It may be cold and grey outside, but a summer of colour and creativity is just around the corner for kids and teens - making use of the campus's professional arts facilities and finding inspiration in the architecture and green space of McMaster's campus.
After a successful pilot year last summer, Arts at McMaster has now opened registration for their summer day camps, featuring one- and two-week sessions for students in grades five to eight and high school.
"McMaster's professional labs and studios will be a playground for creativity as students bring their ideas to life," says Cornelia Peckart, the Arts at McMaster Campus and Community Educator and a drawing instructor with the camps.
"Students explore many approaches to art using both classic and modern techniques - and they get a chance to know Mac's beautiful campus through visits to the Museum of Art, the greenhouses, the Lyons New Media Centre and other buildings and green spaces."
Students in grades five to eight can take week-long Junior Arts classes in painting, animation, sculpture or printmaking.
"[Our daughter] had a wonderful time exploring her creativity and learning new techniques - the experience gave her so much joy and confidence," wrote one junior camper's mother after last year's camps. "It was a place she felt safe and seen; she is a shy and quiet kid but the first day she made a friend and connected with the instructors, which made her feel comfortable enough to show her creative side."
This year, one week of the Junior Arts camp is devoted to exploring science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) with access to innovative technologies such as 3D printers and laser cutters as well as more traditional arts tools.
Teens can choose one-week foundation sessions in drawing, painting or photography, or take a two-week class in motion capture and animation that includes 3D modeling and character design, lighting and sound integration, and other animation concepts.
"The professor is so knowledgeable! It was challenging, but in a good way," said one teen participant in the motion capture and animation session last year. "I'm happy about how much I've already learned and it's only day one!"
According to Peckart, several of the teen participants from last year have volunteered to come back as volunteers for the 2026 camps.
"They loved being a part of campus life, and wanted to keep hanging out here - which speaks to how at home they felt as part of the McMaster community," says Peckart. "We're so excited to welcome a new group of campers this summer!"
Arts at McMaster is housed within the Faculty of Humanities. Along with the summer arts camps, they are also piloting arts workshops to high school arts classes during the school year.
To find out more about Arts at McMaster summer camps, or to register, go to their website.
