ALL EVENTS
By Category: Drawing ✿ Fiber ✿ Glass ✿ Mosaic ✿ Multimedia ✿ Painting ✿ Upcycling ✿ Open Studios ✿ Guest Artists
Glass Geology with Karen Shatar
Build a vertical frame, attach to base glass and the pour frit in thin layers to simulate a geological formulation. Then layer silver foil and course on top to create reactions. Fire to full fuse schedule. (Provided). Handouts to take home provided.
Mug to Mosaic with Kelley Knickerbocker
The humble mug. Cheery, tacky, heartwarming, playful, snazzy, artful, endearing, or hideous. Each one contains mugtitudes, including the ingredients of an awesome abstract mosaic: surface colors/textures/patterns, claybody color/texture, curves/corners, and raw/finished edges. Using the the students’ own mugs as context and vehicle, in this 3-day course Kelley unpacks and guides students through each stage of mosaic metamorphosis: inspiration, design planning, palette development, material analysis, precision processing, and execution. Each student will transform their mug into an 8" square mosaic - set directly into cement mortar - in a wood frame. Bring your mug and let's get cracking! Your mug should be large-ish, any color(s)/pattern(s)/texture(s), and a different color on the inside than the outside.
A good understanding of basic mosaic principles and vocabulary is helpful but not necessary.
FREE Artist Talk & Booksigning: Rachel Davies
Join us for a free presentation and booksigning by internationally acclaimed mosaic artist Rachel Davies, who is in Albuquerque (from Scotland) for the CMA conference. Bring your copy of her book, or buy one there!
Guest Artist: Rachel Davies
Learn more about her website: here.
FREE Artist Talk (Anabella Wewer & Kelley Knickerbocker): The Practice of Learning
Theories and opinions on how we learn vary wildly: Copy the masters. Take more workshops. Narrow your focus. Learn all the techniques. Repeat everything at least three times. Practice, practice, practice. Watch videos over and over. In-person is better. Experimentation is key! Theory is crucial. If the work sings, technique isn’t important. Toss the rules out and just make. If you like it, learn it. And on and on.
In their combined 40+ years of practice, and many, many years teaching, Kelley and Anabella have amassed a heap of experience, thoughts, and opinions about learning and teaching. And they know they'll always still be learning. They love having a good back-and-forth to get at the heart of - and keep learning about - any topic, and this time they’re having it in public in Albuquerque at the Amy Biehl High School during a free, live session as part of the ABQ Mosaic Art Festival. Come join the conversation!
Andamento as Language (Including Hammer & Hardie and Smalti techniques)
Classical andamento need not be thought of as restrictive or old-fashioned, but rather as the grammar of mosaic, giving definition and clarity to the work. Going beyond the principles of andamento, this course shows you how to develop style and narrative in mosaic, creating your own mosaic language.
Grammar and typography govern how we arrange letters into words and determine how easy or hard a text is to read and understand. In mosaic, the language is seemingly simpler — but texture, spacing, and dimension, layered over the basic principles of andamento can give lines, and therefore a mosaic, very different characteristics.
In this workshop we will also cover cutting with hammer & hardie, using a multitude of materials, and emphasizing proper posture and cutting techniques for different effects. We will then spend a few hours working with smalto to understand its properties, characteristics and how to cut it to achieve different effects. After these two basic topics, we will launch fully into developing language, now with tesserae that are intentionally cut for exploring andamento as language.
Previous knowledge of andamento rules is a pre-requisite. Hammers and hardies will be available, along with nippers and all other mosaic tools.
Andamento as Language (Including Hammer & Hardie and Smalti techniques)
Classical andamento need not be thought of as restrictive or old-fashioned, but rather as the grammar of mosaic, giving definition and clarity to the work. Going beyond the principles of andamento, this course shows you how to develop style and narrative in mosaic, creating your own mosaic language.
Grammar and typography govern how we arrange letters into words and determine how easy or hard a text is to read and understand. In mosaic, the language is seemingly simpler — but texture, spacing, and dimension, layered over the basic principles of andamento can give lines, and therefore a mosaic, very different characteristics.
In this workshop we will also cover cutting with hammer & hardie, using a multitude of materials, and emphasizing proper posture and cutting techniques for different effects. We will then spend a few hours working with smalto to understand its properties, characteristics and how to cut it to achieve different effects. After these two basic topics, we will launch fully into developing language, now with tesserae that are intentionally cut for exploring andamento as language.
Previous knowledge of andamento rules is a pre-requisite. Hammers and hardies will be available, along with nippers and all other mosaic tools.
Micro Mosaic Pendants with Nancy Holt
Learn the historical art of creating intricate jewelry using tiny tesserae of multiple kinds. This hands-on course will teach you how to cut materials, use them effectively in a design, and set them into metal bezels. You will leave with a finished, wearable artpiece of your own design.
Class topics:
* The history of the micro mosaic
* How to design a graphic micro mosaic using paper and colored pencils.
* How to cut micro mosaic materials: smalti, filati, millefiori, beads, and mini tiles.
* How to use specialized adhesives to attractively set your tesserae
No prior experience is necessary, and all tools and materials are provided.
Tweezers are necessary for this method and will be provided. If you have a favorite pair (like I do!) it would be good to bring it to class.
Also, there will be close up work so if you need visual assistance tools these would be helpful as well.
Hot Prints: Encaustic Photo Transfer w/ Mikaela
Come paint with wax, power up some heat guns, and create two stunning printed pieces. In this class students will paint with molten wax and transfer images onto the hot surface. By the end of the workshop, students will be confident in their ability to transfer printed images onto the wax using a special phototransfer technique. This encaustic phototransfer workshop is for artists of all levels. Join us for an experiment with hot wax and to master a unique printmaking technique!
Please note, hot wax can aggravate those with sensitive lungs. A fan will be going in the background to promote ventilation, and masks will be offered to attendees. This class is not recommended for children under 13 years of age.
Intro to Glass Blowing
Doug Ostroff will introduce you to his mobile glass studio and will demonstrate the basic process of glass blowing and sculpting of this wonderful material that will be around 2100 F degrees. Students will have the opportunity to make a cup and a chile pepper with an instructor. All materials are included with the class. Doug has 25 years of glass blowing experience and has been teaching glass blowing for 10 years to kids 12 to 85 years old.
2-Day Glass Blowing Deep Dive
Doug Ostroff will introduce you to his mobile glass studio and will demonstrate the basic process of glass blowing and sculpting of this wonderful material that will be around 2100 F degrees. Students will have the opportunity to make a cup and a chile pepper with an instructor. All materials are included with the class. Doug has 25 years of glass blowing experience and has been teaching glass blowing for 10 years to kids 12 to 85 years old.
Fused Mandala Flowers w/ Karen
Design a mandala using a stencil, pattern or your own design. Placing glass powder onto base glass with small straw or designated tool to create pattern to cover the glass. Fire to full fused.
Glass Painting, Enameling & FABrication with Joseph Cavalieri
Renowned New York visiting artist Joseph Cavalieri is excited to teach a five-day class encompassing all aspects of making a stained glass panel, from design to production. Many samples will be made in class. Techniques covered include painting, pen-and-ink drawing, air-brushing, atomizing, and silk screening with silkscreens Joseph will provide. You don’t need to be an expert painter, as we will be tracing images in the class.
We work with non-toxic enamels that are kiln fired onto the glass surface. Copper foiling and soldering techniques, lighting and framing will be learned as well. The choice of imagery is totally up to the students’ imagination. Perfect for beginners and students that have some experience working with glass and want to expand their knowledge further.
Cavalieri will help with your design choice, share samples of his work, share a framing and lighting system which he developed, as well as present lectures on ‘Art Residencies’ and ‘Marketing for Artists.’
