Three of Our Most Popular Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. Here are three of our most popular classes!

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In 2016 we ran “Y is for Yellow” as a year-long class, and it’s now available as a self-study. By giving it to you all at once, you can pick and choose the lessons that are particularly interesting to you to start, and leave the rest for later (you have forever access!). In this class we will march through the alphabet as a fun way to move through our lessons (“P” is for Picasso! “C” is for Collage!), while tackling the more serious question, “How do you create a body of work?”

As mixed-media artists we are always trying new media and experimenting with new techniques — which is awesome! But what can happen is we don’t take the time to focus long enough on the things we really love so that we can create a cohesive series that is uniquely ours.

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Anita believes that the landscape is a gentle way of exploring the elements that are integral to making meaningful work: line, value, color, shape, edges, composition. She also believes that drawing connects us to our experience with an intimacy not otherwise possible. 

The joyful and fun exercises will include experimental mark making, design studies, grid paintings — all working up to larger paintings. We will work with an small “orchestra” of simple materials to help maintain a loose and more abstract mindset.

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Artist and Illustrator Lewis Rossignol shares his thoughts, techniques and (most importantly) his spirit of experimentation about the intimate practice of working in a personal sketchbook.

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Portrait Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes…. today, Three Portrait Classes!

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Portland artist Betsy Walton shares her process for creating her wonderful, whimsical and thoughtful portraits. Her work is built on symbols that have special meaning to her and she guides us though a process of exploration and discovery. This is a class that is personal but also filled with great acrylic painting techniques.

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Lynn Whipple takes on this traditional subject matter—the human face—from a fresh contemporary angle that will take the “intimidation factor” out of trying to capture a likeness and, like all Lynn’s classes, make it fun and addictive.

In this class you will create dozens and dozens of different types of faces. You will draw, paint and collage, play with line, shape, color and mark and you’ll come away with an approach to keep your art practice fresh and full of new ideas.

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Lewis Rossignol might be best known for his striking and enigmatic portraits. Each one is a multi-layered, mixed media composition that captures the personality of his subject in a very simple and direct way.

About the class he says: “Drawing portraits is the most satisfying type of drawing that I do. However, learning to do portraits can be both challenging and maybe even frustrating if you come at it from the wrong angle or with the wrong mindset. This class will help you to actually enjoy drawing portraits. We’ll work on learning on how to draw what you see in a reference photograph, without ruining the fun by worrying about ‘the rules’.”

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Very Special “Off-Topic” Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes.

Most of our classes tend toward drawing, painting, mixed media and collage, but here are three that offer new opportunities with different materials. I have really enjoyed the break these classes gave me from my normal work.

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If you use already Procreate or would like to, this is opportunity to learn from an artist who uses it as an art tool. Lewis shows us how he integrates it with his analog work seamlessly. No experience needed but a basic understanding of layers is helpful.

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Collage with fiber! Join Mandy Greer for a surprisingly expressive and fun class for anyone new or expert. Work with yarn, fabric, recycled materials and whatever else you can dream up. This is packed with techniques for making fine art, abstract pieces.

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Get a thorough introduction to the rich medium of encaustics. Stephanie Hargrave leads you step-by-step through the process of creating complex, luminous paintings with hot wax and pigment. You’ll get the basic techniques of encaustic under your belt, develop confidence in working with new materials, and walk away with one or more ready-to-hang works.

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Artist Book Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. Here are three classes about making and filling art books.

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Discover the art and tactile pleasure of bookbinding. Bari Zaki introduces you to an accessible technique where you fold, sew, decorate and complete your own handmade book. The organic style of the buttonhole stitch method creates a naturally beautiful object that works well as a sketchbook, photo album or journal.

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This is definitely a quirky class and we hope it will lead you to new discoveries! 

One thing leads to another and in Henrik Drescher’s world that means layering one process upon another to see where it goes. In this class, Henrik takes us from bookmaking with rice paper to animation to a single finished painting. Each step is both an end and a beginning… and all with his insight and anecdotes.

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Discover what a blobimal is! In this six-lesson class I will take you blob hunting. You’ll create four small artist books using a combination of techniques and materials–watercolor, pencil, collage and more. We hope you love it!

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Mixed-Media Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. If you are looking for a fresh approach to your mixed-media work, look at these three classes. Each teacher brings a new set of techniques and helps you develop a personal story and style.

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Julie describes collage as “soothing and mediative and a chance to delve into story,” and in this class she shares three wonderfully inventive and fun collage projects. So gather your scraps and prepare to take your mixed-media work into undiscovered lands!

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This was our fourth class with Lewis and he is definitely one of our most popular teachers! In this class he brings his freedom, imagination and wonderfully unique style to some larger, colorful acrylic paintings. He makes it look easy because it is!

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This class is about finding inspiration and adding meaning to your artwork through literature and poetry! Lendon Noe will show you her methods for creating visual metaphors inspired by her favorite poets using ink, pencil, pens, collage, image transfers and more.

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Drawing Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. Here are three very different drawing classes from three very different teachers!

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Whether you draw realistically, stylistically, or hardly at all, this 21-day workshop will give you the motivation, direction, and inspiration to get your pencil moving.  Each lesson is quick and fun.

 I know that making that first mark can be the hardest part, so we will start with exercises to help you shed your inhibitions, loosen your hand and eyes, and simply have fun filling the blank page. This class is largely based on my books Drawing Lab and The Art of Silliness.

We like Anita Lehmann’s teaching style because she immediately brings you into the heart of her process. Everything is connected in her world and she presents her process in a the same way.  She will help you develop your work to a new level… and she has a great sense of humor!

Drawing is a part of everything Anita does and in this class you will work on slowing down, seeing more deeply and developing confidence. She will demonstrate some fundamental techniques as well as an evocative and personal approach to drawing.

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Robert Lucy‘s classes are a rare combination of easy-to-follow technique, mystery, inspiration, entertainment, and fun. The work in this class is meditative and deep and yet still retains the freedom that we felt as children coloring with crayons. Take this class and you will develop a whole new set of skills!

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Studio Practice Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes.

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With simple materials and a casual, comfortable approach that invites spontaneity, these 2 classes from Cat Bennett class set you up to create and grow as an artist every day. You’ll experiment with mark-making, draw from nature, make portraits, and play with purely imaginative work.

What makes a successful (and fun) art practice? Anita shares seven of the core essentials that help her to be free, focused, energized and prolific in her mixed-media work. This is an art buffet for all!

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My creative life has always been a mish-mash of experimenting, puttering, teaching and making lots of stuff and this yearlong class is about all of that. I’m teaching 36 recorded lessons  that go from inspiration to finished project in a casual “Lab” format from my working studio. Plus we have twice monthly Live Zoom work sessions. Sign up now and you get all the lessons so far this year and all the lessons still to come!

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Three Painting Classes

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes.

Here are three classes that combine solid painting techniques and a lot of personality!

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This may look like just a pet painting class but it is really about having the heart of an artist!

Robert Lucy is an accomplished painter who, by accident, discovered something powerful and deep in the process of painting pets. This is a class about finding that connection and is meant for anyone… especially if you have never even considered painting a dog! Robert is a joy to be with and he takes you through the process in a step-by-step way that is almost fool proof.

This is one of our all-time, most popular classes!

Are you ready to work large and loose with lots freedom and color? Lynn Whipple takes you on a playful and layered approach to painting and drawing that embraces your wild side using acrylics, charcoal and chalk on canvases both small and big!

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Have you have ever had an interest in abstract painting? Would you like to paint with more freedom or feeling? In this class we will explore a variety of mark-making techniques with an emphasis on finding what works for you as an artist. I will demonstrate drawing and painting intuitively, and share a few of my favorite abstract painters to help you understand some of the concepts behind non-representational painting.

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Collage, Collage, Collage!

Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. Here are three classes that have really pushed my collage practice!

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Henrik is one of my favorite illustrators and his way of working is both quirky and wonderfully satisfying to watch. He has this simple process that just keeps building and building. From the description:

Kara takes us on a journey of working very small to very large. She frees us up to make quick decisions which is good for me (Carla) because I tend to get too fussy with my collage. As a prolific children’s book illustrator Kara is skilled at putting thoughts together with color, shape and texture. 

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If you don’t know who Anne is, I urge you to look her up. She is a visionary artist who’s work is celebrated around the world!

This class is unlike any collage class you have seen because Anne works in an almost completely intuitive way. We all want to get into the “flow” when we work and I struggle with trying to get there but Anne pretty much lives there. It is inspirational just to watch her work but she is also a very generous teacher.

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)

Five Printmaking Classes!

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Our 40% off sale continues until August 21st! Many of you have already stocked up on some fun classes… hurray and thank you!

Until the sale ends I will be doing a blog post every day to highlight some of our classes. When I started taking art classes again at 29, I took a printmaking class and monotype printing became my first passion. I loved the surprise of each pull and also the special line and shape quality that you can’t get any other way. I was always held back from pursuing it because of the need for a press, but over the years have learned that expensive tools are not at all necessary!

Here are two sets of classes that bring all the magic and beauty of printmaking using some very basic setups.
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Printmaking by hand! These two classes are full of techniques using all kinds of different materials. Anita is one of our most popular teachers. She explains every step in her precise and thorough way… all without losing any of the magic of discovery AND without the need for a printing press! In the first class Anita walks us through her process of monotypes, and in the second class we explore drypoint etching and collographs. 

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I first discovered the Gelli® Plate about 12 years ago now and it rekindled my love for monotypes especially! I now keep the Gelli® Plate out on one of my work tables and use it all the time! So many of my collage materials come from Gelli® prints and the process itself has led to many discoveries and “inventions” that I use now in other work. I taught three classes: the first two are short ones, just three lessons long, and have been some of our bestsellers; the third one combines three of my passions: monotypes, handmade books and animals!

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Thank you for reading and we hope you find some classes to add to your art life!

Steve and Carla

CLASS CATALOG!
(We are so sorry, but classes aren’t available in the EU or UK at this time.)