Purpose & History

The New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts is dedicated to the preservation of Fine Art’s past and the development of its future through an engaging education in a welcoming environment.

Original drawing A. Ozols.

PURPOSE
The New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts opened its doors at 5256 Magazine Street in 1980. Since its inception, the school has promoted the importance of classical tradition in the visual arts. The school’s original focus in Painting, Drawing and Sculpture remains the foundation of our school. Over the course of more than 40 years, NOAFA has expanded and now offers classes in film, photography, ceramics, youth programming, abstraction, and mixed media. The school also operates two gallery spaces on campus which host essential community building events featuring internationally recognized artists.

Our faculty are passionate about teaching and approach each student at their own level. The faculty share a foundational belief that through learning to see carefully, and crafting skill sets in the foundations of the fine arts, we better ourselves as human beings. This core philosophy endures through the growth of the school. The New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts is proud of its current faculty, students and alumni who fill our studios with moments of joy and artistic thought.

HISTORY
The history of NOAFA cannot be told without featuring Dorothy Jurisich Coleman and Auseklis Ozols. Ozols served as the founding director of NOAFA for nearly 40 years and taught painting, and color and design. He would tell his class “When we study the art of seeing, we look beyond the surface.” Ozols was born in Lativa in 1941. He came to the United States with his parents in 1950. He studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the University of Pennsylvania, BFA 1965 and the Tyler School of Art at Temple University, MFA, 1967. Ozols has become a beautiful and important realist painter in the southeast. His work is collected by numerous museums and private collections around the country. His foundational work at the Academy was essential to its early development. Dorothy Coleman opened the doors of NOAFA at its current location in 1980 and served as president of the Academy until her death in 2018. She was extraordinarily active in the arts in New Orleans and has been recognized with many awards. She was described as an "Art Visionary" when she received the New Orleans Art Council Mayor's Art Award. She served on advisory boards of the Newcomb School of Art, the New Orleans Museum of Art and the Roger Ogden Museum of Southern Art. In conjunction with the 2017 Art for Art's Sake, Dorothy was honored with a retrospective exhibit at the New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts showing her works created over the last seven decades. Her work is in countless private collections and her critical support and belief in the Academy was essential to its development and success.

Our current Board President, and Dorothy’s daughter, Dian Coleman Winingder, has added to her mother’s legacy as a champion of the arts. Dian and her Niece Anna Coleman Dunbar, along with the board of directors, have invested deeply in the Academy moving forward with a full renovation of the campus as well as the hiring of a new executive director to help chart a course into the future for NOAFA. Dian’s art collection at the Academy and her work and support of the school continues Dorothy’s vision. NOAFA’s current director, Andrew J. Rodgers, has an BFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design and an MFA from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He is honored to be carrying the torch forward for the Academy. His vision and that of the faculty team at the Academy is to preserve Fine Arts past while embracing its future. The history of the school has led eloquently into its future, with new programs in Ceramics, Abstraction, Film and Youth courses in art that will prepare artists as young as 4 years old at the Academy to become the creators and patrons of tomorrow.

Gallery & Office Hours: Monday-Friday, 9:00am-4:00pm. Saturday 10am-4pm
Please check our Classes & Workshop Calendar for holidays and closures.

Please read our Polices & Procedures prior to registering for a class.

It is recommend to not use a COX.NET email address when registering.

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5256 Magazine St
New Orleans, LA 70115

Call us: 504.899.8111

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