Art Instructors at 3 Square Art
Learn about our Art instructors
3 Square Art Instructors
At 3 Square Art in Fort Collins, our instructors bring a rare combination of serious classical training and dedicated teaching experience to northern Colorado. We focus on the fundamentals that matter most: careful observation from life, accurate drawing, and the technical literacy needed to build real skill. Whether working in charcoal, graphite, or oil, students learn correct methods grounded in the traditions of the old masters—slowing down, seeing clearly, and developing genuine mastery of the visual language.
Craig A. McKee
BA Studio Arts, magna cum laude, Kenyon College, OH
Craig A. McKee is an artist, educator, and co-founder of the McKee Art Foundation (MAF) and its public-facing arm, 3 Square Art, in Fort Collins, Colorado. He teaches figure drawing and painting classes with an emphasis on observational skill, proportion, and classical fundamentals. As interim President, Secretary, Treasurer, and lifetime Director of MAF (alongside his wife and co-founder Kumiko S. McKee), he together leads the organization’s mission of Create, Share, Learn—providing studio space for artists, mounting gallery exhibitions, and offering educational programs. He is currently expanding the foundation’s reach, including plans for a Miami location, while continuing to teach and develop the Fort Collins facility.
Cassidy (Cece) Sol
BFA Visual Art (Painting), University of Wyoming; MFA Painting, Colorado State University
Cece Sol is a Fort Collins-based painter and educator. She received her BFA in Visual Art with an emphasis in painting from the University of Wyoming in 2001 and completed her MFA in Painting at Colorado State University in 2008. She taught Drawing I, Advanced Drawing, Painting I–IV, 2D Design, and established the Color Theory course at Front Range Community College (Larimer campus) from 2007–2019, and previously served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant and adjunct in painting at CSU. More recently she has stage-managed and prepared gallery exhibits at the Lincoln Center and Center for Creativity. Her work appears in private collections along the Front Range.
Elena Cantor
Elena Cantor, Florence Academy of Art; Academic Director, Umbra Academy of Art
Elena Cantor is a working fine artist and academic based in Colorado. Born in Caracas, Venezuela, she began her classical training in 2008 under Matthew Almy at the Ravenswood Atelier in Chicago and went on to complete her studies at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy, her alma mater. Since arriving in the United States in 2013, she has taught art in Colorado for the past twelve years and currently serves as Academic Director of Umbra Academy of Art. She is dedicated to perpetuating the mastery of the visual language and the tradition of the old masters, guiding students toward purpose through disciplined skill development, deliberate practice, and the pursuit of real craft.
Renee Walkup
BA Art, Stephens College; President, Colorado Mosaic Artists
Renee Walkup is a Fort Collins mosaic artist recognized for her innovative designs and bold use of unique, often upcycled materials. She has won awards for her inventive approach and currently serves as President of Colorado Mosaic Artists, the statewide guild for mosaicists. With a BA in Art from Stephens College and a background as a professional trainer, she has taught mosaic art for four years to students of all ages. Her passion lies in the creative process itself—encouraging artists to engage different parts of the brain while transforming unexpected materials into something new and expressive.