All Mixed Up
Making Animals with Soft Slabs
Paper Mache Comes Alive
David Harper Clemons
Rebekah Bogard
Margaret Couch Cogswell
Formed, cast, and fabricated mixed metal spoons are the goal. This course will combine simple mold making for casting a pewter handle to be attached to a formed nonferrous metal spoon bowl and neck. The course will cover model making or prep and mold construction, pewter casting and clean up, spoon bowl forming, and final assembly and finishing.
Learn how to manipulate soft slabs to rapidly build basic shapes and create life-like animal forms. Techniques on darting, stretching, paddling, and slump-molding will be explored, in addition to methods of assembling complex forms for stronger structural attachments. Tips for eyes, noses, and fur will be demonstrated.
Paper mache isn’t just for the kindergarten classroom! It’s a dynamic and adaptable medium that can transform a personal narrative into a playful sculpture. Come join me as we explore accessible and basic techniques of paper mache on the way to creating animals, rascals, and objects from your world or imagination. This workshop will include step-by-step instructions on the process from making the paste to final finishes. You can expect to complete two or three sculptures during the workshop.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 2: June 12 - June 16, 2023
Wall Paintings with Vitreous Enamel
Finding Emotion and Texture in Animal Forms
Fundamentals of Woodworking
Janly Jaggard
Darla Jackson
Vivian Chiu
Explore principles of design while practicing vitrous enamel techniques including several approaches to high-temperature firings, enamel sifting, stenciling, and more! Students will learn these techniques and study composition, and the use of color and texture by making 12-inch square wall pieces. This class will be a great way to increase your aesthetic sensitivity and brush up on your enameling skills. Prior experience with enamels will allow students to spend more time on their compositions, but is not necessary.
Students will learn to sculpt animal forms with a focus on using body language to introduce a narrative. Jackson will demonstrate hand-building techniques to construct each animal sculpture. Students will learn about comparative anatomy, how to gather reference information, the importance of texture in animal sculpture, introducing found objects, and non-traditional finishing techniques. Students are welcome to bring a personal item that they wish to incorporate into their finished pieces.
Beginning with rough lumber, students will learn to build a small coffee table or side table from start to finish. We will cover the use of hand tools and machinery, as well as milling processes, joinery methods, and finishing techniques. Expect to leave with a small table and confidence in techniques that you can use for years to come! This workshop is tailored to those who have never worked in wood before or want to brush up on their skills.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 3: June 19 - June 23, 2023
Traditional Japanese Metal Art Techniques
Mono-Printing on Clay: Slip Transfers
Book Arts: Form, Content, and Conception
Hiroko Yamada
Lakyn Bowman
Maureen Cummins
Students will be introduced to Japanese surface decoration techniques including zogan (inlay with wire, sheet metal, or foil), engraving, and patinas. As we progress, we’ll introduce mokume-gane, explore Japanese alloys such as shakudo and shibuichi, and make some of our own tools. Students will leave with lots of samples and a broad foundation to explore how these techniques fit into their own practice.
In this workshop, participants will learn how to monoprint on clay. This technique utilizes underglazes and colored slips to transfer hand-drawn images onto leather hard clay. Lakyn will demonstrate her method to achieve aged and weathered surfaces on a red clay base. Students will learn how to apply handles post decoration without messing up the design. The workshop teaches tips on composition and spacing and how that plays an important part in the end results of this diverse technique.
Explore a variety of book forms including pamphlet, accordion, side-sewn Japanese binding, concertina, do-si-do book, flag book, and a “staggered-sheet” binding. Through experimentation with each structure with an emphasis on play, students will create a unique book and content. Cummins will also present a collection of artist books, including her own work and that of eminent book artists. The use of materials such as cloth, wood, metal, plexiglass, and glass will also be discussed.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 4: June 26 - June 30, 2023
Skillful Upcycling: Coal to Diamonds
Reinventing the Wheel
Nakashima-Inspired Chair
Bob Ebendorf & Boris Bally
A. Blair Clemo
Taeho Kwon
Students will create a personal object combining found objects in a masterful, thoughtful manner. Bob & Boris will assist you in exploring and extracting the special qualities possessed by your unique objects and explore ways to convey your narrative through cleverness, skill and design. Using mostly non-ferrous metals, including silver, we will cover fabrication techniques, cold joining, soldering, forming, stone setting, finishing and more.
Expand your thinking about what is possible on the potter’s wheel! Demonstrations and exercises will inspire exploration and innovation to push your throwing skills to the next level. With a focus on radical experimentation, all you need is the courage to challenge tradition and reinvent the wheel! Demonstrations will cover utilitarian pottery, but techniques can be applied wherever your inspiration takes you. Students will take home bisque ware. All skill levels are welcome.
Explore Taeho Kwon’s elements of “Perfect Design”: Aesthetic, Comfort, Durability, and Function, as exemplified by George Nakashima’s Conoid Chair. Students will build either a dining or lounge chair version of this design, and learn to cut compound angles with a tablesaw, perfect chair joinery, shape a seat & spindles, and make a three-part oil finish. Jigs and templates for both chairs will be provided by the instructor.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 5: July 10 - July 14, 2023
Painting and Drawing with Enamel Oveerglaze
Tile-Making: Prototypes for Multiples
Bark Carving
Jamie Bennett
Anat Shiftan
Julia Harrison
This class will explore enamel and its cousin overglaze, emphasizing the material’s inherent qualities. It is a material that presents many variables: what oil or water to use, what temperature, what metal? How do we want to present our enameled form, and how do we want it to be experienced? As enamel is emancipated from specific techniques, the material itself takes center stage. The potential of that material and its presentation will be the focus of the class.
Students will learn to form various types of tile surfaces and create molds for these models. Students will make an embossed tile, a naturalistic tile relief unit (low and high), and a raised line. Some forming of prototypes will begin with soft clay, and others with carving into plaster. We will also cover glazing techniques from monocolor glazing to multicolor glazing using various techniques. Additionally, we will review histories of tile making in various cultures and contemporary artists’ tile work
Wood might get more attention, but bark can also be an excellent carving material. Relatively soft and fragile, bark responds better to strategy and patience than to force; it’s great for carvers with lower hand strength and those looking to improve sculpting skills. In this class we’ll carve cottonwood bark, using natural forms such as leaves and seeds as our models. Learn to choose and stabilize your material, layout and rough your form, and use sharp tools to leave a satisfying surface.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 6: July 17 - July 21, 2023
Forged and Chased Utensils
Looking Good: Making Sculptural Mirrors
Body of Work: A Family of Mixed Media Objects
Logan Woodle
Aspen Golann
Tobias Birgersson
Flatware doesn’t have to be flat! By combining forging and chasing, artists can create dynamic and sculptural forms that defy expectations. In this course, students will design, forge, and chase a sculptural utensil. In the process, students will learn how to develop patterns for forging, make their own chisels, and interweave silversmithing and blacksmithing processes. Special focus will be placed on the role of tool making and modification in chasing processes.
Make playfully expressive mirrors while learning essential woodworking skills. We will cover everything from the safe use of machines and hand tools, to power carving, and a wide range of joinery techniques. Students are encouraged to explore experimental and expressive designs as we transform this household object into sculpture. Aspen will also demonstrate the ancient process of mirroring clear sheet glass using silver chemicals.
Are you ready to develop your personal style, but aren’t sure where to start? Tobias will help you experiment with your craft skills and find a unique approach. Class time will be used for individual exercises and discussions in concept development, material exploration, writing about your art, and approaches to photography. Students will complete five to nine studies and an artist statement that should lead to a body of work in their material of choice.
All Levels
All Levels
All Levels
Session 7: July 24 - July 28, 2023
Faceted Stone Setting: Theory and Applications
Exploring Native Materials
Wood Sculpting with Hand Tools
Kirk Lang
Nathan Willever
Annie Meyer
This technical stone setting class will explore a multitude of stone setting styles with a primary focus on prong, flush, and bezel setting of round and fancy cut gemstones. Channel and basic bead settings will also be covered. You will also learn the theory behind stone-setting, gemstone characteristics, how to make setting tools, and how to design with unique gemstones in mind. You can expect to finish 3-5 pieces of jewelry in this class but the emphasis will be on information and technique.
We will focus on using locally sourced “wild” materials in our pots, and working on the wheel to make better pitchers, mugs, jars, and teapots. Students are encouraged to bring samples of rocks, shales, and clays that are local to them. We will process these materials and make simple glaze blends to fire in the electric kiln. Take your work to the next level by using materials that could be right in your backyard!
Learn wood sculpting techniques using simple hand tools! This class covers how to use hand saws, gouges, mallets, spoke shaves, draw knives, rasps, files, and more. We will also discuss color, tool sharpening, and how you can have a woodcarving practice at home. Students will begin with low-relief and texture carving to learn how the tools work, and then design and create in-the-round carvings in basswood. This class is a great starting point for learning to express yourself in wood without expensive machines.
Some Experience Required
All Levels
All Levels
Session 8: July 31 - August 4, 2023
Artisan Scissor Making
Designing with Textures and Color on Wood
Sculptural Needle Felting
Grace Horne
Jacques Vesery
Stephanie Metz
This course will be an introduction to studio-based scissor making. The focus is on techniques that require no specialist equipment or tools. Students will make a 6″ and a 4″ pair of scissors and will leave with the skills to make more pairs in the future – either through forging or stock removal from steel sheet.
Jacques will be your guide through an exploration of “The micro in macro”: an up-close look at one of the most important components in his work, ‘Texture and Color’. Participants will learn a variety of carving techniques, including the use of power and rotary carvers, wood-burning tools, and how to employ coloring techniques to embellish surfaces and play with aspects of visual perception. Techniques will be used on several different wood surfaces including wood tiles, spoons, boxes, and more.
In this workshop, students will learn to use simple tools and methods to shape wool fibers into free-standing, solid felt sculptures. Topics include basic form-building, fine detailing, adding color, incorporating mixed media, and working with armatures. Class time will include slideshows, daily demonstrations, and one-on-one instruction with lots of hands-on work time. Please note that needle felting involves repetitive, physical hand and arm exercise.