About the Instructor

I’m Amanda Gipson, an artist and art educator in Yukon, Oklahoma. I studied Studio Art at Arkansas State University, and my interest in art history continues to shape the way I look at images, materials, and the choices artists make.

I’m drawn to art that carries a story beneath its surface. My own work moves between watercolor, oil, mixed media, collage, and sculpture. I’m developing a series that brings skeletons and botanical forms together to explore grief, vulnerability, and perseverance. In my Marilyn Monroe work, research and portraiture help me look beyond a familiar image and consider the complicated person behind it.

 Art history is part of the studio experience. We look closely at artists and artworks, notice how color, line, composition, and materials shape an image, and then use those discoveries as a starting point for making. Students learn real techniques and get room to make their own choices along the way. I keep classes small so I can offer individual guidance while students work at their own pace. I enjoy seeing a student take an idea somewhere I couldn’t have planned for them. That moment—when a learned technique becomes their own—is one of my favorite parts of teaching. Follow Your Art brings together the things I value most: curiosity, thoughtful skill-building, art history, and the freedom to make work that feels personal.