Blog

The Sparkling Moments: A Poetry Writing Workshop

January 15, 2020

How do you take advantage of the creative opportunities that are present in your writing, and recognize the sparkling moments? Plows turn over top layers of earth so that fresh nutrients can surface. Workshopping your poems in this class will help you uncover rich worlds, too.

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Introduction to Clay (B)

January 15, 2020

Explore the basics of clay. We’ll cover the proper use of studio tools, equipment and materials. You’ll learn about slab construction, coil building and combined techniques. We’ll also demonstrate wheel throwing and discuss how various clays and glazes respond to each other.

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Introduction to Clay (C)

January 15, 2020

Explore the basics of clay. We’ll cover the proper use of studio tools, equipment and materials. You’ll learn about slab construction, coil building and combined techniques. We’ll also demonstrate wheel throwing and discuss how various clays and glazes respond to each other.

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Experimental Comics

January 15, 2020

Study experimental comics of the past and present. We’ll explore different artistic mediums and methods of storytelling to make our own comics.

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Reductive Color Woodcut

January 15, 2020

Explore the design and production of multi-layer, reductive color woodcuts. We’ll use letterpress equipment to print an edition of beautiful multicolor prints. This class is designed for students with some experience in relief printmaking.

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Digital Hand-Drawn Lettering

January 15, 2020

Think outside the font and create your own custom lettering designs by hand. We’ll explore hand lettering from the sketching phase to a polished, finished piece. We’ll be using both traditional and digital tools to explore the basics of lettering. Students will leave the class with a few finished lettering projects, knowledge of lettering and […]

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Advanced Wheel + Hand Building Techniques (B)

January 15, 2020

Learn new techniques to improve your functional and non-functional ceramic forms. Try raku, cone 10 reduction glazes and soda firing. Learn new surface design processes using slips, underglazes, terra sigillata and the spray booth application of both underglazes and overglazes.

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Introduction to Interior Design (B)

January 15, 2020

Explore key concepts of interior design: continuity, scale, proportion, balance, color and light. We’ll use slide presentations and class discussions to prepare you to investigate and analyze the interiors of your choice.

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Exploring Surface Decoration

January 15, 2020

Explore surface decoration for functional pottery. Each week, we’ll cover new surface techniques such as slip transfer, screen printing, underglaze processes, decals, lusters and more. We’ll also discuss visual concepts to facilitate a greater understanding of design and make thoughtful decisions when finishing a piece.

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Introduction to Letterpress (A)

January 15, 2020

Explore the letterpress printing process, which dates back to the 15th century and the time of Gutenberg. We’ll cover typesetting, inking, printing and paper selection as you become familiar with the terminology and VisArts’ presses. You’ll have time to create multiple pieces and trade work with classmates, which will help you build a small collection […]

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Linocut: Exploring Color and Pattern

January 15, 2020

Learn to carve and print designs into a linoleum block to create a relief surface. We’ll begin by carving background patterns, which we’ll print in various colors and combinations. Then, we’ll carve a strong final image to print overtop the patterns. You’ll learn about design, carving techniques, printing and paper selection and finish the class […]

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Advanced Wheel + Hand Building Techniques (A)

January 15, 2020

Learn new techniques to improve your functional and non-functional ceramic forms. Try raku, cone 10 reduction glazes and soda firing. Learn new surface design processes using slips, underglazes, terra sigillata and the spray booth application of both underglazes and overglazes.

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Flameworking Glass Flora

January 15, 2020

Explore the world of flameworking and sculpting with glass. You’ll learn basic sculpting and forming techniques for borosilicate glass on the torch and gain an understanding of welds and connections by constructing flowers and other organic forms.

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Sewing Crash Course – NEW!

January 15, 2020

Create a totebag while learning to sew with a sewing machine. We’ll cover machine basics, fabric usage, how to measure yourself and choose projects and discuss resources that may help you in the future. If time allows, we will also learn to sew zippers into a pouch.

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The Creative Spark – NEW!

January 15, 2020

Clarissa Pinkola Estes writes about el duende, “the goblin wind,” that can breathe the creative spark into fire. The goal of this creative writing class is to fan your ideas and inspirations into flame. We’ll use timed writing, dream journals, guided imagery, Active Imagination, and anything else we can think of to get in touch […]

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Metal Clay Jewelry

January 15, 2020

Learn to work with metal clay, a malleable, metal-bearing material that is perfectly suited for creating jewelry. Use your hands to shape it and a variety of tools to add detail and texture. You’ll fire the metal clay to transform it into a silver object. Add a new skill to your repertoire each week to […]

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Make it Out of Metal

January 15, 2020

Designed as a quick intro to jewelry and metalsmithing, this class will teach the basic skills needed to create a simple ring or pendant, such as sawing, soldering, and polishing. It’s a great starting point for students to get their feet wet with the tools and medium to decide if they’d like to pursue further […]

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Writing the Memoir

January 15, 2020

Thomas Larson writes that “memoir is most successful when it is not the ‘story of a life,’ but a focused part of that life—a dozen summers spent working on a grandfather’s farm, a long relationship with a dying relative, the first year of law school.” You’ll work on writing prompts and timed writing exercises, and […]

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Claymation – NEW!

January 15, 2020

Do you want to make things move? Enter into the realm of claymation where everything is alive. Create your own unique characters, intricate sets, foley or musical sounds, and piece together your imagined world through the hands-on process of stop-frame animation.

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Hand-Building the Figure – NEW!

January 15, 2020

Discover handbuilding techniques in sculpting the figure! Students will work to create a figure from head to toe utilizing hollow building skills. We will explore every aspect of the figure using reference photos and mirrors to examine our own unique features. We will discuss the figure as a composition and explore the use of posture […]

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Darkroom Photography (A)

January 15, 2020

Learn to take photographs using 35mm film, process the film, and print photographs in a darkroom. Enjoy lots of technical guidance and aesthetic feedback, whether you’re just getting started or expanding your portfolio and skill set.

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Intermediate Hand-Building

January 15, 2020

Learn new hand-building forms and construction methods, including slab-built forms and textured slabs. We’ll explore mold making and learn how to use personalized, slump molds to create a set of platters or dishes. We’ll also cover hollow wall construction, using tar paper supports and unique glazing techniques.

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All Things Aquatint – NEW!

January 15, 2020

Learn the basics of aquatint, the process by which we can etch tones, and then get funky with it. We’ll cover step etching, sugar lift, open bite, spit bite, water bite, white ground and photo transfers (and yes, you will know what all of those mean by the end of the class). Dunk copper in […]

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Drawing with Colored Pencils

January 15, 2020

Learn techniques of colored pencil drawing including: blending and layering of colors, burnishing through dense saturate of color and composition of color schemes. We’ll also explore other techniques using underpainting and solvents. Expect demonstrations all of these processes as well as time to practice them. You’ll complete a colored pencil drawing of your own subject.

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Woodcut Portraits

January 15, 2020

In this class, we’ll focus on carving and drawing techniques to help you create compelling portrait prints. We’ll practice white line and black line approaches to hatching and crosshatching to create subtle gradients of tone. Each student can expect to leave class with two small editions of woodcut portraits!

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