Philosophy

Brentwood Art Center believes art is the reflection of the soul and our classes are dedicated to individuals as they pursue high aesthetic standards. While mastering basic and traditional skills, students are encouraged to explore their own vision. That freedom of self-expression stimulates creativity; the result is unique imaginative art. We believe that acquiring fundamental skills as well as advanced concepts should be enjoyable for both student and instructor. Our dynamic classes are small and individualized, allowing the optimum development of each student. Our instructors are not only talented artists, but also capable educators who have a desire to inspire each student on the integration of process and product, concept and skill, creativity and structure.

General Information

Year-round art instruction is offered for adults, teens and children. Fine Art Day Camps are offered during winter break and summer for children ages 5 to 13 years. The high quality of work done by students is recognized by many universities and art institutes. Students have earned credit towards their degree from presenting art portfolios completed at Brentwood Art Center. Arrangements for credit must be made with the school’s dean, registrar, or faculty advisor at their home institution.

The Center has received commendations from the City of Los Angeles, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, the California Art Education Association and Free Arts For Abused Children.

Art Birthday Parties

& Special Events

Looking for a different kind of party or a way to celebrate a special occasion? We offer hands-on, private art parties and workshops that produce individual projects, while catering to the dynamics of the group. Call (310) 451-5657 or contact us by clicking here

Art helps brain development in children by stimulating the area of the brain that learns emotion and memory. At Brentwood Art Center, children are given opportunities to draw, paint, craft and create using different mediums. These activities also promote social awareness, logic and individual expression.

Our birthday parties are the perfect time for children to have their first experience in an art studio. Professional instructors lead an age-appropriate project, using professional art supplies, which keep children and his/her guests engrossed and happy.

Birthday parties are held exclusively on Saturdays between 2 and 4 p.m. and projects take about an hour and half to complete. Parents individualize the party, by choosing from a selection of art projects. The remaining time is used for refreshments, which are provided by the parents.

A birthday party for 12 children is $400, with each additional child $20 extra. Since the party takes place in one of our studios, the maximum number of children that we can accommodate is 20. A $75 deposit is required. Supplies are purchased and prepared in advance for the reserved number of children, which means last minute additions cannot be accommodated. Please remind guests that children work with art supplies, and since we encourage the artistic and creative process, which can be messy, we ask that children wear “art clothes” and to leave party clothes at home. Please call the office for more detailed information and date availability.

PHOTO GALLERY OF BIRTHDAY PARTY PROJECTS:

History

Ed and Linda Buttwinick began the Brentwood Art Center almost forty years ago.  After Ed graduated from UCLA in 1961 with double degrees in art and education, he taught in the inner-city schools for five years before transferring to Warner Ave. Elementary School in Westwood to become a training teacher for the UCLA Education Department.  When Los Angeles City School teachers went on strike in 1970, several parents at Warner Ave. School asked Ed to teach art, offering their houses as well as a large garage to use as his studio.  After nine months of teaching art to both children and adults in the garage, Ed had an enrollment of 80 students.

Ed and Linda were faced with a tough decision. Should they follow Ed’s passion of owning his own art school, or take the safe route and have Ed go back to the Los Angeles Unified School District?   At the time, they had two small daughters, and a wrong decision could have spelled disaster.  Linda backed her husband’s dream.“  She’s the gambler,” Ed says.  “In the beginning, it was very scary,” Linda adds.  “In addition to our start-up costs, we also had to give $4,500 back to LAUSD, which was half a year’s teacher’s salary at that time.”   “I sold some of my comic book collection for the seed money to start the business,” Ed says.  In 1971 they hired a second teacher and moved to the school’s current site at 26th Street and Montana at the Los Angeles Santa Monica border.  Over the years the enrollment has steadily grown along with the faculty and staff. The Center has been successfully serving the greater Los Angeles community ever since.

GALLERY OF PHOTOS FROM THE 1970s & 80s:

BAC 2010 (click to enlarge)

2005 – Present

“We prayed to find someone whose heart was in the same place,” Ed says. They found a kindred spirit in Sarkis Melkonian.In 2000, they started worrying about what would happen to their school when they retired. Linda wistfully says, “It’s like a third child to us. It has a life of its own. Three generations have come through here.”

Melkonian assumed the vision and ownership of the Brentwood Art Center in September of 2005. The school now has more than 600 students, with 50 employees, including 35 teachers.

“The school is perfect the way it is,” Melkonian says and notes that the focus on an outstanding art education within a nurturing environment makes it a unique school of fine art. The Brentwood Art Center’s attention to process as well as product and children as well as adults makes it a very different and special place. The curriculum is designed to encourage the students not to fear mistakes, as ultimately this is how they will grow.  Melkonian hired David Limrite as the director of curriculum. David has more than 20 years of experience as an artist and educator, most notably with the Art Center in Pasadena.

“The secret of the BAC has always been the teachers and the quality of the education,” Melkonian says. “That’s the main reason that the Art Center has been around for 40 years.”