Spring Time Online Learning Workshops

 I have a few online learning opportunities coming up that I want to share.

First up is my workshop with Making Zen. I will be amongst a stellar line-up of teachers that will be sharing projects and techniques with the Making Zen Audience. Making Zen is a 5-day online creative workshop retreat that runs from May 26th - 30th. It is free to sign-up and there is a VIP option that you will want to look into that gives learners some enticing benefits. Click here or on any of the links above for more information and to register for free.

My workshop will be Book + Bag: A Traveling Kit. The workshop runs about 30 minutes and in it we will create a sketchbook kit for your upcoming travels, or daily wanderings, that can hold books, pens, pencils, brushed, and a small watercolor palette. The workshop includes demonstrations on how to bind a pamphlet book, a ledger book, and how to hand sew a Japanese tsunobukuro style bag that will keep your supplies organized for your creative adventures. 

Also, upcoming are two June Zoom workshops!

On June 7th I will teach my popular French Stitch Cracker Box Book workshop. I love this binding for its flexible exposed sewing spine and it's use of recycled and reclaimed materials. 

Click here for more information and to register.

And, on June 14th I will be teaching the Exploding Picture Box! This clever box is based on a Victorian paper box that has 28 surfaces where pictures, words, and illustrations can be placed.  It is like a little book or photo album in a box… that explodes! Small objects can also be placed at the center as an extra surprise.

Click here for more information and to register.

And, as always I have online classes on Creativebug - click here to go to my page.

Spring is a great time to get creative!

Aqua Lab Project

 I've been quite remiss about blog posts lately but wanted to get some information up here on a project I've been working on and an upcoming gallery exhibit.

​​

​

I'll be having a solo art exhibit at Minnow Arts in Santa Cruz, CA entitled: Aqua Lab: in Search of the Third Thing.

The exhibit runs from May 3rd - June 9th, 2024. There will be an opening reception from 5:00-8:30 on First Friday, May 3rd, as well as a closing reception on First Friday, June 7th. I will also give an informal talk from 3-4:00 on Sunday, June 9th. Minnow Arts location: 204 Locust Street, Santa Cruz, CA. Regular hours are Saturday and Sunday, 2:00-6:00.

Since First Friday is often crowded and it’s sometimes hard to talk and see the work, I will be in the gallery from 2-4:00 on the Saturdays and Sundays following the opening and closing receptions: May 4th and 5th, and June 8th and 9th.

DH Lawrence wrote: 

Water is H2O, hydrogen two parts, oxygen one,

but there is also a third thing, that makes it water

and nobody knows what that is…

Aqua Lab is an attempt to define that “third thing” through open water swimming and the collection of data including: swim dates, water and air temperature, latitude, longitude and elevation of swims, the collection of earth pigment from the shoreline of lakes, recording swim routes, and photographing the color of the water. All of these elements will come together in the gallery with a watery and swimmerly installation. I hope you’ll float by…

And, just a reminder if you are interested in workshops - I'm good about updating my workshop page here on my blog. Also, online workshops are available 24/7 on Creativebug!

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!

The Boro Aesthetic: Blurb Book

Ever since I started teaching my Boro Sampler Book and Boro Bags workshops people from afar who can't attend have been asking me for information on these classes so that they can play along, too.

Finally, I have done something about that! I've written a book called: The Boro Aesthetic: Books, Bags, Zakka and Zokin. I used Blurb, a self-publishing platform, to help me create and distribute the book. Follow this link to my Blurb book page.

[Update: The Boro Aesthetic is now available on Amazon, too.]

Heavily patched Japanese textile from my personal collection

 I tried to make the book as much like my workshops as possible with images of my personal collection of Japanese boro textiles, images of class samples, scans of handouts, tool and supply lists, a glossary, and writing the reflects what I talk about in class.

Included in the book are directions on how to get started with projects that are inspired by Japanese boro textiles. This includes the Boro Sampler Book, Boro Bags, and a newer class that I call Zakka, Zokin and Chiku-Chiku.

Boro Sampler Book - instructions in book

In the Boro Sampler Book section I take readers through the various kinds of mending techniques seen in boro textiles. At the end of that section I have included directions on how to bind your sampler pages using the Japanese Side Sewn structure (I teach fancier versions of this binding on Creativebug).

Boro Bag - instructions in book

Next, is the Boro Bags section where I encourage readers to continue practicing the mending techniques on a larger piece of fabric and then make it into a Japanese style bag. Included are instructions on how to make the Tsunobukuro and the Azuma Bukuro.

Zokin inspired coasters - instruction in the book

In the Zakka, Zokin and Chiku-Chiku section I include instructions on how to make hand stitched cloth coasters (and how to adapt to a placemat or table runner) using the techniques learned in the sampler book section.

Throughout are beautifully photographed (thank you r.r.jones) Japanese boro textiles from my personal collection, a couple of images of my artwork, and class samples that I have made.

Boro Sampler Book page

 

I have ordered copies of the book and am very pleased with the reproduction of images, as is the photographer (and Mr. Jones is very particular about that). The book is artist and photographer approved!

Because many of you are from areas outside of the U.S., and I know shipping costs can be prohibitive, I have made an e-book version available (it shows up as "related editions" under the "add to cart" button). It is much more affordable and there are no tax or shipping charges. The e-book option may also be attractive for U.S. readers, too. 

Boro Sampler Book page

Students that have taken my in-person classes are also ordering the book to have it on hand for continued inspiration and instruction. I plan to have copies available at my future workshops, too.

My KEEP: Modern Library exhibit book may also be of interest to some of you since it is a series, exhibit, and body of work that was greatly inspired by Japanese boro textiles. It is also available on Blurb as a physical book and an e-book.

Bias from KEEP: Modern Library series

I hope that some of you find The Boro Aesthetic: Books, Bags, Zakka, and Zokin useful, informative and inspirational.

Happy reading, viewing and making!