During our first summer session, sculptor and paper wizard Imin Yeh taught a beautiful workshop on designing and building forms from sheets of paper, with an emphasis on representing familiar objects. During her stay at Penland, Imin quietly placed several of her astonishing trompe l’oeil pieces in places where only a few people were likely to notice them.
This phone jack, outlet, and charger were on a wall in the paper studio, and were hard to spot even when looking for them. Yes, these are made entirely from cut and folded paper. The little balls above and below each piece are the heads of the push pins that are holding them in place. These pieces are part of an ongoing series called “Paper Power.”
We don’t know if anyone tried to plug anything into them.
If you are beginning to emerge from the past fourteen months looking for an extended time of creative engagement, we are happy to suggest Penland’s fall Concentration, which is a six-week session running October 3 – November 12 with workshops in clay, glass, steel sculpture, paper making, jewelry, shoe making, and wood. Along with learning and community, you will be treated to the transformation of the deciduous trees often referred to, prosaically, as “fall colors.” Here in the mountains, this annual exhibition stretches up the inclines to give you an exceptional view of its quilt-like patterns. Which is to say, it’s nice here in the fall.
Participation in Penland fall workshops will require proof of vaccination, and in exchange for this, you will enjoy pre-pandemic operating procedures. Shared housing will be available, we’ll gather inside for meals and slideshows, no masks required.
All workshops in this session welcome students of all skill levels. We’d love to have you join us. Here’s the lineup; complete workshop details are here.
Ben Carter, Swirl Pitcher, cone 03 earthenware, slips, underglaze, glaze, 12 x 7 x 6 inches
Clay: Low-Fire is Cooler with Ben Carter
Explore the rich history of low-fire ceramics with the goal of integrating surface design with handbuilt and wheelthrown pottery.
Jeremy Bert and Jen Elek, Thunder Mounds, glass, neon, transformer, QTO cable, switch, 22 x 8 x 8 inches, 11 x 18 x 18 inches
Glass: Illumination Projects in Glass with Jeremy Bert and Jen Elek
While practicing the foundations of glassblowing, create glass sculpture and then incorporate neon, LED, incandescent, and candle light.
Shawn HibmaCronan, The Freedom Press, steel, bamboo, oak, cork, rope, paper, ink, 7 x 8 x 9 feet
Iron: Steel Sculpture: Set in Motion with Shawn HibmaCronan
Make sculptures that move, evolve, and interact with the environment while learning numerous steel fabrication and assembly techniques.
Radha Pandey, Naturally-Dyed Islamicate Papers, paper, dyes, 4 x 1 each
Papermaking: Paper Through Time with Radha Pandey
Trace the history and geographical spread of papermaking by learning techniques from Nepal, Polynesia, Korea, Japan, India and Europe.
Laura Wood, Space Between: Green + Green (brooch), enamel on copper, sterling silver, uvarovite, 3-3/4 x 2-1/4 x 1/4 inches
Metals: Foundations in Form and Color with Laura Wood
Learn techniques that will help you develop a wide range of sculptural jewelry components, and then bring them together as brooches, earrings, pendants, or other forms.
Amara Hark-Weber, Black Boots, calf and salmon leather, rubber heel cap, metal shank, size 41
Textiles: Blue Suede and Beyond: Introduction to Lasted Footwear with Amara Hark-Weber
Design and build your own handmade shoes using four different construction techniques and many kinds of leather.
Stay tuned: one-week fall workshops in books, clay, drawing, collage, stained glass, blacksmithing, jewelry, photography, printmaking, and musical instruments will be posted on July 9.
Needless to say, we decided not to do this in 2021.
We normally kick off spring at Penlandwith an open house that brings 500-600 visitors to campus for hands-on activities in our studios. We couldn’t do that this year, but we hated to let the spring go by without offering some creative fun to the community.
So we arranged for five local makers to demonstrate activities that can be done at home with easily available materials, and we turned those demonstrations into step-by-step videos. We posted these during the month of March, and they will be available indefinitely, not just for our local community, but for anyone with an internet connection. All of these activities are suitable for children–with varying degrees of supervision needed.
