art, is encouraged to submit an application to participate in the Teen Art Atelier, regardless of previous artistic experience. Vaughn said they do request one thing from prospective students — that they submit five images of their work, which cannot include digital art. This, she said, was to allow her and Davis to gauge the abilities, experience levels and interests of the atelier participants in advance.

At the end of the Teen Art Atelier, participants will get to show off their progress, according to Vaughn.

“Students are invited to participate in an upcoming student show at the Badgerhound,” Vaughn said, noting this is optional.

Previous participants in the art intensive have experienced such growth in their abilities, that more than one of them has gone on to study art on a more permanent basis by enrolling as a student at the Barbara Ingram School for the Arts in Hagerstown.

After seeing this kind of growth in their students, Vaughn and Davis said they were excited to see how much their students in this year’s atelier will grow and how far they will go in their own artistic journeys.

“The kids do amazing work in this program,” Vaughn said, attributing their success to the length of the class time and the artistic focus required of class participants, throughout that time. “We teach them how to focus. Nowadays, doing anything for three hours at a time is unheard of. They are often surprised with how much they can learn and accomplish in that amount of time.”

Students must bring their own 18×24 drawing pad. All other supplies will be included. Snacks and drinks, with closed lids, may be brought by students, if desired. As some of the artistic mediums being used in the class will be a little messy, participants are encouraged to “dress for mess.”

The participation cost is $250 per person. Class size is limited to seven, and it’s filling up quickly. For questions or to apply, email missemilyart@gmail.com, call 443-798-5150 or stop by the gallery during business hours — from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.