Category: Spring Concentration

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Wood Spring Concentration

Wood – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Mark Melonas
Concrete: It’s Hard

This workshop is an exploration of the possibilities, challenges, and beauty of concrete. By using multiple moldmaking methods, mix recipes, and casting techniques, students will gain an understanding of this seductive material. We will create samples of many mix formulas to investigate color, texture, and particle placement. Students will explore modern artisan approaches and combine them to create their own language with concrete. Working backwards and forwards and back again, we will use design skills and problem solving to design objects and the molds used to make them. Possible outcomes include furniture, vessels, and hollow or solid sculptural forms. All levels. 

Designer, artisan, and owner of LUKE WORKS Studio (Baltimore) creating concrete, metal, and wood furniture, sinks, and objects for local and national clients; visiting artist: Virginia Commonwealth University, IYRS School of Technology & Trades (RI), Maryland Institute College of Art; teaching: Baltimore School for the Arts, Peters Valley (NJ), Workshop of Our Own (Baltimore), Arrowmont (TN), Penland.

markmelonas.net |  lukeworks.com | @lukeworks

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Mark Melonas, Loveseat, concrete, weathering steel, black locust, upholstery, 21 x 56 x 21 inches
Mark Melonas, Loveseat, concrete, weathering steel, black locust, upholstery, 21 x 56 x 21 inches
Mark Melonas, Nana Lamp, concrete, pigment, 6 x 7 x 7 inches
Mark Melonas, Nana Lamp, concrete, pigment, 6 x 7 x 7 inches
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Textiles Spring Concentration

Textiles – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Zak Foster
Narrative Quilt-Making

This workshop will focus on the storytelling qualities of quilts. Using a series of narrative prompts designed to draw out personal stories, beginning to advanced students will be guided through the process of making experimental quilts. Instruction will be geared toward hand-sewing techniques such as stitches, appliqué, embroidery, quilting, and finishing (sewing machines will also be available). Other topics will include color relationships, elements of composition, and visual storytelling concepts. We will work with repurposed cloth; thrift shop trips are on the itinerary. A willingness to mess up will be a definite plus. All levels. Upper textiles studio.

Note: This workshop takes place in a third-floor walk-up studio that is made partially accessible with a stair lift. 

Studio artist who draws on southern textile traditions using repurposed fabrics with an approach to design that is intuitive and improvisational; teaching: Tatter Blue Library (NYC), Sawtooth Center (NC), Madeline Island School of the Arts (WI); work featured in New York Times, Vogue, People, Paper, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, High Snobiety, and other publications. 

zakfoster.com | @zakfoster.quilts

Note: Here is a set of videos Zak made demonstrating seven basic hand-sewing techniques. Check them out if you have time. If you need a review during the workshop, Zak will be happy to go over them again.

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Zak Foster, YES MORE PLEASE, repurposed textiles, 45 x 45 inches
Zak Foster, YES MORE PLEASE, repurposed textiles, 45 x 45 inches
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Papermaking Spring Concentration

Papermaking – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Jo Stealey
Exploring Paper as Sculpture

Create small-scale objects or large-scale installations using handmade paper. The workshop will begin with fiber processing for paper pulp, including methods for beating fibers to create specific qualities in the paper: opaque/translucent, low or high shrinkage, thick/thin, delicate/strong, etc. Then we will cover sheet forming, pigmenting pulp, pulp painting, collage, stencils, casting into found molds and cloth molds, joining cast elements, armatures, draping, and other approaches to developing 3-D forms. After three weeks of experimentation, students will use their preferred techniques to create a new body of work. The focus will be on artistic concepts and personal vision for the materials. All levels. 

Studio artist; professor emerita of fibers at University of Missouri-Columbia; solo exhibitions: Windgate Gallery (AR), Cedarhurst Museum (IL), Havana Biennial (Cuba); collections: National Portrait Gallery (DC), University of Arkansas Fort Smith, Lamar Museum (FL), Sioux City Art Center (IA), Spring Art Museum (MO); co-curator and catalog author for the traveling exhibition Rooted, Revived, Reinvented: Basketry in America. 

jostealey.com | @jostealey.art

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Jo Stealey, Dusters, overbeaten abaca and flax, river willow, waxed linen, 36 x 20 x 6 inches
Jo Stealey, Dusters, overbeaten abaca and flax, river willow, waxed linen, 36 x 20 x 6 inches
Jo Stealey, Swept Off Her Feet, overbeaten flax and abaca, reed, forged steel, 60 x 24 x 6 inches
Jo Stealey, Swept Off Her Feet, overbeaten flax and abaca, reed, forged steel, 60 x 24 x 6 inches
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Metals Spring Concentration

Metals – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Adam Whitney
Persuading Metal

Explore the art of metalworking in this immersive workshop. Students will learn fundamental hammering techniques and then advance to creating intricate designs through raising, shaping, chasing, and repoussé. Engaging presentations will delve into holloware’s rich history. Individual guided projects will culminate in personalized pieces that showcase proficiency in metal manipulation. Specific techniques will include angle raising, Dutch raising, crimping, sinking, snarling, soldering, fabrication, and tool making. We will work with a variety of nonferrous metals and, as individual budgets permit, silver. Instruction will include how to protect your body, but students in this labor-intensive workshop will be doing a lot of hammering. This workshop will combine creativity with technique, providing students with a comprehensive skillset in metalcraft and holloware artistry. All levels. Lower metals studio

Studio artist; teaching: Penland, School of Arts & Crafts Santo Domingo (Colombia), Appalachian Center for Crafts (TN), Pocosin Arts NC), Metalwerx (NC); special projects realized for Harvard Art Museum (MA) and Getty Museum (CA); representation Penland Gallery.

aw-metalsmith.com | @awmetalsmith

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Adam Whitney, EVA Glove 001, fine silver, 24k gold gilding, 11-1/4 x 7 x 8-1/2 inches
Adam Whitney, EVA Glove 001, fine silver, 24k gold gilding, 11-1/4 x 7 x 8-1/2 inches
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Iron Spring Concentration

Iron – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Erica Moody
Balancing the Spoon:
Metal Craft and Studio Practice

With utensil making as the framework, students will learn the foundations of mid-sized metalsmithing and will explore how our craft can foster play and awareness of our surroundings. Through demonstrations and experimentation (with optional prompts), students will design and realize their own eating and/or serving utensils, which may be entirely practical or purely sculptural. We will work with raw materials and repurposed utensils, consider individual as well as batch production, collaborate, and discuss balancing life and a craft business. Using mostly brass, copper, and steel, instruction will include cold and hot forming (forging, sanding, cutting, sinking; hand hammering only), cold and hot connections (riveting, wrapping, silver soldering/brazing), finishing (sanding, hand filing/white smithing, texturing, coloring, burnishing), and combining different materials (wood, bone, scrap metal, etc.). The workshop aims to use this nice, long time frame to both upset and balance our practices as we inspire and support each other. All levels. 

Studio artist crafting serving utensils and custom hardware; teaching: Peters Valley (NJ), Haystack (ME), Center for Metal Arts (PA), Pocosin (NC), Center for Furniture Craftsmanship (ME), Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Harvard Graduate School of Design (MA); 2023 Maine Arts Fellowship; short-term residencies: Penland, Haystack. 

ericamoody.com | @ericaemoody

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

 

Erica Moody, Pressed Brass Moon and Ring Utensils, brass, charred maple, 12 inches long
Erica Moody, Pressed Brass Moon and Ring Utensils, brass, charred maple, 12 inches long
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Glass Spring Concentration

Glass – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Aya Oki
Passionate Harmony

Embark on a transformative glassblowing journey at Penland with a focus that goes beyond technique to explore the connection between artist and material. The workshop will start by looking at the properties and behaviors of glass. Basic techniques will be introduced through guided exercises. Then we will move on to blowing, shaping, layering, moldblowing, coldworking, and other techniques. Throughout the session students will learn from their mistakes and engage in a dynamic dialogue with glass, fostering a sense of harmony that will shape their artistic consciousness. We will work to unlock new facets of creativity and personal expression. All levels. 

Studio artist; teaching: St. Paul’s School (NH), California State University San Bernardino, Pilchuck (WA), Tulsa Glassblowing School (OK), Pittsburgh Glass Center (PA), UrbanGlass (NY), The Studio at Corning (NY), Penland; residencies: Creative Glass Center of America (NJ), Murano Residency (Italy), Duncan McClellan Gallery (FL), Residence Together (Sweden), Martha’s Vineyard Glassworks (MA); collections: Museum of American Glass (NJ), Tacoma Museum of Glass (WA), Corning Museum of Glass (NY), Imagine Museum (FL). 

aya-oki.com | @ayaokidoki 

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Aya Oki, Bloom XI, blown glass, 15 x 15 x 15 inches
Aya Oki, Bloom XI, blown glass, 15 x 15 x 15 inches
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Clay Spring Concentration

Clay – Spring Concentration
March 2 – April 25, 2025 (8 Weeks)
Michael Kline
Surfacing

This workshop will explore the possibilities of surface design on clay and its connection to form. Stamping, painting, incising, and scraping stoneware pots will bring layer upon layer of visual interest to the surface. We will also experiment with flashing slips, underglazes, wax resists, and glazes, firing to cone 10 in soda and gas reduction kilns. Numerous exercises will boost mark-making confidence. Forming techniques will include wheel throwing, altering thrown forms, and hump-molded forms. Handmade brushes and clay stamps will bring a unique touch to our marks. The convergence of practice, novel ideas, and refined technical skills will help students develop a signature body of work. We’ll work with stoneware and/or porcelain. All levels. Upper clay studio.

Studio potter; teaching: Anderson Ranch (CO), Haystack (ME), Shadbolt Centre for the Arts (BC), Harvard (MA); collections: Islip Art Museum (NY), The Gregg Museum (NC), University of Tennessee Ewing Art Gallery (TN), San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts (TX); published in Tableware in Clay (Crowood Press), The Art of Contemporary Pottery and Functional Pottery (Krause Publications), Mastering the Potter’s Wheel (Voyageur Press); former Penland resident artist.

klinepottery.com | @klineola

Regular enrollment begins November 15.

Michael Kline, Pitcher, wheelthrown stoneware; hand-painted with wax resist, soda glazed, 11 x 7 x 7 inches
Michael Kline, Pitcher, wheelthrown stoneware; hand-painted with wax resist, soda glazed, 11 x 7 x 7 inches