share skills, develop your current practice
or
try something completely different in good company


 

open life drawing

poster

Open studio (non-instructed) life drawing sessions are on-going Sunday mornings from 10:00 to 1:00, September till May.

Contact Sally Warren at
(902) 531-2161 or email

To be kept up-to-date ask to be added to the "Life" email list.

about access art

photoSally Warren created Access Art in 2008 to provide another framework for the sharing of ideas, skills and techniques amongst the many creative people on the South Shore.  Everyone from seasoned professionals to novice artists are welcome to join us. Develop your current practice or try something completely new - in good company.  From open, life drawing sessions to workshops in drawing, painting, printmaking and a myriad of other media, there are so many opportunities to get involved. Groups are small.  Fees are modest. Registration for all workshops is required. If you have a technique or skill to share - please contact us about leading a workshop!

workshop information and registration

    2010 spring season


January 30    Intro to Etching   with   Ed Porter

February 20    Chinese Brush Painting   with   Ann Hart

March 6    Image Transfer   with   Beverley McInnes

March 27    Intro to Papermaking   with   Sally Warren

April 24    Watercolour Textures   with   Twila Robar-DeCoste

May 29    Polymer Clay makes an impression   with   Kate Church


Pre-Registration Required !!

* spaces are limited *

see below for individual workshop details and fees

Times:

10 am to 4 pm with a 1-hour lunch break

Location:

The art room at the Mahone Bay Centre 45 School Street, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia

Materials:

It is not necessary to buy materials for any of our workshops. (See “what is supplied boxes” in workshop details below).

Fees:

We strive to keep prices accessible. The $75 fee covers leaders honoraria, room rentals and supplies.

To register:

email or phone – 902-531-2161

ETCHING AN INTRODUCTION (PLATE TO PRINT)
Saturday January 30

with ED PORTER     Fee: $75

This beginner friendly workshop will introduce participants to the process of chemically etching an image into a zinc alloy plate. We will learn about applying ink to the metal matrix and then successfully printing the image onto rag paper using the etching press. A number of ways in which the initial image can be developed will be discussed and each participant will be able to carry their idea further and do more printing from their matrix. During the day we will take a look at reproductions of relevant historical and contemporary etchings by prominent artists. After this introductory experience the printmaking options for making multiples of the same image or making many variations related to an underlying visual thematic image will become more clearly evident.

What to bring: 

  • notebook or sketchbook

What will be supplied:

  • 41/2” x 6” zinc plate, , .
  • rag paper for printing
  • nitrile gloves
  • inks and other shop supplies

ED PORTER

Ed Porter has been an artist, printmaker and teacher of fine arts since 1961. In 2001 he retired from the faculty of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design where printmaking was his primary teaching for 30 years. Living and working from his home studio on Heckman's island, and sailing the coast of Nova Scotia, he draws his ideas and imagery from the richness and drama of the shoreline environment. His work is exhibited widely in Canada and the U.S.

top

SUMI-E (CHINESE BRUSH PAINTING)
Saturday February 20

with ANN HART     Fee: $75

This ancient art form is often studied by painters, potters and designers to enhance their technical ability and observational skills. The workshop will explore brush technique and painting style as well as Asian philosophy, awareness of our immediate environment, the earth’s natural cycles and inner vision. Using the brush to represent the forces of nature is the primary lesson. This way of seeing and creating beauty, in gaining ancient artistic knowledge, enhances our Western cultural balance and adds a universal skill to our art technique.

What to bring: 

  • 2 small plates or plates with 3 sections (white glass is best - ink may stain)
  • paper towels or rags and any rice papers you may have
  • a Japanese brush with 1.5 to 2 inch long bristle (we can supply one if needed, please let us know at registration).

What will be supplied:

  • newsprint and rice paper for finer work
  • sumi ink
  • underpad felts

LEADER: ANN HART

Ann has a BA in Education, English, Art, Drama, from University of Southwest Missouri. She has spent 35 years in the study of brush painting with teachers in the US and Canada. She has exhibited her work widely and has taught sumi-e and watercolor in Nova Scotia, throughout the US and in Venezuela. She lives in Cape Breton.

top

IMAGE TRANSFER
Saturday March 6

with BEVERLEY MCINNES     Fee: $75

Explore many ways to transfer images, add visual effects, texture and variety to your own work. This exciting day, is for those interested in multi media regardless of your medium, fibre, quilting, working with paper, journals, collage, photography and jeweller. The workshop presents an overview of a multitude of innovative transfer techniques with demos, and plenty of hands-on time to experiment with transfers using gel medium, disperse dyeing, markers, crayons, and blender pens. We will work with photographs, print from nature and use collage. It’s a workshop full of ideas and discovery for both the experienced artist and the novice.

What to bring: 

  • A piece of your own work, couple of images and photographs you would like to incorporate into your own work
  • A notebook

What will be supplied:

  • All materials
  • an extensive booklet detailing the many techniques reviewed in the workshop

LEADER: BEVERLEY MCINNES

Beverley is a multi-media and fibre artist who teaches and exhibits widely. She is a juried Master Artisan of Nova Scotia Designer Crafts Council, Board Member of Society of Layerists in Multi Media, a member of VANS and many international organisations. Her work may be found in many collections.

top

PAPER MAKING ~ AN INTRODUCTION
Saturday March 27

with SALLY WARREN     Fee: $75

This will be a dampish workshop in which you will get a glimpse of the history of papermaking and lots of practice with pulp, molds, and decals as well as all the information you need to continue making paper in your own studio or at home with the kids. In just a few hours make a collection of lovely papers to use in artwork, as part of a collage, as a support for printmaking, as part of a handmade book, as notepaper or simply as a thing of beauty in its own right. We will experiment with the addition of colour and natural elements and try pulp painting and anything else that comes up.

What to bring: 

  • dried flower petals, grasses, or other fine dried natural materials (ie parsley!)
  • an old sheet and old towels if you have them

What will be supplied:

  • all materials including paper pulp, molds, decals,some dried materials and felts

LEADER: SALLY WARREN

Sally graduated from the Ontario College of Art and Design in Material Arts. Her first career was as a fibre artist and teacher, then twenty years as a Museum and Gallery educator and most recently a printmaker and sculptor. She is a member of Peer Gallery in Lunenburg and coordinates "Access Art" in Mahone Bay.

top

WATERCOLOUR TEXTURES
Saturday April 24

with : TWILA ROBAR-DECOSTE     Fee: $75

Suitable for beginners as well as experienced watercolour artists wishing to develop their practice, this workshop will explore a variety of textural techniques. There are numerous ways to enliven your work from spattering, spritzing, and sponging to adding other materials. Participants will work on several projects to explore unusual textural qualities that add depth and interest to floral, landscape and seascape paintings. Demonstrations will include techniques for textural effects in rocks and surf, weathered wood, florals and atmosphreic effects in landscapes.

What to bring:  (if you have them)

  • Basic watercolour supplies if you have them (A basic palette of paint as well a watercolour brush can be supplied for new watercolour painters.)
  • Some old slightly stiff brushes will also be an asset

What will be supplied:

  • 140 lb Arches watercolour paper
  • sponges and spritzers, moppers and glitzers
  • other specialize materials

LEADER: TWILA ROBAR-DECOSTE

Twila works in watercolour, acrylics and oils, and has been teaching art for 22 years and holds degrees in Science and Education from Acadia University. She has illustrated 18 books and her work is found in private and corporate collections across North America and Europe. In 2009 she was elected to the Society of Canadian Artists (SCA)

top

POLYMER CLAY MAKES AN IMPRESSION
Saturday May 29

with : KATE CHURCH     Fee: $75

This workshop combines two seemingly unrelated processes (printmaking and sculpture) in a technique that Kate has developed to lend new dimension to her recent jewelry and dollmaking work. Participants will design and cut a small stencil using exacto knives and foam sheeting and then use these stencils to print and stamp into polymer clay. We will experiment with interesting colour treatments to enhance and alter the surface appearance of the polymer and the end result will be a somewhat flexible and very workable tilepiece that you can then adapt and use in whatever way you can imagine. The class will also learn how to use linoleum cut with polymer clay. Working with these materials will suggest many applications.

What to bring: 

  • Pencil, sketches/ideas for a pattern design approx 2”x3”
  • Sketchbook or paper.

What will be supplied:

  • Cutting knives and foam for stencil
  • Small linoleum piece and use of lino cutter
  • Polymer clay, colourants, ink and other supplies.

LEADER: KATE CHURCH

Kate is a multi media artist who has practiced and lived for her art for over thirty years. The line and gesture of her sculptural work draws on a continuing study of the human figure. Drawing, painting and sculpting are a major part of Kate's work life. Beautiful fabrics in unusual combinations reflect a background in textile design, her original study at Rhode Island School of Design. Kate is a member of the Institute of American Doll Artists. Learn more about Kate here

top

 

photos...

ETCHING workshop, '10

porter workshop
(click on picture for gallery)

Sumi-E workshop, '10

sumi-e workshop
(click on picture for gallery)

Image Transfer workshop, '10

Image Transfer workshop
(click on picture for gallery)

COLLOGRAPHY workshop, '09

collography workshop
(click on picture for gallery)

LIFE workshop, '08

workshop photo
(click on picture for gallery)

WATERCOLOUR workshop, '09

watercolour workshop
(click on picture for gallery)

Mylar workshop, '09

acrylic workshop
(click on picture for gallery)