Early Bird Dates: Wednesday, 2/26-Saturday, 2/29. Use coupon code: EarlyBird
Workshops allow you to kick-start your creativity or learn a specialized skill in a convenient, shorter format. Taught by professional artists, workshops are available for students at all levels of experience and are kept small to ensure that individual attention can be given to everyone. Students learn in a supportive environment and are encouraged to fully explore their creativity and strive for excellence.
Book Arts
The Secret Belgian Binding
Adrienne Gale
Created in the 1980s by Belgian bookbinder Anne Goy (who calls it the Criss-Cross Binding), this non-adhesive binding has a dynamic woven pattern of thread across the covers and spine. It has the appearance of a Japanese stab binding but opens flat, making it perfect as a journal or sketchbook. Students will learn a simple binding for the text block and then attach the covers with a secondary sewing. The “secret” is that from the outside it is impossible to tell how the book is held together. The final product will be hard-cover with decorative paper, 4.25″ w x 6.5″ h.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Personal bookbinding tools
Supplies provided: n/a
Saturday, 10:00 am–4:00 pm, 3/21
1 session: $90.00; Early Bird price: $85.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
From Bookshelves to Catwalk: Wearable Papercuts and Artist Books
Béatrice Coron
Create a wearable artist papercut book. Students will be able to express creative ideas based on form, content, and materials, and adapt their ideas to an artist book to be worn. Using historical traditions, we will take a modern and exciting approach to learn the design principles and methods needed to explore the creative and conceptual realm of papercutting design. Students will create paper images and paper tools, explore different materials to be cut, and discover the incredible variety of the contemporary papercutting scene and the many possible applications of this art form to other domains. Tips, tricks, and resources will be provided.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Stapler, cutting mat, X-Acto knife and blades (11 or equivalent), tracing paper, scotch tape, Images: old magazine, photocopies, or inspirational images (photo/art images or your own work), Optional: any found materials to experiment cutting (plastic, leather, rubber, textiles), three ring binders and clear sheet protectors to keep notes and small papercuttings.
Supplies provided: n/a
Saturday, 10:00 am–4:00 pm, 4/25
1 session: $90.00; Early Bird price: $85.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Drawing + Painting
Abstracting the Figure in Painting
Shilo Ratner
Ever look at the works of Bay Area figurative artists such as Richard Diebenkorn and wonder how they did that? Students will be introduced to the figurative painting methods of artists including Elmer Nelson Bischoff and Joan Brown. Through individual discussions and quick painting exercises, students will apply the varied conceptual processes of figure painting and broaden their knowledge of the Bay Area figurative painting technique.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: (5) canvas panels, sizes 16″ x 20” or larger or (5) 20″ stretched canvases or larger
(Please bring one canvas to class each week)
Disposable palette
Palette knife
Painting rag
Acrylic paints bold with (*) are required for class.
*Alizarin crimson
*Cadmium red light
*Cadmium yellow
*Ivory black (8 oz tube)
*Naphthol red or cadmium red
*Titanium white (8 oz tube)
*Ultramarine blue
*Yellow ochre
Burnt sienna
Burnt umber
Permanent green light
Phthalo blue
Phthalo green or viridian
Raw umber
Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 am–3:30 pm, 4/4–4/5
2 sessions: $130.00; Early Bird price: $123.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Abstract Painting: Bridge to the Imagination
Shilo Ratner
Jump-start your creative practice. Explore abstraction in painting through color theory, color mixing, brush techniques, paint handling, layering, and composition. Using condensed discussions and demonstrations, the focus will be on understanding form through simplified practical exercises. Topics of focus include selecting imagery and exploring compositions to develop your creative voice. This workshop is a jump-start to any creative painting practices and will have you energized.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: 5-10 brushes, various brush sizes, 2- or 3- three pack
Canvas Panels 18″x 24” or larger (6 canvases total).
Acrylic Paints with (*) are required for class.
* Titanium White 8oz
* Ivory black (8oz tube)
* Cadmium Yellow
* Yellow Ochre
* Ultramarine Blue
* Alizarin Crimson
Napthol Red or Cadmium Red
Thalo Blue
Permanent Green Light
Thalo Green or Viridian
Burnt Sienna
Burnt Umber
Raw Umber
Kitchen gloves
Disposable palette
Palette
Palette knife for mixing paint
Painting Rag
Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 am–3:30 pm, 6/6–6/7
2 sessions: $150.00; Early Bird price: $142.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Drawing + Painting: Intermediate + Advanced
The Portrait in Pastel
Eric March
A preferred medium of Degas and Cassatt, pastels combine the direct touch of drawing with the sensuous color of paint. Learn how to block in an underdrawing of a head and work up a richly colored rendering of skin tone, facial features, and hair, all without touching a brush. Class will cover layering, color mixing, and blending of pastels.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Vine charcoal (medium or soft)
Nitram charcoal shaper (sanding pad for sharpening Nupastel or Vine Charcoal, optional)
General’s Charcoal Pencils (HB & 2B, optional)
Razor blade (for sharpening pencils and chalks, optional)
Charcoal/Pastel Paper,2–4 sheets
You need a paper that has a textured surface that will hold the pastel. Some recommended options:
Art Spectrum Colourfix Pastel Paper (this is my preferred paper but is expensive)
Canson Mi-Teintes pastel/charcoal paper. Middle-value blue, grey, or brown
Canson Ingres Laid paper
Golden Pastel Ground applied to cold-press watercolor paper
Pastel:
Nupastel set of 24 (or set of 36; more colors can give you a broader palette). Nupastels are a fairly hard pastel and are helpful for getting sharp edges but can also be used for blending.
The 24 set lacks some good darks—you can supplement the 24 set with individual sticks from the art store. I suggest getting an additional dark brown, dark blue/purple, dark green, and dark red.
If you already have a set of pastels (dry chalk pastels, NOT oil pastels) use them. Other “soft” pastel options include sets of Rembrandt, Sennelier, or other brands. Soft pastels are lovely and give you a more buttery stroke.
Drawing :
Your board should be larger than your paper size (so 20” x 26” if you are using a full sheet of the Canson paper). Often just going to a lumberyard and getting a piece of 1/8” Masonite cut down to size is the best and cheapest way to get one. (They also sell drawing boards in art stores that come equipped with handle holes and built-in clips that can make it hard to use the board! A simple flat piece of Masonite is better.) You can also look into using 1⁄2” foam core or “gator board” as a lightweight alternative to Masonite. Some drawing boards are available at CAW, but they often have dried paint on them, which makes them not great as a drawing surface.
Two Large 2″ Black Paper Clamps (for clipping paper to board)
Kneaded eraser and/or white “click”/mechanical/retractable eraser
Optional:
Straight, thin knitting needle or stick (for measuring)
Pastel pencils – these come in a variety of colors and can be useful for detail work. Suggested colors: gray, brown, white, light gray–blue, light yellow/beige
Other Suggested Materials:
Krylon Crystal Clear Acrylic Coating or Sennelier Delacroix Spray Fixative for Pencils and Charcoal (for fixing pastel drawings at home to protect them)
Glassine (for covering drawings in storage.) Glassine is like tracing paper and can be bought in rolls. You can also buy a pad of tracing paper and use that as long as it’s acid-free.)
Portfolio for transporting paper and drawings (do not roll your drawings!)
Sketchbook
Prerequisite: Figure drawing recommended
Saturdays, 1:30 pm–4:30 pm, 4/25–5/2
2 sessions: $90.00; Early Bird price: $85.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Fiber
Needle Felting Introduction
Nette Compton
Quickly transform raw wool into 3-D fuzzy shapes, through the magic of a special needle and some creative vision. Students will learn the basics of needle felting techniques, including shaping, color blending, and uses for your creations. Head home with a small completed project and a larger project in progress, along with felting needles and wool to continue work at home.
Suggested ages: 18+
Saturday, 9:30 am–12:00 pm, 3/21
1 session: $37.50; Early Bird price: $35.63 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Shirret Shirret – Textile Luxury with Wild Crochet Stitches
Lexa McCrady
Learn how to transform old clothing into “magic” carpets. Shirret uses a special tapestry hook and strong cord to join gathered fabric strips with hidden crochet stitches. Enjoy the rhythm of crochet as rows of color build into bright rugs, mats, hats, coffee cozies, sculptural, and bowl forms. Shirret is a cross between felting, hooking, quilting, and crochet.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Fabric-cutting scissors. Smaller clipping scissors. Old clothes and sewing scraps of all types. Note: medium weight, medium weave fabrics work best for beginners; no sheets or blue jeans yet. If you already have weaver’s warp or string, bring that, but don’t buy any. Rug cord and rug needle will be available to use or purchase.
Prerequisite: Participants should know how to make quick and fluent chain and double crochet stitches. Learn from youtube and practice before workshop.
Saturdays, 10:00 am–2:00 pm, 3/21–4/4
3 sessions: $180.00; Early Bird price: $171.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Fiber: Intermediate + Advanced
Needle Felting Animals and Forms
Nette Compton
Dive into greater detail creating needle-felted creatures, ornaments, and objects. Basic information including shaping and form work, wire apertures, finishing and assembly will be followed by how to create a complex figure from start to finish, with work in between classes to result in a completed project by the end of class.
Suggested ages: 14+
Prerequisite: Needle Felting Introduction or some previous experience with felting/fiber.
Saturdays, 10:00 am–2:00 pm, 3/28–4/4
2 sessions: $120.00; Early Bird price: $114.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Photography
Get Closer
Lucy McClure
Explore texture, details, and all the little nuances that make a picture unique. Photograph objects, people, and other items up close.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Any camera or cell phone will work. (Bring a macro lens if you have one.)
Saturday, 1:00 pm–3:00 pm, 4/4
1 session: $45.00; Early Bird price: $42.75 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
The Magic of Shadows and Silhouettes
Harold Shapiro
Create dynamic compositions using shadows and silhouettes.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Any cameras or cell phones
Saturday, 9:30 am–11:30 am, 4/18
1 session: $30.00; Early Bird price: $28.50 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
The Confluence of Architecture and Street Photography: A Walking Tour and Photographic Survey of Yale Architecture
Graham Hebel
Begin with a talk and slideshow at the CAW photography studio and then set out on a photo walk around th Yale University campus. Topics of the lecture will include architectural photography and street photography then explore the art making possibilities that exist at the confluence of these two genres of photography. The majority of this workshop will be a walking tour of important architecture in New Haven.
Suggested ages: 18+
Prerequisite: Recommended but not required: A basic understanding of your own camera’s operation and basic knowledge of photographic fundamentals will ensure that you are able to make the most of this workshop.
Saturday, 9:30 am–12:30 pm, 4/25
1 session: $45.00; Early Bird price: $42.75 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
DIY Photo Hacks
Melanie Stengel
Can a rubber band take your creative photography to a new level? The answer is yes. Some DIYs are practical, some provide special effects, all can help you out in a pinch. Use items that are lying around the house and others that can be found with a trip to the dollar store. All are cheap and easy, and will unleash your creativity.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Any cameras or cell phones
Saturday, 9:30 am–12:30 pm, 5/2
1 session: $45.00; Early Bird price: $42.75 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Pottery
Wood Fired Pottery at the Youngberg Barn
Trevor Youngberg
Throw or hand-build pottery to be fired in a Pyranha-gama anagama kiln. Students will have access to a bank of clay and all work made will be eligible to be fired in the June firing of the Pyranha-gama anagam kiln. Students are welcome, but not required, to participate in the activities that surround the process of wood-firing. These activities will happen at times other than the workshop weekend. These activities include splitting and stacking firewood, preparing the kiln and site to be loaded with glaze wares, glazing, wadding and loading wares into the kiln, firing the kiln throughout the four-day process of bringing the kiln to peak temperature/atmosphere, clean up of kiln site and unloading of the fired wares. The anagama kiln yields unique surface effects and colors on fired clay. The process is ancient, a carryover from medieval times in Asia. The Japanese popularized the originally Korean kiln design through a collaborative effort between tea masters as the designers and peasant potters who made and fired the vessels. This unique style of firing is arguably the most labor intensive form of firing ceramics wares. For those who are drawn to this method, anagama firing offers an alternative approach to working with both clay and a community of creatives.
Schedule as follows:
Friday, May 15 fromfrom 5–7:30 pm, potluck meet and greet followed by a facilities tour, slideshow, and demonstration.
Saturday, May 16 from 10 am– 4 pm, Demonstration and teacher assistance for studio session.
Sunday, May 17 from 12–4 pm, Demonstrations, critiques, and studio time to complete projects.
Weekend of June23–27: Kiln will be fired. Students are welcome to help with the firing. Details will be given during the workshop.
Suggested ages: 18+
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, see description–, 5/15–5/17
3 sessions: TBD; Early Bird price: #VALUE! (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Making Ceramic Bells
Penelope Van Grinsven
Drawing inspiration from historic Chinese bronze bells, wheel-thrown and altered forms will be capped with slabs to create bells that rattle and sound when struck with a mallet. Techniques for building up surface design will be explored through the use of plaster stamps and separately attached slip cast components. The relationship of sound, look, and feel will all be explored in these objects.
Suggested ages: 18+
Saturday, 9:00 am–5:00 pm, 6/6
1 session: $120.00; Early Bird price: $114.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Pottery Sampler
Michael Bradford
Consider a one-day sampler to find out what pottery is all about without committing to a whole term. You will be introduced to the studio and briefed on how to use our equipment, then dive in for some hands-on time with the potter’s wheel and a lump of clay. We provide the tools—just show up with an open mind and be ready to play!
Suggested ages: 18+
Saturday, 9:30 am–12:00 pm, 6/20
1 session: $37.50; Early Bird price: $35.63 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Printmaking
Open Printmaking Week
Liz Pagano
Print all week in a monitored setting with basic materials for intaglio, relief, silkscreen, and paper lithography. Use one of four etching presses, the largest being 36″ x 60,” and equipment such as a light exposure unit, light box, plate cutter, and hot plate, as well as a separate room for printing editions.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: New Students: CAW supplies inks, solvents, oils, acid, hand cleaner, etc. If you have printmaking supplies or paper, bring them to class. Students will buy paper, plates, and tools as needed. Continuing Students: Bring a project that you’re working on and any materials/tools that you own.
Prerequisite: Printmaking experience and the ability to work independently and safely in a print studio. Pre Approval from department head required.
Monday-Friday, 9:30 am–2:30 pm, 6/22–6/26
5 sessions: $375.00; Early Bird price: $356.25 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Sculpture
Building and Experimenting with LED Light
David Flynn
Discover how volts, amps, ohms, and wattage apply to LED lights and electricity culminating in the building of an LED bulb that students can take home and screw into a light socket.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: LED bulb kit purchased at registration
Saturday, 1:00 pm–5:00 pm, 3/21
1 session: $60.00; Early Bird price: $57.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Mosaic Jewelry
Beth Klingher
Learn to make your own individually designed mosaic necklace using a variety of materials including vibrant handmade glass tiles, gold and metallic tiles, and natural stones. Students will learn how to cut these materials into micro-mosaics and adhere them to a silver-plated pendant bezel. The result will be a unique necklace, along with having the knowledge and skills to continue to make more beautiful jewelry. All materials provided.
Suggested ages: 18+
Sunday, 1:00 pm–5:00 pm, 3/29
1 session: $60.00; Early Bird price: $57.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
The Wonderful World of Epoxy Clay
David Millen
Explore the multitude of uses of the amazing 2-part epoxy clay which is easy to use, safe, self-hardening, non-shrinking, weatherproof, and permanent. Each student will create a small epoxy figure using an armature made in class. Workshop will take place at the instructor’s home workshop and gardens.
Suggested ages: 18+
Saturday, 10:00 am–3:00 pm, 4/25
1 session: $75.00; Early Bird price: $71.25 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Sculpture: Intermediate + Advanced
Sculpture and LED Light
David Flynn
Create paper sculptures illuminated wirelessly with LED lights using mat boards, glue guns, and conduction paint.
Suggested ages: 18+
Supplies: Mat board (your choice of color), mat knife, and glue gun
Saturday, 1:00 pm–5:00 pm, 5/16
1 session: $60.00; Early Bird price: $57.00 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)
Young People
Make a Scarf for Mother’s Day
Gul Rukh Selim
Make mom a scarf for Mother’s Day. Bring your own silk or cotton (fabric or scarf) and paint a bright floral or abstract painting with fabric paint. The fabric must be silk or soft, light weight cotton, suitable for a scarf. (Synthetics will not work.) Alternatively, you may choose fabric from our collection.
Suggested ages: 6-12
Supplies: none
Sunday, 12:00 pm–1:30 pm, 5/10
1 session: $22.50; Early Bird price: $21.38 (Discount available until 2/29/2020)