FALL HIGHLIGHTS & COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Please note:  Instead of requiring participants to purchase supplies for visual arts classes this year, visual arts participants will pay a $30 studio fee. This fee applies to all workshops except Ballroom Dance, Elementary Music, and Poetry.  We hope this change will be more economical and convenient for our visual arts participants.  More information is available here under the "Fees" section.

We are in the process of adding more workshops, and the schedule is subject to change.

Weekend One: October 13 – 16, 2011

Digital Photography – Creativity, Intuition, and Seeing with Connie Imboden
“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” – Proust

This workshop is intended to help students develop their intuitive visual process through exercises, assignments, and discussions. We are taught our whole lives to think things through, be in control, and act with reason rather than intuition, but that approach limits our vision to see just what we expect to see, not what is actually in front of us. When our eyes are open to the world without expectations or assumptions, our vision can expand. Using the camera as a tool to explore that world can be an exciting and powerful way to photograph and experience the world around us. In this workshop, process is emphasized over the product, playfulness is encouraged, and mistakes are pathways to discovery. Please be prepared to bring a portfolio of 10-15 images that best represents your work and a manually-adjustable digital camera. A working knowledge of your camera is important. Computers will be provided, but you are encouraged to bring your own laptop, if you have access to one.

Collage and Paint with Holly Roberts

Because of the direct nature of working with collaged/layered images, we can involve ourselves in the process of image making very rapidly, and almost immediately began to have feedback as we work. By using both acrylic and oil paint over and under the constructed images, students will learn not only how to build images with a variety of materials, but also how to paint both supportively and expressively.  By understanding how the different media work together, each student will be able to understand what process works best in finding his/her own creative voice.  We will cover transfers, gluing techniques, surfaces, supports, compatibility and layering of different media, and how to work with both oil and acrylic paints.   Materials will include but not be limited to: paint, photographic imagery, found objects, organic material, cloth, and three-dimensional objects -- anything that will hold paint. 

Printmaking: Metal Engraving with Oscar Gillespie

Learn the original non-toxic method for linear intaglio plate-making. No acids, no grounds, just a line with the elegant character of swells and flourishes. A direct and dynamic method of making marks on a plate, engraving can be easier to use than its reputation gives credit. With a little instruction in sharpening and holding the tool (along with some practice and guidance from the instructor) students in this course will be able to make a burin sit, lie down, and roll over like the best trained pet in the house. Demonstrations and practice for counter-proofing engraved plates to aquatinted plates for registration and printing of color editions will be included.

Elementary Music & Drumming with Kalani Das

Teachers will learn how to integrate a wide variety of rhythm- and drumming-based musical experiences into their classroom. We'll focus on developing a sense of rhythm and musicality while experiencing the fun, accessible, and creative aspects of group music-making. We will experience movement and dance, body percussion, vocalized rhythms and chants, simple songs from a variety of cultures, and drumming techniques and rhythms. Movement games include listening and responding to music and creating movement forms based on common themes. Body percussion integrates rhythm, timing, and phrasing into percussive movements that integrate with vocal percussion and chants. Vocalized music includes sounds effects, simple chants, and songs. Songs connect rhythm with melody and harmony and are supported by drumming. Drumming includes basic techniques, rhythm patterns, phrasing, pattern integration and ensemble play. Teachers will leave the workshop energized and empowered to bring authentic, yet flexible musical experiences to their students, co-workers, and community.

Weekend Two: October 20 – 23, 2011

Special Needs – Learning with the Whole Brain with Celia Hughes & Tracey McCullick

Because of the wide variability in how people learn, barriers to learning are often caused by the inflexibility of mandated curriculum, rather than by a disability of a student. The arts provide the classroom teacher with rich, meaningful and engaging activities that help students learn and express themselves through differentiated options. Combining art activities utilized in art therapy with lessons from VSA Start With The Arts™ teacher resource, this workshop will offer experiential, skill-building opportunities designed to assist teachers to better understand themselves and their students. Armed with this knowledge, teachers will learn dynamic ways to integrate visual arts into their daily classroom practices as a means through which a student with special needs can imagine and play while learning new skills and coping mechanisms. Participants will spend part of the time identifying and practicing art therapy directives that can change and improve disruptive behaviors within the autistic spectrum. Using relationships developed either one-on-one or in a group setting, a person with autism can experience progress in several areas of development.  Principles of Universal Design for Learning will be introduced as a curriculum tool, with vital connections to emotional learning provided through the principles of art therapy.

Latin Ballroom Dance with World Dance Arts Foundation Artists

Learn the basics of several Latin ballroom dance styles, such as cha cha, mambo, rumba, salsa, swing, and tango, under the instruction of a World Dance Arts Foundation teaching artist.  Ballroom dance can be incorporated into the classroom to teach not only physical movement, but culture, manners, and respect.  Expect to spend most of your time in this workshop dancing to fabulous music and having fun!  You’ll take back to your classroom a thorough understanding of the fundamentals of Latin dance.  This workshop is perfect for physical education, social studies, and language teachers, but all are welcome. 

Digital Photography - Light and the Portrait with Troy Word

Portraits are one of the trickiest subjects for any photographer. While our innate familiarity with the human face makes portraiture immediately interesting, that same understanding can make it difficult to capture an effective, compelling likeness. As with many photographic problems, the answer to better portraiture is a better understanding of light, and in this course, we'll delve in-depth into the uses and effects of lighting on the portrait. “Light and the Portrait” is designed for students of all levels, from beginner to expert - all you need is a camera and a desire to create portraits that transcend the ordinary. The course will start with an overview of camera use and exposure basics. From there, we will explore the importance of light as it relates to the human form, and begin to explore how to alter and impact a portrait through lighting changes. All facets of lighting will be covered in depth including studio, and interior and exterior location lighting. Particular focus will be placed on studying the different qualities of electronic flash, continuous lighting, and natural light. Finally, techniques for directing your subject will be explored, so that you can better achieve unique, personal results that will create truly memorable portraits.

Landscapes in Pastel with Leslie Williams Cain

Working from your own photographs of a favorite place, we will explore ways to get your connection to the land around you out of your brain and heart and down your arm onto the paper. Working with dry pastels on paper, we will incorporate many basic drawing techniques (married with painting concepts), to recreate a favorite spot. All levels and input welcome, though some drawing experience is preferred.

Printmaking with Lithography with Andrew Polk

Lithography, first developed around 200 years ago, has evolved into the highly mechanized process now used for the vast majority of today’s commercial printing. Fine artists, however, are attracted to aspects of the original process in which they can still experience the “magic” of the chemistry, image development, and hands-on printing. In its original form, lithography reproduced images that had been drawn directly onto a special finely-grained, flat stone. Many artists continue to work with these lithographic stones, but over the years, various substitutes have been developed. One, in particular, is the polyester plate. There are many advantages to polyester plates -- the processing is simpler, the costs are reduced, the use of toxic materials is eliminated, and they can be accommodated with less specialized equipment. This workshop will cover the basics of fine art lithography by introducing students to the imaging and printing techniques of polyester plate lithography.

Weekend Three: October 27 – 30, 2011

Basic Digital Photography with Ben Long

Learn the ins and outs of digital photography, from shooting to editing and printing, in this fun four-day workshop. No matter what your skill level, you'll learn something, as we cover all the specifics of your camera's controls, as well as how to compose and expose a shot. After a lecture/presentation on shooting on Thursday afternoon, we’ll get up Friday morning for a shooting expedition in the area. The rest of the classes will center around post-production, including importing, organizing, and keywording your images using Adobe Bridge; tone and color corrections in Photoshop; dodging, burning, and other localized edits; and finally printing. Basic computer skills required. Students must bring their own digital camera, either digital SLR or point-and-shoot. Whether you're an abject beginner, a dabbler, or a seasoned digital shooter, this class will help you get your photography to the next level.

Poetry with Tony Hoagland

Break open and refresh your idea of what a poem is, and of what American contemporary poetry can be!  We'll start by reviewing the basic fundamental principles which make a poem a poem, before moving on to more sophisticated ideas of how patterns of image, diction, narrative, lyric, and line contribute to the internal structure of a good poem. You'll be flooded with different models of poetic structure and different modes of poetic imagination. Participants will go home with beginning drafts of exciting new poems, as well as with an armful of exercises and resources to bring back into the classroom that will set young serotonin aroamin' with numinous poetic intelligence. Everything is open to discussion; please bring any and all questions and stories from the front line of education.

Expressive Figure & Portrait Drawing with Mark Kang-O'Higgins

The workshop is studio-based and will be very hands-on -- be prepared to do a lot of drawing! It will consist of introductory classes/demonstrations on topics such as gesture, weight, movement, proportion, anatomy, light gradation, opening the form, and classical to expressive understanding. Students will be encouraged to work from observation to expression, which will also facilitate individual expression. Each day, students will be introduced to artistic topics and techniques and then have a chance to practice them. All levels are welcome. The topics and exercises will be of value to novice and advanced artists

Water-Based Screenprinting with Curtis Jones

Screenprinting with photo stencils is most often associated with commercial applications such as sign making and t-shirt printing. Because of this, most people assume that a well-appointed professional shop is required to achieve proper results. The focus of this workshop will be to dispel this myth and show techniques that can be utilized to incorporate this exciting and versatile process into the simplest of studio situations.
Working individually and collaboratively, participants will learn water-based screenprinting applications that apply to working on paper, fabric, textiles, t-shirts, wood, and other flat surfaces. A focus will be placed on highlighting the adaptability of the process, and devising strategies to fit it into the current practices of the workshop participants.  All ability levels are welcome.

Arts Integration - Integrating Movement, Body, and Sound with Kimberli Boyd & Imani Gonzalez

Students who enroll in this workshop will participate in two sections: DANCE and MUSIC. The critical and creative thinking skills used to choreograph a dance allow learners to process information in ways that are engaging, challenging, effective, and fun. In this interactive section, students will experience a kinesthetic approach to exploring science vocabulary and concepts. Furthermore, in the highly interactive music section of this workshop, participants will be acquainted with the basic elements, principles, and concepts that make it possible to engage students in meaningful learning experiences, makings connections to social studies and language arts. Participants will be guided in an immersive and engaging learning process, exploring sounds and rhythms and their importance in developing an understanding of daily life through traditional world music. Students will enjoy the fascinating genre of down-home blues through singing and understanding its form, as well as writing their own blues using language arts. Finally, participants will delight in combining the many possibilities of the connections between dance and music. This workshop is open to all levels.