Take a look at a special polymer “sampler” class at the MAC in Worthington, Ohio. Four of us are teaching, one each Thursday evening from Oct 18 – Nov 29. A great facility, a smorgasbord of techniques. Join Carissa Nichols, Jeanne Dumond, Nancy Nearing and me for a terrific sampling of techniques.
If you’re short on gifts for yourself and you’re in the vicinity of Racine, Wisconsin, consider the one-day class with Debra DeWolff scheduled for February 18. (It’s in the RAM brochure but couldn’t find classes listed on the website yet. You can call to beat the rush.)
Her Charmed with Polymer class looks terribly tempting. Even if you can’t make it to Racine, you can browse through her shop to experience mouthwatering colors and a hint of spring beneath the winter snow.
Keep those comments coming on the StudioMojo site. Five commenters will win a year’s free subscription to the premium weekend newsletter.
Taking yourself out of your usual surroundings can be an eye-opening experience. Here are three favorite places that combine beautiful surroundings with an inspirational learning experience. Each of these places embraces and offers polymer clay workshops.
John Campbell Folk in the mountains of western NC, is “a place where folks come together to have a creative and fun learning experience.” They offer more than 800 workshops a year!
Artfest in Port Townsend WA, the original alternative arts retreat, offers a wealth of mixed media workshops. The beautiful location, evening events, as well as the finest teachers set this event apart. “People leave with a renewed sense of their artistic selves and a recharged battery.”
La Cascade, the artist retreat of Gwen Gibson in southern France, offers weeklong workshops in polymer clay and mixed media. (The photo is my polymer postcard from Provence.) The workshops take place in a beautiful medieval village with a studio open 24/7. Workshops combine field trips, food cooked by a chef and fabulous art-making.
guest post from Dayle Doroshow
The student work from Cynthia Toops’ polymer micromosaic class is a testament to both her teaching and the expertise of the Philadelphia guild. Here’s a small sampling of student work at the end of the weekend class (hastily assembled in my hotel room). Each student quickly reinterpreted Toops’ techniques into her own style.
It was an added bonus that we stumbled on Isaiah Zagar’s Magic Gardens in South Philly on Saturday evening. Zagar’s mosaic covered storefronts, alleyways, gardens and galleries provided a perfect counterpoint to Toops’ tiny formats. The micro and macro of mosaics! Meeting Zagar working in his studio was an unexpected treat.
My clumsy and colorful class bead shown here takes after the Zagar style. Thanks to our hosts, Martha Aleo and Ken Baskin, and to the great guild bunch. I’m on the way home after an invigorating weekend.
Who better than mixed media comedian/artist Meredith Arnold to round out our week? Meredith will play with just about any materials and she usually manages to sneak a bit of polymer (and lots of laughter) into all her work.
Click through her site to see how she integrates polymer with fiber, metal, books and more. This bracelet is the project for her upcoming class with the Puget Sound Bead Festival folks. Students play with foils, powders, paints, shapes and colors and walk out with this bracelet and a smile. Have a cheery weekend.
