Side-By-Side Program

The Side-By-Side Visual Arts Apprentice Program pairs students from Community School of the Arts with professional artists from the region.

Students work side-by-side with artists in their studios for four to six months each year, which allows them to witness, participate in and experience every aspect of the creative process under the tutelage of master professionals.

These pairings often result in long-term working partnerships over several years. At the end of the school year, all apprenticeships culminate in a full-scale art exhibition, where student and professional creations are displayed side-by-side at Bennett Galleries and Company, a professional gallery in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Students selected for Side-By-Side must be in grades 5-12 and have completed a minimum of two years of classroom instruction in visual arts at CSA.

Students are chosen based on the degree of difficulty of each medium and amount of time required in studio; age, experience and interests of the student; and personality and special educational or behavioral needs of the student.

Once accepted, the student remains in the apprentice program each year leading up to graduation. In most cases, this results in long-term intensive apprenticeships with one artist.