Studio One Art Center

Fantabulous art center! They even have drumming, ceramics, coding! Very ASD and neurodivergent Welcoming! HIGHLY recommend!

The after school program is really great! It's the best for working parents because they're open till 6:30 pm. However, the summer camp is extremely disorganized. No one seems to know what's going on. It's crowded, and my kid did not like the camp. You can't even tell who's the camper and who's the counsellor. It took almost 40 min. to get through the first day registration! Kid says, "mommy, please don't send me there anymore."

For the last several years, when anyone asks our kid what he wants to be when he grows up, he will consistently answer, "an artist." Last year (2nd grade) he was sad that not enough kids were enrolled from his school for them to offer transportation to Studio One for their after school program. So when we told him he was going to Summer Camp, he was overjoyed.Studio One camp offers two kinds of programming, one more art geared and one less structured and more recreation oriented. Both options are reasonably priced, and even the recreational one includes lots of art activities.What our gregarious, high-energy 8 year old loves is the mix of art and free play. The facilities include everything from a full ceramics studio (offering adult classes, too) to a computer lab, & our kid has produced ceramics, learned weaving, animation, made pop up books and musical instruments....He's also had a lot of time for free play. It's pretty hard to get 'in trouble' at Studio One, and the social pedagogy is very active around kindness and inclusion. When I arrived recently, I saw my boy get hit accidentally in the leg with a jump rope & the kid swinging the rope --immediately & unprompted-- plopped down to make sure he was ok. Shortly after, he & four other kids were playing the time-honored, grownup-disturbing game of 'jailor' (oh boy). They were having a blast, and under the appropriately light but attentive supervision of 'Sr.' (read 19 yr oldish) councilors, two of whom have been part of the community since *they* were kids. Generous snacks include lots of fruit, carrots, cheese, milk, crackers. Yes, we wish they could all be non gmo & organic, yes, we understand the systems that make that unfortunately a 'luxury.' Some well meaning Jr councilors brought Doritos yesterday... oh well.I read all the reviews on here, including the negative, and I want to say that I can imagine that the parents of a very shy kid would want to visit with their child to see if it feels right. Honestly, it's the kind of environment that was overwhelming for me as a child sensitive to noise and bustle. It is sometimes loud, sometimes loosely structured. It is perfect for ebullient kids who need a little expressive antidote to the school year/day with its sitting & structure.During certain times of the day during free time, your kid might be anywhere upstairs or down where kids are supervised, but not in an assigned area. Don't worry, they aren't lost!

Studio One Art Center is the only arts studio publicly run by the City of Oakland Parks and Recreation department. Built in 1894, the original unreinforced masonry and wood structure was designed for use as an orphanage. It wasn't until 1948 that the site was considered for the location of a city-run arts program. The building is currently undergoing major seismic retrofitting, interior rehabilitation and exterior site work. Costing upwards of 10 million dollars to complete, this rehabilitation project is funded by Oakland's Measure DD for clean water and safe parks. The retrofitted building will re-open it's doors to the public in late Fall of 2007, and will offer classes in clay ceramics and sculpture, jewelry making, painting and drawing, photography, theater arts, and more.

This a great art program. I went here in the 1990's and it was where I learned to make pottery and find my artistic talent. I am a very creative person and the classes helped me figure that out. I have made many ceramic/art pieces that are still a part of my home decor today. If you're looking for a fun relaxed atmosphere to end your children to for art classes this is the place!

The building is great, the people who work here are great, and my man & I had a great time teaching kids how to make ice cream here. BUT, the City of Oakland is seriously underfunding Studio One, and almost all their classes for adults seem to be M-F 9-5. AND their schedule is impossible to find online, and when you do it is a horribly broken and ancient interface.

My daughter attended Studio One's after school program from Kaiser Elementary School. The staff and instructors became a part of her extended community. She is now in middle school and still takes clay classes there and hopes to be a counselor in training at some point. This organization is a gem within the community and the neighborhood.

Studio One is such a great find! I'm currently taking a fabulous weekly ceramics class in this beautiful new building. It's a very loosely structured class, which I appreciate, led by a knowledgeable and supportive instructor to provide a general lesson, tips and tricks along the way, and answers to burning questions. It's not inexpensive but it's certainly comparable to other ceramics studios. With class enrollment, the first bag of clay is free - mine has lasted 4 weeks now - along with all the glazes, tools, and firings you can make good use of. I've enrolled in classes at other studios before and, after a few weeks, it felt like a bit of a chore. Now, I'm honestly sad that I won't get to throw any pots on Presidents Day [or MLK, Jr. day, which has already passed], but it's nice that they do observe those holidays, and I did get a refund for the canceled classes. Fortunately, for $15, I can show up on a Saturday for a few hours and use the studio to make up for lost time.

Really disorganized. While trying to register for a class over the phone I was told it was full but that another class had opened up on Thursday evenings. After paying for the class I checked online to find out it was actually on Tuesday nights-an evening I could not attend . The next day I called back, explained the situation and was told they would credit back my card. After a few days I checked and no credit back. I called back and was told they accidentally applied my money to any future class I may want to take at Studio One. Recognizing their mistake they then said that they would mail me a check but it would take 4-6 weeks. 5 weeks later and no check I called and was told they had sent a check-but to a wrong address. They now have told me that it will be another 4-6 weeks until I receive a new check. I'm not holding my breath for that. Despite my request to have someone return my call to help resolve this matter I have yet to receive one.

I've sent my daughter here a couple of times for Summer Camps but will never do so again. It became clear to me that this place is little more than a holding pen for kids. There doesn't appear to much of a curriculum and the children are very poorly supervised. The staff consist of very young people with little to no training. In fact in 2015, as I was dropping off my kid on the first day of Summer, I witness a group of about 15 staff being toured around the facility as part of their training. I heard the trainer advise them not to answer any questions from the parents but to direct them all to the office. Really? On the first day of camp you're training your staff? There are several dozen kids arriving and the staff aren't trained yet?! For as chaotic and unclear as the drop off process was, the pick up process was worse. No one seemed to know where my kid was. When I asked staff that were floating around where I should go to find my daughter they gave me vague answers like, ":Check upstairs" or "She might be playing outside." Apparently no one actually knew where the different groups of kids were. After walking around inside and outside the building and not finding her, I had to resort to yelling out my daughter's name as I walked around the facility in order to find her.The last time I was at Studio One I was attempting to drop off my daughter for the second day of a one week camp. My daughter cried and begged me not to go. She had been to Studio One camps before so I thought she just needed some encouragement. After some encouragement and cajoling from me to stay at camp, I finally realized from the look in her panicked eyes that she did not feel safe at Studio One. I brought her to work with me that day and scrambled for childcare for the rest of my work week. The even crazier thing was the lack of interest or concern expressed when I called to let them know that we wouldn't be coming back, I called the administrative office later that same day to let them know that we had left at drop off that morning and would not be returning because my daughter didn't feel safe at Studio One. Dead silence on the phone. There was no, "Oh! Did something happen?" or "Is there something that we should be aware of?" or "Is your daughter ok?" Just silence. Later that afternoon my husband called and ask to speak to the director in charge. She was appropriately concerned and apologetic, and agreed to give us a refund of our camp tuition since we only attended one day. Years later, we are still waiting for a refund.I could go on about more specifics about the lack of supervision like when my daughter got hit in the head with a wiffle ball bat but I'll just leave it here.