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
FRAMING WORKSHOP
Deborah Mattson / Studio 2
Tue 11/3-11/10
6-8pm / 2 weeks
$90 / Members: $70
Learn beginning matting and framing skills for paintings, prints, and drawings using accessible materials and methods that can be replicated at home! Participants will also learn tips and tricks for upcycling thrifted frames.
WINTER FABRIC COLLAGE ORNAMENT
Jessica Sundstrom / Studio 4
Sat 11/14
1-4pm / 1 Day
$90 / Members: $70
Create a wonderful wintery new ornament for your home or as a special gift! Using winter-themed fabrics, threads, sequins, and beads, you’ll collage your own unique scene and stitch it into place. Ornaments will be displayed in 3-inch embroidery hoops. No experience in embroidery is necessary. All supplies are provided, but students are welcome to bring their own materials as well.
FELTED GEODE SCULPTURES
Emily Wohlscheid / Studio 2
Sat 11/7
12-4pm / 1 Day
$110 / Members: $90
Explore wet felting to create a geode soft sculpture! Students will layer wool fibers over a form for the felting process that will result in a densely felted ball. These felted forms will be cut open to reveal the banded “agate” layers within, mimicking a stone geode.
No previous experience is required, all skill levels are welcome.
CHARMING KEEPSAKE
Lauren Tripp and Mary Whalen / Jewelry Studio & Photo Studio
Fri 11/13
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.
WIRE WRAPPING HOLIDAY WORKSHOP
Dawn Coeur / Jewelry Studio
Sun 11/15
12-4pm / 1 Day
$85 / Members: $65
Create one-of-a-kind Christmas gifts in this beginner-friendly wire wrapping workshop! Students will learn essential techniques for shaping, weaving, and wrapping wire to design a beautiful pendant, ornament, or keepsake using sparkling beads and stones. This workshop is perfect for anyone who loves handmade holiday gifts and wants to explore their creativity in a relaxed, festive atmosphere. Leave with a finished piece ready for gifting and skills that will allow you to continue creating at home.
HOLIDAY COMPOTE
Sherri Snyder / Studio 6
Tue 12/10
6-8pm / 1-Day
$85 / Members: $65
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 12/8
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 11/7
12-3pm / 1-Day
$65 / Members: $45
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!
DYE & STITCH: ABSTRACT FABRIC COLLAGE
Rita Petteys / Studio 4
Sat & Sun 10/24-10/25
Sat 1-5pm, Sun 12-4pm / 2 Days
$135 / Members: $115
Create your own textile art supplies for an abstract fabric collage. In the first session, students will dye a palette of fabric and threads using fiber reactive dyes. In the second session, these personalized sets of colorful materials will inspire a layered, stitched collage.
Winter
SOUND BATH: THE FLOW OF CREATIVITY
Kara Markovich / Auditorium
Wed 2/10
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.
INTRODUCTION TO EMBROIDERY
Mary Baggerman / Studio 4
Sat 3/13
1-4pm / 1 Day
$80 / Members: $60
Learn how to create seven types of embroidery stitches in three hours! Students will have time to practice each stitch and then use their new skills to embroider a small image. When the workshop is over, take your stitch sampler with you to continue stitching in the comfort of your home.
2027 VISITING ARTIST WORKSHOP / CLAY VOCABULARY: JAPANESE TRADITIONS, CONTEMPORARY PRACTICE
Hitomi and Takuro Shibata / Studio 7
Thu 2/4 6-7pm Complimentary Lecture, Auditorium / Workshop Fri & Sat 2/5-2/6
10am-5pm / 2-Days
$250 / Members: $230
Join Hitomi and Takuro of Studio Touya for an immersive two-day hands-on workshop exploring the relationship between clay, form, surface, and function through the lens of Japanese pottery traditions and contemporary studio practice. Demonstrations will cover the complete making process, from throwing and trimming, to slab construction and hand-building, while discussing how thoughtful decisions about proportion, texture, and decoration shape the character of a pot. Participants will have the opportunity to create select forms such as yunomi, bowls, sake bottles, teapots, plates, or vases, to further understand how technique and intention come together in everyday pottery. All levels of experience are welcome to attend. This Visiting Artist Workshop is generously supported by the Jim and Lois Richmond Workshop Fund
WEBSITES FOR ARTISTS
Rachel Stickney / Boardroom
Thu 2/18-2/25
6:30-8:30pm / 2-Days
$80 / Members: $60
In today's contemporary art world, it is essential to have an online presence for your artwork to be seen. This class will cover the basics of maintaining an artist website, what information should be included, as well as hosting options and pricing. We will make custom site maps, look at sample websites, consider design choices and test site navigation. As a group we will discuss our strengths and concerns regarding making a website. Please come prepared to discuss your work and area of focus. All artists and creatives are welcome. Free tuition provided by the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo for active ACGK members.
FINISHING SCHOOL
Amelia Falk / Jewelry Studio
Sun 1/24
12-4pm / 1-Day
Prerequisite: Beginning Jewelry or equivalent
$125 / Members: $105
Is your box full of projects that you just can’t seem to get to a finished state? This workshop will cover the tools needed to get that final polished look to your pieces. We will cover the different types and uses for the flex shaft attachments as well as learning about different surface treatments for textural effects. Bring any unfinished
pieces along to practice your finishing skills. Abrasives and polishing supply kit provided.
PHOTOGRAPHING YOUR ARTWORK FOR NON-PHOTOGRAPHERS
Dan Selvidge / Photo Studio
Sat 1/23
1-4pm / 1-Day
$70 / Members: $50
A one-day hands-on workshop for artists who need better images of their work.
Learn how to make clean, accurate photographs of paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, ceramics, and other artwork using simple, affordable equipment. We’ll cover lighting, camera and smartphone setup, controlling glare and reflections, color accuracy, basic editing, and preparing files for juried exhibitions, grants, websites, and portfolios.
No photography experience is required. Students are encouraged to bring one or two pieces of artwork to photograph during the workshop.
INTRO TO TORCH FIRED ENAMELING
Deb Flook / Jewelry Studio
Sat 3/6
1-4pm / 1 Day
Prerequisite: Intermediate Jewelry or equivalent
$100 / Members: $80
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.
KILN ENAMEL BASICS
Meg Tang / Jewelry Studio
Mon 3/15
6-9 pm / 1-Day
$100 / Members: $80
Whether you're discovering the vibrant world of kiln-fired enamels for the first time or looking to refresh your skills, this workshop offers the perfect introduction. Explore the beauty of kiln-fired powder enamels as you learn to transform copper into luminous works of art. All skill levels are welcome.
INTRO TO DROP SPINDLES
Amanda Casanova / Weaving Studio
Sat 3/6
1-4pm / 1-Day
$90 / Members: $70
Drop spindles require very little space to work with and can be spun on virtually anywhere! This workshop is designed to teach you how to spin on a drop spindle, while also familiarizing you with the purpose of various types of spindles. Students will have the opportunity to try several spindles and will leave with a basic working knowledge of how they spin. All materials provided.
INTRODUCTORY JAPANESE WOODBLOCK PRINTMAKING WORKSHOP
Charles Coates / Print Studio
Sat 1/23
9am-4pm / 1-Day
$130 / Members: $110
In this one-day workshop, students will learn the basics of how to create a simple black-and-white print edition using watercolors and traditional Japanese tools and techniques. Through demonstrations, individual guided support, group feedback, and studio time, students will learn about this timeless process and how it is perfect for making art at home. All materials are non-toxic, clean-up is fast and easy, and prints dry instantly.
GREENHOUSE CREATIVITY
TBA & Mary Jo Asmus / River Street Flowerland
Sat 2/27
1-4pm / 1-Day
$70 / Members: $50
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 3/12-3/19
10am–4pm *lunch 12-1pm / 2-Days
Prerequisite: A basic knowledge of Photoshop or Lightroom is helpful
$155 / Members: $135
Select, edit, print, and bind your photos into a handmade book. You’ll have the opportunity to look at and handle a selection of artist-made books to inspire your own bookmaking. 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 for images to be used.
SIGN LANGUAGE WORKSHOP
Tanya Timmerman / Studio 2
Sat 3/6
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.