2D, 3D, 4D
Cost
$475*
Where
Maxon Mills
37 Furnace Bank Road
Wassaic, NY 12592
When
July 27–31, 2026
9:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Who
Rising grades 6–10
Welcome drawers, painters, sculptors, cardboard crafters! In this camp we will draw, paint, sculpt with clay, and craft with cardboard, wire, paper mache, and found materials. Led by artists Taha Clayton and Manivone Nonthaveth, students will learn a variety of 2D and 3D techniques, including hand-built ceramics, drawing fundamentals, and experimental printmaking. We will explore and gather inspiration from our 2026 Summer Exhibition, visit artist studios, and learn about relevant contemporary art. Campers will also be responsible for contributing a time travel element to the final performance (for example, last year’s campers built the time machine that the Vagabond Time Killers used to travel through time!).
· · ·
* We have a no-questions-asked scholarship policy to ensure our education programming is accessible to everyone who wants to participate. If the cost of camp presents a significant financial barrier, please reach out to jill@wassaicproject.org for a partial or full scholarship. If you do so before January 27, we will send you a discount code before registration opens.
We will issue a refund minus 20% for cancellations received two weeks in advance of the camp start date. There will be no refunds of cancellation notices received within two weeks, as it is difficult for us to fill the spots on such close notice, and we operate within a narrow budget. We will waive this policy in the event of an emergency or hardship — please email jill@wassaicproject.org should you need to request this.
About the Instructors
Taha Clayton is a Brooklyn-based painter, Houston, TX born and raised in Toronto, ON. Clayton's style and aesthetic is rooted in classical practices, while his narratives juxtapose historical and futurist allusions. He creates realistic renderings, many through portraiture, to celebrate and transcend culture and legacy. His Muslim upbringing and cultural heritage shape his work in order to address mistruths of ethnic antiquity. This clash with Western perspectives is conveyed through images of empowerment rather than historically misguided portrayals of despair and strife. Whether his subjects are captured in their natural environment or composed within an imagined story, these figures embody dignity, culture and beauty. Clayton’s precise, labored, and intricate methods of realism are especially illustrated through his common use of fabric. His subjects are not only representatives, but should be seen as individuals with human stories.
One of Clayton’s paintings was most recently selected to be included in the 2024 Lunar Codex, “Nova Collection”, where an image of his work was included inside of a time capsule launched and placed on the moon in perpetuity. He recently showcased with the Art Renewal Center, exhibiting at MEAM (Europe Museum of Modern Art) in Barcelona, Spain. In 2023, his painting was selected as the cover of “New American Paintings”. Clayton’s artistic journey was also documented in the award winning 2016 documentary, “Heavyweight Paint."
Manivone Nonthaveth is a screenwriter/filmmaker and multidisciplinary visual artist, based in Brooklyn, New York. As a child of refugees from Laos, Manivone’s voice speaks to marginalized groups, touching on topics of belief, identity, class and internal power. Manivone’s fine arts degree in traditional film photography is the foundation to her dynamic art career, working in mediums such as photography, painting, collage, sculpture, mixed media, installation, and more recently, storytelling. In addition to writing and directing short films, she’s developed an original tv pilot with a major studio and is a proud member of the WGA. She was recently accepted as a 2026 member of the Rideback Rise Circle for mid-career screenwriters.
Her formative years as an artist were rooted in community service and education. In her youth, she worked at the Five Points Media Center, teaching peers media skills in journalism, writing, photography, and design, additionally producing spots for public tv and radio in Denver, Colorado. Manivone also led the “Alley Beautification Project”, where she enlisted local businesses, schools, and artists to collaborate and create murals extending three blocks of alleyways within the Santa Fe Arts District in Denver. As a volunteer, she’s worked with the International Center of Photography at their education centers teaching youth in the Bronx and at the High School of Fashion Industries in Manhattan. For the past ten years, Manivone has donated art, charitable time, and money to Legacies of War, a non-profit dedicated to addressing the millions of Vietnam-era leftover bombs in Laos. Sustaining her passion for art, cause and education, Manivone has recently teamed up with her artist husband, Taha Clayton, as teachers at The Wassaic Project summer art camp.
Vagabond Time Killers: The Origin Story
Welcome to the town of Whatthewhat, a magical place in a steep valley where fairies build villages in tree roots, apples ripen to the color of indigo, and when you dig a hole in the ground, you never know where it will come out. The moon is always visible in the sky and the water flows uphill (except on Mondays). To enter and leave, you must tell a joke to the bridge troll Inan Doubt, and everyone trades in the blue rocks called slag strewn through the riverbeds. Pantyhose the Billy Goat roams the hills and the horses three, Charlemagne, Antoinette, and Bob, graze happily on the grassy slopes of Rattlesnake Mountain. Here dwell the Vagabond Time Killers, a group of kids expert at killin’ time, the wizard Azorazad who guards the top-secret time machine, and the Unruly Band of Renegade Music Makers, who perform never-before-heard works of music on never-before-seen instruments.
One afternoon, the Vagabond Time Killers were hard at work killing time. They were launching homemade rockets high into the sky, but when they ran out of rocket fuel they decided instead to use chunks of slag. The blast went wrong and caused the entire town of Whatthewhat to shake and quake and the hundreds of slumbering snakes on Rattlesnake Mountain to awaken. The snakes had been asleep for 203 years! They did not appreciate being disturbed. Old Gray Beard, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes, interpreted the snakes’ hissing and delivered a message to the Vagabonds: they had to find and bring back the tooth of a sabertooth tiger!
Last year, the Vagabond Time Killers were successful in their quest, and retrieved the tooth. The snakes were appeased and settled into fitful slumber for another year. But they are awake again! And demanding another offering, as interpreted by Old Gray Beard, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes:
They request the left sock lost by their long ago love, Leslie Galapagos. They miss her dearly. Leslie Galapagos was a renowned scientist from Whatthewhat known for her brave explorations and fearless observations. She discovered the rattlesnakes upon a desert island in the year 1693 and under the hot desert sun, the scientist and the rattlesnakes fell in love. During a romantic evening stroll, however, Leslie stepped into some quicksand and lost her shoe and sock. She was able to fish out her shoe, but the sock was lost–seemingly forever. Vagabond Time Killers–you are tasked with traveling through time and space to find Leslie’s sock and bring it back as an offering to the rattlesnakes. Beware, they say! There is quicksand everywhere upon the island. Tread carefully.
Join the Vagabond Time Killers in restoring balance to the town of Whatthewhat! With the help (or sometimes hindrance) of Azorazad the Wizard, Pantyhose the Billy Goat, the troll Inan Doubt, the inventor Eddie, the mad emu Mother, the Unruly Band of Renegade Music Makers, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes himself, Old Gray Beard, and many more friends, the Vagabond Time Killers will travel into the beyond. Will they succeed in their mission of retrieving the lost left sock of Leslie Galapagos? Only time will tell.
We need you to join on this adventure!
Event Details
2D, 3D, 4D
Cost
$475*
Where
Maxon Mills
37 Furnace Bank Road
Wassaic, NY 12592
When
July 27–31, 2026
9:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Who
Rising grades 6–10
Welcome drawers, painters, sculptors, cardboard crafters! In this camp we will draw, paint, sculpt with clay, and craft with cardboard, wire, paper mache, and found materials. Led by artists Taha Clayton and Manivone Nonthaveth, students will learn a variety of 2D and 3D techniques, including hand-built ceramics, drawing fundamentals, and experimental printmaking. We will explore and gather inspiration from our 2026 Summer Exhibition, visit artist studios, and learn about relevant contemporary art. Campers will also be responsible for contributing a time travel element to the final performance (for example, last year’s campers built the time machine that the Vagabond Time Killers used to travel through time!).
* We have a no-questions-asked scholarship policy to ensure our education programming is accessible to everyone who wants to participate. If the cost of camp presents a significant financial barrier, please reach out to jill@wassaicproject.org for a partial or full scholarship. If you do so before January 27, we will send you a discount code before registration opens.
We will issue a refund minus 20% for cancellations received two weeks in advance of the camp start date. There will be no refunds of cancellation notices received within two weeks, as it is difficult for us to fill the spots on such close notice, and we operate within a narrow budget. We will waive this policy in the event of an emergency or hardship — please email jill@wassaicproject.org should you need to request this.
About the Instructors
Taha Clayton is a Brooklyn-based painter, Houston, TX born and raised in Toronto, ON. Clayton's style and aesthetic is rooted in classical practices, while his narratives juxtapose historical and futurist allusions. He creates realistic renderings, many through portraiture, to celebrate and transcend culture and legacy. His Muslim upbringing and cultural heritage shape his work in order to address mistruths of ethnic antiquity. This clash with Western perspectives is conveyed through images of empowerment rather than historically misguided portrayals of despair and strife. Whether his subjects are captured in their natural environment or composed within an imagined story, these figures embody dignity, culture and beauty. Clayton’s precise, labored, and intricate methods of realism are especially illustrated through his common use of fabric. His subjects are not only representatives, but should be seen as individuals with human stories.
One of Clayton’s paintings was most recently selected to be included in the 2024 Lunar Codex, “Nova Collection”, where an image of his work was included inside of a time capsule launched and placed on the moon in perpetuity. He recently showcased with the Art Renewal Center, exhibiting at MEAM (Europe Museum of Modern Art) in Barcelona, Spain. In 2023, his painting was selected as the cover of “New American Paintings”. Clayton’s artistic journey was also documented in the award winning 2016 documentary, “Heavyweight Paint."
Manivone Nonthaveth is a screenwriter/filmmaker and multidisciplinary visual artist, based in Brooklyn, New York. As a child of refugees from Laos, Manivone’s voice speaks to marginalized groups, touching on topics of belief, identity, class and internal power. Manivone’s fine arts degree in traditional film photography is the foundation to her dynamic art career, working in mediums such as photography, painting, collage, sculpture, mixed media, installation, and more recently, storytelling. In addition to writing and directing short films, she’s developed an original tv pilot with a major studio and is a proud member of the WGA. She was recently accepted as a 2026 member of the Rideback Rise Circle for mid-career screenwriters.
Her formative years as an artist were rooted in community service and education. In her youth, she worked at the Five Points Media Center, teaching peers media skills in journalism, writing, photography, and design, additionally producing spots for public tv and radio in Denver, Colorado. Manivone also led the “Alley Beautification Project”, where she enlisted local businesses, schools, and artists to collaborate and create murals extending three blocks of alleyways within the Santa Fe Arts District in Denver. As a volunteer, she’s worked with the International Center of Photography at their education centers teaching youth in the Bronx and at the High School of Fashion Industries in Manhattan. For the past ten years, Manivone has donated art, charitable time, and money to Legacies of War, a non-profit dedicated to addressing the millions of Vietnam-era leftover bombs in Laos. Sustaining her passion for art, cause and education, Manivone has recently teamed up with her artist husband, Taha Clayton, as teachers at The Wassaic Project summer art camp.
Vagabond Time Killers: The Origin Story
Welcome to the town of Whatthewhat, a magical place in a steep valley where fairies build villages in tree roots, apples ripen to the color of indigo, and when you dig a hole in the ground, you never know where it will come out. The moon is always visible in the sky and the water flows uphill (except on Mondays). To enter and leave, you must tell a joke to the bridge troll Inan Doubt, and everyone trades in the blue rocks called slag strewn through the riverbeds. Pantyhose the Billy Goat roams the hills and the horses three, Charlemagne, Antoinette, and Bob, graze happily on the grassy slopes of Rattlesnake Mountain. Here dwell the Vagabond Time Killers, a group of kids expert at killin’ time, the wizard Azorazad who guards the top-secret time machine, and the Unruly Band of Renegade Music Makers, who perform never-before-heard works of music on never-before-seen instruments.
One afternoon, the Vagabond Time Killers were hard at work killing time. They were launching homemade rockets high into the sky, but when they ran out of rocket fuel they decided instead to use chunks of slag. The blast went wrong and caused the entire town of Whatthewhat to shake and quake and the hundreds of slumbering snakes on Rattlesnake Mountain to awaken. The snakes had been asleep for 203 years! They did not appreciate being disturbed. Old Gray Beard, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes, interpreted the snakes’ hissing and delivered a message to the Vagabonds: they had to find and bring back the tooth of a sabertooth tiger!
Last year, the Vagabond Time Killers were successful in their quest, and retrieved the tooth. The snakes were appeased and settled into fitful slumber for another year. But they are awake again! And demanding another offering, as interpreted by Old Gray Beard, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes:
They request the left sock lost by their long ago love, Leslie Galapagos. They miss her dearly. Leslie Galapagos was a renowned scientist from Whatthewhat known for her brave explorations and fearless observations. She discovered the rattlesnakes upon a desert island in the year 1693 and under the hot desert sun, the scientist and the rattlesnakes fell in love. During a romantic evening stroll, however, Leslie stepped into some quicksand and lost her shoe and sock. She was able to fish out her shoe, but the sock was lost–seemingly forever. Vagabond Time Killers–you are tasked with traveling through time and space to find Leslie’s sock and bring it back as an offering to the rattlesnakes. Beware, they say! There is quicksand everywhere upon the island. Tread carefully.
Join the Vagabond Time Killers in restoring balance to the town of Whatthewhat! With the help (or sometimes hindrance) of Azorazad the Wizard, Pantyhose the Billy Goat, the troll Inan Doubt, the inventor Eddie, the mad emu Mother, the Unruly Band of Renegade Music Makers, the Keeper of the Rattlesnakes himself, Old Gray Beard, and many more friends, the Vagabond Time Killers will travel into the beyond. Will they succeed in their mission of retrieving the lost left sock of Leslie Galapagos? Only time will tell.
We need you to join on this adventure!
Sponsorship Levels
Our Sponsors
Photos