ICP Teen Academy welcomes students ages 14–19, helping them to develop their skills as visual storytellers and changemakers. Choose from a range of in-person and online photography courses for teens!
The teen photography program is designed to cultivate visual literacy, personal vision, and leadership skills through studies focused on the techniques and histories of photography and visual culture.
See our students’ work here.
Seasonal Teen Academy Courses in Photography and Visual Storytelling
Teen Academy offers quarterly in-person or online teen photography courses across genres and techniques for every level student. All curricula include: photographic and writing assignments, open lab time, visual presentations, discussions, critiques, guest artist visits, field trips, and a culminating presentation for family and friends celebrating the students’ achievements.
Register for Winter Teen Academy Courses
Registration opens Tuesday, November 12.
Zine-making Workshop, Kyra Taveras (Saturdays, January 18th & 25th, 2025, 11:00AM-4:00PM)
Lighting in Photography, JJ Reddington (Saturdays, January 4th & 11th, 2025, 11:00AM-4:00PM)
Registration for Spring 2025 Semester Courses
Registration opens Tuesday, November 12.
Photography I in Black-and-White: Camera and Darkroom, Kyra Taveras (February 8 - May 3, Saturday 10AM–1PM)
Photography I and II in Black-and-White: Documenting Your Community, Roy Baizan (February 8 - May 3, Saturday 2PM–5PM)
Lighting: In the Studio and Beyond, JJ Reddington (February 9 - May 4, Sunday, 10 AM–1 PM)
Alternative Processes: Cyanotypes, Jarrett Esaw (May 4 - June 29, Sunday, 10 AM–1 PM)
Imagemakers
The Teen Academy Imagemakers 2024-2025 program is currently in session. For 2025-2026 program cycle applications, check back in late spring 2025.
Teen Academy Imagemakers enables motivated high school juniors, seniors, and gap year students to advance their photography, writing, and public speaking skills while developing an awareness of the creative and professional possibilities in the field. This weekly in-person teen photography program, which runs from October to June, provides teen photographers with guidance from renowned teaching artists, virtual visits to museums, galleries, and studios, college-prep workshops, pre-professional assignments, mentorship opportunities, and a unique community of their peers. This program for teen photographers is designed for students who are passionate about photography and visual culture as mediums of empowerment and social change. By the end of the year, students will create an extensive portfolio, including an artist’s statement and CV. A selection of their best work is featured in a culminating showcase on ICP’s website.
See past Teen Academy Imagemakers’ work here.
Scholarships for Teen Academy Imagemakers
Teen Academy is committed to making photography education accessible to all young people, regardless of their economic resources. Need-based scholarships are available to teens before the start of each term.
If you would like to be considered for a scholarship in an upcoming in-person or online teen photography course, please complete an application. Scholarship applications are reviewed and accepted on a rolling basis.
Special Thanks
Teen Academy is made possible with generous support from Joy of Giving Something, Inc., Luana Alesio, Milton and Sally Avery Arts Foundation, William Talbott Hillman Foundation, Philip and Edith Leonian Foundation, Keith Haring Foundation, Eye Contact Foundation, Houston Family Foundation, Susan and Thomas Dunn, Stuart Z. Katz and Jane D. Martin, Monika and Deven Parekh, May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Lois and Bruce Zenkel, Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation, Richard and Jean Coyne Family Foundation, Herschel Supply Co., and Paramount.
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and New York State Legislature, the New York Community Trust, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
