Apparently this has not been reviewed in about 10 years, so I'm happy to provide an update: it's…read morestill great! I took a 6 week class and truly loved it. I am not a natural at pottery so I took the class again. I had a different instructor for the first round of classes than the second and both were really talented potters and teachers, clearly masters of their craft, and clearly deeply passionate not only about ceramics but about teaching it. I have since been going to open studio for about 1.5 years and it's such a special place! The kiln techs and instructors are truly passionate and there's even a local celeb potter there regularly as a tech who is an absolute wealth of knowledge and quite truly a master. There are a wide range of skill levels from more beginner (me) to intermediate to highly advanced folks, which is a really lovely blend in studio and everyone is so incredibly kind and supportive. I adore the ceramics community here and have made life friends from it! The studio itself: they have tables if you need to sit, a slab roller and LOTS of molds and patterns for slab building, several clay options (bmix, t2, porcelain), and a variety of glazes that they make in house, as well as commercial underglazes. They provide all the tools you would need, but if you need any specialty tools I recommend bringing your own. The wheels are well maintained electric wheels (and one kick wheel!) and there are options for folks in wheelchairs as well. It's a well maintained and cared for supportive space. I couldn't be more thankful. AND the wheels overlook a beautiful pond! What more could you want? If I could hope for one more thing it would be more glaze options, but they do already offer quite a few crowd-pleasers in the more neutral family of glazes.

I started taking pottery wheel lessons here about a year ago. On Saturday mornings at open studio,…read moreI'm pretty sure there's no where else on the planet I'd rather be. The studio is a great place to spend a four hour chunk of your life -- good light, about 15 electric potter's wheels (I've never had to wait for one), a plaster wedging table, a slab roller, and most of the tools you could ever need. You can choose between three high fire clays (porcelain, B-mix, and brown); each is $16 for a 25 pound bag. With its high fire gas kilns and beautiful glazes that make even slightly wobbly bowls look artistic, it's about as close as the general public is likely to get to a professional studio. Instruction is casual and provided on an as-needed basis. The main teacher is Danny Sheu, who is terrific on the wheel and a great instructor, too. Unlike other pottery teachers I've had, he won't waste time telling you that you have 'an interesting technique' if you're doing it wrong, but he's always happy to show you how to do it right. Just catch his eye if you need help. Beginners might prefer his more structured six week classes, but if you're a quick learner, you can just show up at open studio and ask for a lesson in the basics of centering, opening, and compressing. Some of the open studio regulars are professional or near professional potters, but everyone is friendly and willing to lend a newbie tools and advice. That said, no one is there to socialize, so there's plenty of space and quiet to concentrate on your own project. I consistently come out of open studio covered in clay and beaming. Cheaper and better than therapy any day!

We had a team-building event here recently, and it was one of the most enjoyable things we have…read moredone together. Deepti made it so easy for us to jump right in and get creative. She was super encouraging and had ways of helping those of us who don't get the chance to paint very often create something we could be proud of. Even the very-beginners did art we would be happy to show to off others. Some of us enjoyed the process so much we didn't want to leave and stayed as long as we could. I would love to take one of her regular classes!

We had such an amazing experience! I brought a group of 12 women for a team art class, and…read moreeverything was so organized from beginning to end. She was incredibly helpful, patient, detailed, and flexible with such a large group. What I loved most was how she was able to collaborate with all 12 of us and still make the experience feel personal. Everyone felt included, supported, and able to be creative in their own way. You can tell a lot of thought and care goes into what she does. Our team had the BEST time, and I would absolutely recommend this experience for a team outing, celebration, or just a fun day together. We will definitely be back!

My kid has been studying at Calcolor for three years now, and it's been a wonderful experience…read more Every teacher he's had has been incredibly patient and supportive. The classes are reasonably priced and engaging -- he genuinely looks forward to painting with them every week. Highly recommend!

My 5 year old daughter did their last week of Art Exploration Summer Camp. She was initially a bit…read morehomesick but Ms Gigi made her very comfortable and kept me updated. As for the art work, I was amazed to see how beautiful everything turned out. Highly recommend it! We will be signing her for the during the year classes as well.

My eldest daughter, a high school senior, is an artist, and I wanted to find her additional art…read moreclasses beyond what she was getting in high school. She's worked with Maria and Svetlana for the past several years, in classes including live figure study, live portraiture, animation and advanced portfolio prep. The teaching and guidance at the Art School of SF Bay has been exceptional. And better and better, my daughter has been accepted to top-ranked animation programs including CalArts, Ringling College of Art and Design, RISD and more. I cannot than Maria and Svetlana enough.

I really enjoyed my weekly class. Masha is an amazing teacher and will help you at your level. I…read morelearned so much during class, can't wait to take more!

Loved meeting Natalia and seeing her beautiful work! Definitely worth stopping by to admire and…read moresupport local art.

I am happy to have private art classes with Natalia! She is…read morethe first person who convinced me that I can paint, her unique style for teaching gave me confidence that all people can paint, it's not dependent on talent. Natalia always has feelings about your mood and how much you are involved or not to the process. I am totally recommending Natalia as teacher, but not just, she also amazing art artist, her art, style really amazing! After 3 months I can say "I am in love with painting "

Amazing art program. Excellent art education. Many students got accepted by prestigious art…read morecolleges/universities with high scholarships. Director, Yousun Kim received Excellent Educator awards from Scholastics Art and Writing several years in a row. I sent my daughter and son to the program. Results were excellent. I highly recommend the Soho Art Studio for Portfolio for college admission, AP art, and high school/middle school/elementary school student art education.

From the owner: What distinguishes Soho Art from the rest is the growth of creativity enhancing the full potential…read moreof our students to win many awards. At Soho Art, the student's daily thoughts become strikingly creative ideas with one's own thoughts and feelings expressed as visual images. Students will naturally have a wonderful artistic experience of making all of the above happen. With 25 yrs of teaching experience, Yousun helps high school AP students to achieve 5 scores on their AP assessments. She also helps students develop their portfolios for applying to the top professional art schools. In 2017 to 2023, Yousun Kim received the U.S. nationally recognized Scholastic Art & Writing Award for Outstanding Educator.

This art center has an excellent environment and a creative atmosphere. I will be going to visit…read moreRainbow art studio again .

A gem for budding artists where they get not only a very organized curriculum but also TLC for them…read moreto develop thr much needed confidence for their talent to flourish.

In response to Maria: I have no incentive nor desire to mislead readers. I am telling the truth…read moreabout my experience with your business. Respectfully, within our exchanges, you did not address my concerns, you doubled-down and responded in a defensive way, as you are doing in your response here. You responded to what you thought my concerns were, and sent the complaint directly to the teacher with no context, leading to a situation wherein my concern was not only not addressed, it was inflamed and taken out of context. It felt like being ganged up on. The difference in the public response here, however, is the apology. Offering to essentially boot us from the class is not akin to working with us towards a solution to keep us as customers. It reads as, "my way or the highway", which is not exactly a great way to deal with children and families. Notably inappropriate is also posting the status of my payment method on a globally public thread. Highly unprofessional. It shouldn't matter, since you were going to refund me anyway. I did not receive an email beforehand that the card didn't go through, either. We have been attending classes at this location for months with no issue with payment, and attended one class that I found out through this exchange was unpaid for due to a card being compromised. Is it not your job to inform people when their payment doesn't go through? Why did you deem it important to publicly shame/blast someone for their payment information? Very odd.

I've attended multiple classes for over a year here. Masha and Maria are dedicated and patient…read moreteachers. They're honest (psst.. it's constructive criticism) and enthusiastic to teach and show of what they know. The last course I took was the Human Anatomy and that was advanced but a ton of fun and a good amount of knowledge has been learned and applied when I'm no longer in class. I'm looking forward to continuing here. Thank you Maria and Masha!

This art academy is a hidden gem. The teacher is down to earth and teaches hands on. She is very…read morepatient and generous with compliments. The atmosphere is very relaxed in the studio. The students include serious high school students preparing for college or art/ design schools as well as young kids who is learning to draw and find it relaxing like my son. She is teaching my son to draw, paint, model house building and to work with clays. The teacher is bilingual, Korean and English. It's really nice to see her former students to come to visit her at the studio.

my 7yo now has been going to HYA from 2-3 years and she loves going here. Her art has exponentially…read moreimproved and the teachers are great too.

I've been at Hongyun Art for 10 years. Love the environment and teachers. Helped me grow so much as…read morean artist.100% recommend!!