Instructors


Melanie Dugan

Melanie has over 32 years experience teaching various age groups from preschool to adults. She minored in art in college and has expertise in art development in children. She is endorsed to teach art in grades pre-K through 12. Throughout her career as an elementary school teacher, she has used art as a means to help children express themselves as well as gain academic skills. She has worked as a privately contracted art teacher for the Tacoma Public Schools and now teaches art classes for children in her studio as well as in art programs for the Anacortes School district. She uses her skills as an artist to inspire children to discover their own artistic style and expression. She believes that art is a valuable skill that can be acquired and enjoyed by all.

 

Melanie is originally from Tacoma, Washington. She owns Art Studio 2120 along with her husband, Greg, in Anacortes, Washington.



Greg Dugan

As a kid I was amazed at the amount of artwork that went into the creation of movies like Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Disney’s Jungle Book. The artwork created for these movies made me fall in love with drawing and painting. I discovered artists such as Ralph McQuirre, Joe Johnson, and Marc Davis, who all inspired me to pick up a pencil and start drawing. With a little direction and encouragement from a father who was a talented artist himself, I took my first art class when I was thirteen years old, and have been drawing and painting ever since.
 
I have been blessed in my life to have had great teachers and mentors. Growing up in California I was introduced to the watercolor medium by a talented high school art teacher whose work made me want to master the medium. After high school I was lucky to be mentored by an internationally known watercolor artist and teacher, Timothy J. Clark. With his encouragement and instruction I decided to make art my life’s work. Knowing the value of a good education I attended Art Center College of Design and Laguna College of Art and Design before beginning my art career, which has now spanned over thirty years. I have been fortunate to have been able to use my talents in areas such as portrait drawing, landscape architecture, graphic design, and teaching.

Today my focus is on creating my own artwork and sharing my knowledge with those who want to learn to draw and paint. The subject matter for my work is both realistic and whimsical done in a variety of mediums. Most of my work is rendered in watercolor and pencil but I do enjoy pen and ink, and have started using digital tools to create new works. I have been lucky to have the wonderful support of my wife Melanie, a great artist in her own right, and our studio dog Marzipan.