Our 1- and 2-day workshops offer a taste of something new and a little digging deep, while teaching artists from around the country provide in-depth exploration for the benefit of our instructors, advanced students, and curious learners during Visiting Artist Workshops.
Fall
HOLIDAY MANTELPIECE SWAG
Sherri Snyder / Auditorium
Wed 12/17
6-8pm / 1-Day
$80 / Members: $60
Participants in this class will create a luxurious fresh evergreen decoration, approximately 6 feet in length, that can be used to adorn a mantle, as a table centerpiece, or as a swag above a door. Multiple evergreens will be used, focusing on texture and interest. Seasonal accents including pine cones will also be incorporated.
HOLIDAY COMPOTE
Sherri Snyder / Auditorium
Tue 12/9
6-8pm / 1-Day
$75 / Members: $55
Create a holiday centerpiece using a compote dish and center pillar candle. Make a lovely arrangement accented with greens and seasonal finds such as pinecones and ornaments. This project makes a lovely hostess gift or holiday décor item in your home. This fun class is perfect for the beginner.
NARCISSUS BLUMEN GARDEN
Sherri Snyder / Auditorium
Tue 11/11
6-8pm / 1-Day
$75 / Members: $55
Using a variety of natural finds and holiday decorations, class participants will create a charming fresh arrangement featuring Narcissus bulbs. This European style indoor “garden” will last a few weeks as a centerpiece or decoration. All materials are reusable and compostable. These gardens can be recreated at home to give as gifts, no special equipment is required. Garden gloves are recommended since we will be using some potting mix, but they are not required.
PRICING YOUR WORK
Rachel Stickney / Studio 4
Sat 11/8
12-3pm / 1-Day
$0 / Members: $0
Congratulations you have made amazing artwork! Now how do you sell it? Take part in an open and honest discussion about how to price your work. We will go over different pricing formulas, strategies, and monetization streams to empower you to feel comfortable setting a price for your work. Open to artists of all mediums. Bring 1 or 2 small works or photos of your work for discussion as questions and conversation are welcomed and encouraged!
FRAMING WORKSHOP
Trevor Grabill / Studio 2
Wed 11/5-11/12
6:30-9pm / 2-Days
$90 / Members: $70
Learn to make your own simple frames for paintings, prints, and drawings using accessible materials and methods that can be replicated at home! Some basic woodworking skills will be covered as well as tips and tricks for upcycling thrifted frames.
SOUND BATH: THE FLOW OF CREATIVITY
Kara Markovich / Auditorium
Wed 11/5
6-7:30pm / 1-Day
$60 / Members: $40
Immerse yourself in an evening of sound that will take you to a place of peace, stillness, and connection. During the sound immersion various instruments will fill the space such as Tibetan singing bowls, crystal bowls, and gongs. These allow you to move into a state of deep relaxation. Rest, recover, and heal your physical, emotional, and energetic bodies while dislodging creative blocks. Students are encouraged to bring a yoga mat and blanket.
Winter
VISITING ARTIST WORKSHOP WITH JULIA WHITNEY BARNES / Cyanotype: Beyond Blue and White
Julia Whitney Barnes / Multi-Purpose Classroom & Darkroom
Fri to Sun 6/26-6/28
10am-4pm / 3 Days
$270 / Members: $250
In this special three-day cyanotype intensive, students will learn how to create painterly cyanotype-based works. They will start with an intro/refresher on the basics of how to make cyanotype prints by mixing chemistry, coating paper and/or fabric, and developing prints using the sun and UV light. The workshop will then cover how to print using fresh and pressed plants, three-dimensional objects (lace, string, plastic bags, glass jars, jewelry, etc.), paper cutouts, and how to combine media with photographic negatives. Through the process, experimental techniques will also be covered including multicolor wet cyanotype and toning with a variety of materials. Demonstrations will include altering cyanotypes with paints, collage, and multiple exposures. Students will learn how to combine techniques both during the creation of the print and after it has been printed. Previous cyanotype experience is not required, though a background in it is helpful. Visiting artist Julia Whitney Barnes is based in New York’s Hudson Valley and works in a variety of media including cyanotypes, watercolor, oil painting, and ceramic sculpture. She approaches the cyanotype medium as someone painting with light.
This Visiting Artist Workshop is generously supported by the Harold Hope Memorial Fund.
ARASHI SHIBORI SILK SCARF DYEING
Rita Petteys / Studio 4
Sat & Sun 3/14-3/15
12-4pm / Two Days
$130 / Members: $110
This is not your typical tie-dyeing class! Students will learn the shibori pole wrapping technique known as Arashi, the Japanese term for “storm,” to create diagonal stripe designs reminiscent of storm-driven rain or water ripple patterns on a windowpane. Students will have the opportunity to dye two silk scarves with additional scarves available for purchase. Students can bring their own small pieces of fabric to dye. All dyeing materials will be provided.
SURFACE DESIGN FOR FABRIC
Mary Baggerman / Studio 4
Sat & Sun 2/21-2/2
12-4pm / Two Days
$125 / Members: $105
Come and explore new ways to add surface design elements to your fabric creations! This is a two day class: The first day will focus on block printing fabric and the second on embellishing your designs with embroidery. You will make a piece suitable for displaying by itself or using for a pillow or small bag. All materials will be provided but please feel free to bring your own fabric or embellishing threads.
CHARMING KEEPSAKE
Lauren Tripp and Mary Whalen / Jewelry Studio & Photo Studio
Fri 3/13
10am-3pm / One Day
$110 / Members: $90
Starting with a photograph, we’ll scan, size, print, encase in a miniature copper shadowbox. Making a keepsake of a loved one to wear or give as a gift.
ACE THE APP
Rachel Stickney / Multi-Purpose Classroom
Sat 1/31
12-3pm / 1 Day
$65 / Members: $45
Do you want to apply to art opportunities but feel overwhelmed about how to start? Learn what documents and photos you’ll need when applying, plan for application costs, and how to keep an “application packet” ready to go online. Get insights directly from a former juror and learn what they are looking for in an application.
2026 WINTER VISITING ARTIST WORKSHOP / Using History as Inspiration With Margaret Bohls
Margaret Bohls / Studios 3, 5, 7
Fri & Sat 1/30-1/31
9am-5pm / 2-day
$240 / Members: $220
Margaret will present her methodology for creating vessel forms inspired and informed by historical ceramics and other decorative arts. Using the “coil and pinch” method of building and using drawing as a tool for both form and surface, Margaret will create a series of vessels based on ancient ceramics from the Italian peninsula, especially those made by the Etruscans. She will also share forms inspired by her study of Modernist era decorative arts, such as Art Nouveau and Art Deco. Demonstrations will include the creation of inventive lids, handles, spouts and other attachments.
INTRO TO TORCH FIRED ENAMELING
Deb Flook / Jewelry Studio
Sat 1/24
1-4pm / One Day
Prerequisite: Intermediate Jewelry or equivalent
$95 / Members: $75
Kilns aren’t the only way to enamel! This introductory workshop will begin with how to set up a torch enamel workstation and what tools are required and will quickly move into how to add enamel to your work. How to coat headpins, flat and curved surfaces, beads, and more will be covered. All materials are provided with additional available for purchase.
SOUND BATH: THE FLOW OF CREATIVITY
Kara Markovich / Auditorium
Wed 2/18
6-7:30pm / 1-Day
$60 / Members: $40
Immerse yourself in an evening of sound that will take you to a place of peace, stillness, and connection. During the sound immersion various instruments will fill the space such as Tibetan singing bowls, crystal bowls, and gongs. These allow you to move into a state of deep relaxation. Rest, recover, and heal your physical, emotional, and energetic bodies while dislodging creative blocks. Students are encouraged to bring a yoga mat and blanket.
GREENHOUSE CREATIVITY
Hank Mattson & Mary Jo Asmus / River Street Flowerland
Sat 2/21
1 - 4 pm / One Day
$95 / Members: $75
Spend a winter afternoon in the warm atmosphere of a greenhouse bursting with inspiring vegetation, flowering and potted plants, greens, ornamental garden sculptures, and the general ongoing and curious growth in one of Kalamazoo’s outstanding greenhouses. You’ll find inspiration for drawing, painting and/or photographing at River Street Flowerland! Individual instruction will be provided. Bring materials of your choice to work with.
HANDMADE PHOTO BOOK
Laurie Pruitt and Mary Whalen / Computer Lab
Fri 2/20-2/27
10am–4pm *lunch 12-1pm / 2-Days
Prerequisite: A basic knowledge of Photoshop or Lightroom is helpful
$190 / Members: $170
Select, edit, print, and bind your photos into a handmade book while viewing and handling a selection of artist-made books to serve as inspiration for your own. The first day will be devoted to the editing, sequencing, and printing of images. The following session will be committed to folding, stitching, and binding into a hardcover book. Instructors will email instructions to enrollees for images to be used.
SIGN LANGUAGE WORKSHOP
Tanya Timmerman / Studio 2
Sat 2/7
12-2pm / 1- Day
$60 / Members: $40
Advance your communication skills and language accessibility through the world of American Sign Language. Come ready to jump start comprehension and production skills in conversational ASL through practice and use of the targeted linguistic structures. U.S. deaf culture and history will also be covered. This class is open to all students, with or without previous experience.
WOVEN SHIBORI ON A RIGID HEDDLE LOOM
Amanda Casanova / Studio 4
Sat 1/17-1/24
1-4pm / 2 weeks
Prerequisite: Students must supply their own rigid heddle loom.
$105 / Members: $85
Learn how to weave a texturized shibori project on a Rigid Heddle Loom. Students will learn how to weave with a supplemental weft thread and pick up sticks over a ground cloth. The supplemental weft threads will then be pulled to compress the fabric before wet finishing to achieve permanent texture. This workshop is perfect to enhance your skills as a weaver with some experience with a Rigid Heddle.