One of the primary intentions of the founders of the National Academy was that it serve as an art school for the training of aspiring professional artists. There were few public art galleries and no art schools in New York at the time.

James Carroll Backwith class, 1891-1892

The first classes in 1826 were located in the Old Alms House at City Hall Park in lower Manhattan. During its early years of operation, groups of young artists met with established professionals to draw from plaster casts of antique sculpture, a centuries-old academic tradition. In addition to practical training, a portion of the original educational program was devoted to lectures given by such distinguished men as William Cullen Bryant, Gulian C. Verplanck, and Alexander Jackson Davis, on topics that included anatomy, perspective, ancient history, architecture, and mythology.

George W. Maynard’s Women’s Life Class, ca. 1890’s

In 1837, the Academy added life classes—drawing from live models—to its curriculum for advanced male students. A life class for women, however, was not instituted until 1857, even though women had always been allowed membership in the Academy and were relatively frequent contributors to its annual exhibitions. In fact, in 1831 the Academy Council had opened antique classes for women. Subsequent classes for women were held sporadically from that time on until, in the 1870s, women constituted about one-third of the student body, a proportion that increased throughout the 20th century.

Gifford Beal painting class, 1938

Academy members often volunteered their services or were assigned as instructors in the school. Lemuel Wilmarth was appointed the first full-time instructor in January 1870, by which time the school was located at Fourth Avenue and 23rd Street. Under the leadership of Wilmarth, the number of classes and the enrollment increased and new techniques such as the quick-sketch were introduced in response to changing esthetic criteria. The curriculum expanded over the next few decades and in 1886 the Academy school introduced sculpture classes, a course in design and modeling of coins in 1893, and an etching class the following year. In 1901 a course in illustration was added, and in 1915 instruction in mural painting was given. After the sale of the Academy’s building at 23rd Street, the school relocated uptown to Amsterdam Avenue and 109th Street, where it would remain for approximately 40 years. When the institution moved to its present location in the 1940s, a new school facility was erected on 89th Street. Opening its doors in 1959, the new structure offered expanded studio space for classes.

Life Drawing class, ca. 1905

The school continues its rich tradition of training students in traditional media today and offers a range of courses given by regular faculty, as well as Master Workshops taught by Academicians and visiting professional artists.