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Tomás Estrada - Observational Drawing
Born and raised in Phoenix, Tomás received his BFA in Painting / Design from Northern Arizona University, where he first began his teacher training. Before graduating he opened his first studio in Flagstaff, Arizona concentrating on fine art and graphic design. He developed a new course of study for art majors that combined the disciplines of science research and visual art called Art for Science - Visual Aids, where students could create valuable teaching materials for academic credit. Upon returning to Phoenix he joined Pointe Communications as a graphic designer, then the Heard Museum as an exhibit designer.

Represented locally/nationally for both fine art and graphic art, he continued painting and drawing for galleries in Scottsdale, as well as his freelance activity pursuing design and illustration for advertising agencies, design studios, and publishers. In addition to creating art and design for advertising and editorial applications, he also pursued drawing and painting, exhibiting his work nationally. He continued teaching Drawing, Painting, Design, and Art History at Maricopa Community Colleges. He also taught Life Drawing at The Scottsdale Artists School, Figure Drawing Workshops in Lake Tahoe, and Rapid Visualization at ITT. Upon returning to ASU to complete his Masters in Art he opened his second private studio, Mestizo Arts, at Scottsdale Civic Center. Here he focused on design and illustration for private and corporate clients such as Arizona State University, City of Phoenix, COMPAS, Del Webb, Drackett & Lavidge Advertising, Houghton-Mifflin Publishers, Motorola, Rainbow Studios, Sharp Electronics, and others. He is included in Who’s Who in American Art, 27th Millennium Southwest Edition, 2000, and examples of his work are in the permanent collections of The Arizona Historical Museum, The National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, and published in Arizona Highways Magazine, New Times, and Graphics.

He joined the faculty at The Art Institute of Phoenix in 2002 and has taught Fundamentals of Drawing, Fundamentals of Design, Perspective, Analysis of Form, and Life Drawing. In addition to teaching he pursues drawing and painting for exhibition, and art and design for advertising, architectural, fine art, and publishing markets, where he designs and sells his original and published works cross-country.

Anita Oas – Painting Techniques
An independent graphic designer, Anita Oas, has been teaching Graphic Design and Painting to the next generation at the Art Institute of Phoenix, since 2006.  

 Anita brings nearly two decades of experience working for renowned ad agencies and design firms, including Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and Eleven, Inc. in San Francisco. She has aided in the development and launch of the "Got Milk" campaign, along with the launch of frappuccino, bottled frappuccino, and ice cream for Starbucks. Her annual report clients include Ameristar Casinos, Starbucks, Barclays Global Investors, and Williams-Sonoma—three years in a row. 

 Anita started her career with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Her work has won several national awards, and has been published in Graphic Design textbooks.  

Oas fell in love with Oil Painting when she started private lessons at the age of 12. She continued studying painting under Larry Robinson for the next two decades at the Academy of Art University, the University of California Berkeley San Francisco Extension, and Oakdale Painting Studio, San Francisco, CA.

CLIENTS SERVED THROUGHOUT CAREER: Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Fluid Milk Board, Nike, 7Up, Porsche, Apple, Haggar, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Voodoo PC, Bell Helmets, Pacific Bell, SBC, Hewlett-Packard, Williams-Sonoma, Ameristar Casinos, Thomas Weisel Partners Group, Kodak, Petstore.com, PetSmart, Sonicare, Barclays Global Investors, Arizona State University's School of Political Sciences, Arizona Weddings Magazine, Scriptsave, Goodwill, Kronos Optimal Health, American Heart Association, et al.