Palos Verdes Art Center / Beverly G. Alpay Center for Arts Education is dedicated to educating, enriching and building community through equal and inclusive access to the visual arts. Located at the southernmost tip of Los Angeles County, we strive to be a catalyst for the advancement of LA art, culture and its global impact.
Founded in 1931, PVAC continues to make art accessible through free exhibitions, affordable classes in all media, scholarship awards, elementary school-based art education and artist residencies, special education for low income youth, outreach partnerships, and support for our artist groups.
Started in 1976, Art At Your Fingertips delivers five, quality, standards-based art projects to 6,000 students grades DK-5 in every public and private school on the Palos Verdes Peninsula through. Administered by over 300 parent volunteers, this program has developed partnerships to expand beyond the Peninsula to underserved students throughout Los Angeles County. The resulting artwork is exhibited during our Annual Student Art Show. Each year, Special Mornings, begun in 1981, invites seven Title 1 LAUSD schools to participate in a five-week sequential art education program teaching the basics of art, enhancing special needs students’ communication skills and self-expression. Students come to the Art Center for their classes and tour exhibitions, all of which is provided free of charge, including transportation. Multi-week artist residencies meeting California visual arts standards and common core state standards are available to elementary school classrooms, including Special Day classes, throughout LA County. Earth Studio @PVAC, our newest school-based outreach, is a regenerative, seasonal program designed to integrate gardening, food systems, art, sustainability and student wellness administered by trained parent volunteers at each school site.