Summer 18 - Teaching Wrap Up - Mendocino - Ashland - France

Such a long overdue post - but I just can't let my summer adventures go undocumented.

 

I began my summer teaching adventure with a road trip to teach at the Mendocino Art Center where the surrounding natural beauty is almost too much to take in. I was completely enamored of the ocean's color, and the water towers that were scattered throughout the town.

 

While there I taught my Boro Aesthetic workshop (I taught the class as a 5-day workshop last summer at Arrowmont and will be returning there again next summer)where we look at the lines, shapes and textures achieved in Japanese boro textiles, make samplers to learn the language, and then apply those aesthetics to personal art projects. These are the samplers, in progress:

 

This was a three day workshop and students all created impressive finished projects.

 

On the road to Ashland, OR: Mount Shasta

Next, I taught at the Ashland Art Center in Ashland, Oregon. Sometimes I get so caught up in teaching that I don't take pictures - this was one of those times. But, I taught the Boro Books and Boro Bags Workshops and you can see examples of projects for those classes here, here, here and here. And, these are some of the yummy samples I brought for inspiration:

I drove home through some beautiful scenery...

...spent a week at home unpacking and re-packing and then I was off to France to join up with the French General Getaway!

After a night and two packed days in Paris I took a train to the south and met up with the wonderful group at this gorgeous chateau.

 with this gorgeous studio to teach out of:

with a view like this:

I taught the group about Japanese boro textiles and then guided then through the Boro Bags workshop over the course of two afternoons and a morning session so that we could go at a nice gentle pace. 

 The week was full of visits to numerous brocantes, villages, markets, and included lots of wine and cheese!

We visited Albi:

Saint Antonin:

  

and Cordes-sur-Ciel:
 

What an experience - each town was right out of a story book.

I also found great inspiration in the mending techniques I discovered on grain sacks and old linen sheets:

 
and I got to play along with Denise Lambert who came to the chateau on our last day and taught us about the history of woad dye (often referred to as the European indigo) and allowed us to dye our fabric and garments in her woad vats:

A fabulous week with a wonderful group of people.

Oh, France, I hope to return soon.

As always, I post way more pictures on Instagram so please follow me there if you'd like: my instagram account. 


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Upcoming this Fall are only two workshops and they are both full! But it never hurts to get yourself on the waitlist - you never know.

 Here is the information about my two Fall 2018 workshops:

Boro Bags at French General - September 9th

Japanese Mending at A Verb for Keeping Warm - September 29th

The best way to get information about my workshops before they fill is to check the Workshops page on this blog, follow me on Instagram and/or like my Wishi Washi Studio page on Facebook.

Thanks for following along!

Spring Workshops 2018

Happy New Year to you all!

Mending on a large furoshiki found at a Tokyo Flea market

I was so fortunate that my art and teaching took me to so many interesting places where I met such wonderful people in 2017. Teaching took me to Arrowmont in Tennessee, and to the Mabel Dodge Luhan House in Taos, New Mexico. Both storied places where artists have been visiting and creating for years. My part in co-curating the MUSUBU exhibit took me to Tokyo where I made many new friends and became even more enamored of that alluring city.

Boro fragment from my personal collection - I take this example to every class

Now here we are in 2018 and I have a number of workshops coming up in the first half of the year that I want to share with you. Here is my teaching schedule through the end of June 2018:

One of my Boro Sampler Book pages

Boro Sampler Books

French General, Los Angeles, CA

Saturday, February 18th, 2018, 10-4

(class is full - get on waitlist!)

Japanese Mending as Utility and Embellishment

A Verb for Keeping Warm, Oakland, CA

Saturday, April 21st, 2018, 11-5

Mending on a large furoshiki found at a Tokyo flea

Boro Sampler Books

A Work of Heart, San Jose, CA

Sunday, May 6th, 2018, 10:00-5:00

The Boro Aesthetic: Creating Fiber Arts Pieces Inspired by Japanese Textiles
Mendocino Art Center, Mendocino, CA
Friday-Sunday, June 1st-3rd, 2018

Boro Sampler Books and Boro Bags
Ashland Art Center, Ashland, Oregon
Saturday and Sunday, June 9-10th, 2018
10:00-4:00 each day

Boro Bags

At the end of June I will be traveling to France to join French General's France Getaway Retreat! I will be teaching in the afternoons after the morning outings and adventures. How can you NOT join us?

Exploring Craft, Textiles and Food
French General's France Getaway
June 22 - 29th, 2018 

detail from one of my teaching samplers

 

If none of these locales are near to you remember that my book The Boro Aesthetic: Books, Bags, Zakka and Zokin is available on Blurb and Amazon. It includes handouts from my workshops, text that covers what I discuss in class, color images and a glossary. It is a slim volume but it includes how-to information from three workshops.

I appreciate each and every time that any of you sign up and take a workshop with me and I hope to see you in 2018!