cultivating skilled creativity
ABOUT ME
Instructor
Lorenda Harder
Educational background
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA)
Bachelor of Education (BEd)
Art Therapy Practitioner Certificate
How My Teaching Stands Out
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professional artist, teacher & art therapy practitioner
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individualized tutoring for maximum skill-building & personal expression
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experience with exceptionalities, all ages & skill levels (even ZERO skill!)
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private/small group art experiences from my spacious home art studio
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guaranteed success
Happy Parent, May 2023
"Lorenda is an accomplished artist and an enthusiastic, kind, and encouraging teacher - she was able to draw out the very best in my child."
Adult Student, June 2023
"I learned a lot and look at things differently now!"
"My reluctant artist is now exuberantly artistic because of Mrs. H's contagious love of art."
"My boys were very uninterested in creating art before beginning classes with Mrs. H."
"We've all discovered a love for visual arts together."
About Niagara Arts Academy
While drawing this very bird with berries at the age of seven, I decided that I wanted to one day be an artist and teacher. My natural passion and eventual professional training led to decades of creating in the arts and guiding students of all ages, skill levels, and various exceptionalities in the arts. After a few years in private and public education and as a self-employed artist, I home-educated my own children through high school and, in 2010, established Niagara Arts Academy (NAA) where I offer my studio space and guidance in various ways - with in-person and online private tutoring, group art lessons, art parties, and full courses.
Seeing the spark of joy in someone's eyes when they are pleased with their creation remains one of the most satisfying experiences in my life. Like Bob Ross, I encourage joy in my students too. He'd say "You can do anything here - the only prerequisite is that it makes you happy."
As I free up more time to create, I have been taking on fewer and fewer students. The inevitable means that I will be taking on no new students in 2024.
