Penland School of Crafts Photography Summer 2011

Classes are open to serious students of all levels unless specified in course description; beginners welcome.

Sometimes a single photograph does not aptly describe the idea; sometimes the idea is about the form of the presentation. Sometimes we see things as a single picture, sometimes as a series or a compound image. This class will create extended landscapes, which may be installations, books, topologies, or extended images, investigating real or personal landscapes. We will have critiques, lectures, field trips, journal writing, and idea generation. Students may work in black and white or color, film or digital; the goal is to make work. Digital photographers should bring their own computer and software. All levels. Code 01p

Studio artist; teaching: Visual Studies Workshop (NY), Maine Media Workshops; collections: George Eastman House (NY), Center for Creative Photography (AZ).

Myra Greene, Untitled, from the

Character Recognition series,

ambrotype on black glass, 3 x 4 in.

It is often stated that we never really know what we look like, how our body moves through space, and the sound of our own voice. With the camera, one can explore the boundaries of what truly defines our personality and uniqueness. Through a creative exploration of photography, we will investigate a multitude of definitions of self. Students may work digitally or in the black and white darkroom and will be asked to consider how this choice furthers their conceptual intent. Digital photographers should bring their own computer and software. Intermediate level: students must have basic skills with their chosen technology. Code 02p

Assistant professor at Columbia College Chicago; Illinois Arts Council fellowship; exhibitions: Museum of the African Diaspora (San Francisco), Sculpture Center (NYC).

Maritza Molina, Cutting the Pattern, c-print,

40 x 50 in.

This class will focus on the creative process of directorial photography. We will visualize ideas and transform them into photo-conceptual work. Acting as director and producer, students will follow a process akin to film production: sketching ideas, scouting locations, building props, etc. We will discuss composition, natural light, depth of field, color/b&w, and the history of directorial photography. Intermediate level: a digital or film SLR, photo skills, and a technical grasp of your camera are required. Students should bring their own computer and software. Code 03d

Studio artist and instructor at Miami Dade College (FL); exhibitions: Praxis (NYC), Exit Art (NYC); collections: Bass Museum of Art (Miami Beach), Sagamore, The Art Hotel (Miami Beach).

Julie Anand & Damon Sauer, Transfigure, shredded

and woven archival inkjet prints, resin, acrylic,

55 x 37 in.

This class will invigorate your creative process in photography. Through a series of short experiments, we will explore the creative potential of intuition, community, spontaneity, collaboration, trust, obstructions, and nonattachment. Then students will pursue inspirations gained from these exercises. This class is not aimed at perfecting skills or polishing work; it is about generating ideas to fuel new work. Intermediate level: open to experienced students working in all photographic media. Black and white darkroom available; digital photographers should bring computer and software. Code 03p

Collaborating artists; exhibitions: El Paso Museum of Art (TX), Center for Fine Art Photography (CO); Julie is assistant professor at Arizona State University.

Thomas Neff, Joseph Glover,

Josephine Street, New Orleans,

Louisiana, 2005, selenium-toned

silver print, 16-1/2 x 23 in.

In Beauty in Photography, Robert Adams asserts that a convincing photograph “can tell us as much about who is behind the camera as about what’s in front of it.” Through subjects found around Penland and the local environs (people, landscape, architecture) we will explore the idea that compelling photographs are not only a response to “form,” but can also reveal something personal that resonates with the viewer. This is a black and white darkroom class, covering camera functions, film processing, and printing. All levels. Code 04p

Professor at Louisiana State University; NEA and Louisiana Division of the Arts fellowships; collections: Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, California Museum of Photography; author of Holding Out and Hanging On: Surviving Hurricane Katrina.

This class will combine early photo processes with handmade paper to create stunning images on unusual surfaces. We will make paper sheets and sculptural forms from natural fibers such as cotton and abaca. We will print onto our paper using cyanotype and Van Dyke chemistry and images from an array of sources: photograms, drawings, digital negatives, etc. Papermaking techniques include watermarking, inclusions, collage, pigmenting, and overbeaten and translucent pulps. Photo information will include negative preparation, toning, and surface treatments. All levels. Code 05p

Helen: studio artist; author of The Paper-maker’s Companion and other books.
Alyssa: studio artist; exhibitions: VCU Anderson Gallery (VA), Gallerie Califia (Czech Republic).

Helen Hiebert, Rooted in the

Heavens and in the Earth,

handmade abaca paper, hemp

thread, 23 x 18 in.

Alyssa Salomon, For the Song at Day's

End, waxed van dyke emulsion on abaca

papermade by Helen Hiebert, 22 x 17 in.

Debbie Fleming Caffery, Burning Cane, gelatin silver

photograph, 20 x 24 in.

We will explore portraiture and the physical and cultural landscape around Penland as each student conceives and completes a photographic project. Students will work to develop a personal style and stronger vision and will learn to engage with their subject matter while telling the story. We will also talk about portfolio development and getting your work out there. Students may work digitally or in the black and white darkroom. Digital photographers should bring their own computer and software. Intermediate level; students must have basic skills with their chosen technology. Code 06p

Studio artist; Guggenheim Fellowship, Lou Stoumen Award from the Museum of Photographic Arts (CA); three monographs; collections: Museum of Modern Art (NYC), Whitney Museum (NYC), Metropolitan Museum (NYC).

Chris Peregoy, Requiem, permanent pigment print,

pinhole image, 12 x 24 in.

This class will cover alternative ways to print digital images, including handmade printing surfaces, transfer methods, and post-print additions. We will create images with camera and/or scanner and learn to combine elements digitally. This class will open you up to the possibility of an artist’s studio that incorporates the desktop printer, mark making, photography, and printmaking. Students should bring their own computers and software.
All levels. Code 07p

Studio artist and program specialist at University of Maryland Baltimore Campus; two Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Awards; exhibitions: Soho Photo (NYC), Halcyon Gallery (Baltimore), Koto-Ku Cultural Center (Tokyo).

Mary Barringer, Stacked Bowls, handbuilt

stoneware with multiple slips and glazes,

each bowl 7" diameter

This class is for makers who want to infuse their writing with the sense of process, discovery, and juice they experience in the studio. We will learn to more comfortably and playfully handle the “tools” of language and to become better readers and listeners as well as writers. The class will include short free-writing exercises, time to read and respond to one another’s writing, and work on a longer piece of writing—either a work in progress or one begun here. All levels. Code 07s.

Studio artist, writer, and editor of Studio Potter; ceramic work exhibited nationally; lecturer and writer on the history of ceramics; teaching: Anderson Ranch (CO), Haystack (ME), Peters Valley (NJ).