Paint-pouring on canvas

Last Friday may go down in history as the messiest day of class at Carriage House Arts and Crafts. This group of kids was so terrific that I decided to break out the acrylic paints, which the kids stirred and diluted and then they did some really fun paint-pouring on canvas.

Slime

For the last day of camp last week, I caved. I finally let the kids convince me to make slime. We made a simple translucent glitter slime, and I must admit the process was pretty fun. 

Cubist head sculptures

The art of Pablo Picasso inspired these cubist face sculptures that the kids made in art camp this week.

The cutest candlemakers.

The cutest candlemakers. The kids love mixing craft with art, and in the summer camps that I hold here at Carriage House Arts and Crafts, we have time for both.

Esprit de camp!

Esprit de camp! The kids love taking lunch breaks in our nearby park.

Kids collage, inspired by contemporary art

Not only did the kids have fun with the collage project inspired by the work of Laura Blythman, but it is an amazing way to use up small scraps of painted paper! They had so much fun making the larger ones they used the last 20 minutes of class to make ornament-size collages, too.

Sonia Delaunay inspires

Sonia Delaunay inspires the kids, who make these gorgeous abstract paintings on canvas board.

Art Camp Soap-Making

Carriage House Summer Art Camp Day 3: This week the kids are spending a fair amount of time in the kitchen. Today’s soap-making session was a big hit. It prompted the kids to ask “Can we make soap again tomorrow?!“

Art Camp Collage Blocks

Serious? Silly? Or seriously silly? Carriage House Arts and Crafts collage blocks are already a tradition.

Collaborative Printmaking Workshop at the Arlington Arts Center

What FUN my Collaborative Printmaking Workshop at the Arlington Arts Center was. Each participant made one or more rubber stamps and then we shared them to make beautiful pages of collaborative printing.

Sumi ink drawing in the park

Carriage House Summer Art Camp, Day Two: sumi ink drawing of trees and leaves in the park after lunch.

Mixed media marvels inspired by Roy Lichtenstein

Carriage House Summer Art Camp Day 1: I love these mixed media marvels. The kids combined collage and printmaking, very loosely inspired by the pop art still lives of Roy Lichtenstein.

Candle-making

Carriage House Summer Art Camp Day 1: happy candlemakers.

Summer Camps update

Here's an update on Carriage House Summer Mixed Media Art Camps 2018. There are not many spots left, but here they are:

JUNE 11-15 (5 spots left)

JUNE 25-29 (3 spots left)

JULY 24-27 (2 spots left)

The details are:

For ages 5-11

Class starts at 9:30AM and pick up time is 1:00PM (includes time for snack and lunch)

Art instruction will involve a wide variety of techniques and materials -- large and small projects, 3D and drawing/painting, collage and much more. We'll be inspired by important artists of the past, by ancient art, and by contemporary artists, too.

Bring a snack, drink and lunch. Weather permitting we will take a break around the corner at Volta Park. The cost of one week-long session is $200. All supplies included. Payment is due in full at the time of registration. There are no camp make-ups or refunds for absences.

Please let me know if you'd like to sign up your kids for any of these.

I will be doing my usual fun variety of types of projects--very mixed media--but I want to have an extra-special project each week. So far I have thought of:

Polymer clay pendants

Patterned and painted colorful clay pendants

Soap-making 

small glycerine soap in molds, with either flowers or tiny toys embedded in them

Decoupage

like collage, but on the underside of clear glass plates, creating a wonderful useable keepsake (no dishwasher, though)

Pirate Printing 

printing t-shirts and bags using public utility covers in Georgetown sidewalks

(https://www.boredpanda.com/pirate-printers-manhole-covers-raubdruckerin)

Carriage House Art Camps featured in Fred Tricycle

How great to get a mention in Red Tricycle's feature on DC-area art camps for kids this summer:

http://redtri.com/dc/summer-art-camps

Enzo Fan Club

A shot from the Thursday meeting of the Enzo Fan Club (also known as After School Art Class).

Carriage House in the Spring

Here's an updated photo of my Carriage House classroom/studio, taken today. Spring has sprung!

Summer Camps and a Mother's Day workshop for kids

It's finally feeling like summer. And speaking of summer, I will be offering Summer Art Camps for the following dates:

JUNE 11-15

JUNE 18-22

JUNE 25-29

JULY 9 - 13

JULY 23-27 (2 spots left)

JULY 30 - AUG 3

The details are:

For ages 5-11

Class starts at 9:30AM and pick up time is 1:00PM (includes time for snack and lunch)

Art instruction will involve a wide variety of techniques and materials -- large and small projects, 3D and drawing/painting, collage and much more. We'll be inspired by important artists of the past, by ancient art, and by contemporary artists, too.

Bring a snack, drink and lunch. Weather permitting we will take a break around the corner at Volta Park. The cost of one week-long session is $200. All supplies included. Payment is due in full at the time of registration. There are no camp make-ups or refunds for absences.

Please let me know if you'd like to sign up your kids for any of these.

I will be doing my usual fun variety of types of projects--very mixed media--but I want to have an extra-special project each week. So far I have thought of:

Polymer clay pendants

Patterned and painted colorful clay pendants

Soap-making 

small glycerine soap in molds, with either flowers or tiny toys embedded in them

Decoupage

like collage, but on the underside of clear glass plates, creating a wonderful useable keepsake (no dishwasher, though)

Pirate Printing 

printing t-shirts and bags using public utility covers in Georgetown sidewalks

(https://www.boredpanda.com/pirate-printers-manhole-covers-raubdruckerin)

Just a reminder, too, that I have a fun and really beautiful project in mind for my Mother's Day workshop, too:

MAY 12 (Saturday)  -- 3 spots left

MOTHER'S DAY WORKSHOP FOR KIDS

10AM-noon

$40, all supplies included

Ages 6-11

I don't want to give away the surprise, but the kids will take home a ready-to-display piece of art that I

think will make your Mother's Day.

Painted paper collage blooms

I love ❤️ love these painted paper blooms made in tonight's adult Carriage House workshop. 

Mixed media/photomontages

The kids had such a blast making these mixed media/photomontage works inspired by the art of Anke Schofield. There was great hilarity in the studio last week as we imagined what weird and wonderful scenes they could create and then when I took the photos and the kids struck the desired kooky poses.

Cutest cactus crew ever

Cutest cactus crew ever. They liked making 3-D cacti from cardboard and tempera paint and they especially loved "planting" them in terra-cotta pots using plaster.

Spring sketching

When we had our first warm Spring day, I took the kids out sketching in the neighborhood. It was so nice and warm out that we couldn't bear to be inside. We sketched neighborhood plants in pen and then added some color (using water soluble colored pencils) back in the classroom.

Landscapes inspired by the art of Claire West

I've got behind in posting pics of Carriage House classes, so let me start catching up a bit.

A while back the kids finished up these terrific landscapes inspired by the art of Claire West. The project is a great way to teach kids about background, middleground, foreground, and also how to give the illusion of distance. The kids had fun with it, especially blending and blurring the chalk pastels using capfuls of liquid starch!

Collage blocks

3D collage blocks with the big kids (adults) tonight at the Carriage House. One Sicily-themed and one abstract collages. So cool! 

Jose di Gregorio inspires kids geometric canvas paintings

The little ones hit another homerun: very loosely inspired by the complex geometric and often rainbow-hued art of Jose DiGregorio, we masked out geometric patterns before painting, and then the kids were delighted to remove the tape and reveal their final works on canvas. 

Printmaking landscapes by the little ones

I can't stand how cute these painted and printmaking landscapes are! Four and five-year-olds in my spring break art camp at the Arlington Arts Center used a combination of bubble wrap, cardboard, and found objects to create a multilayered tree scene inspired by the fabric of artist Eloise Renouf. They also used sponges, brayers, scissors, glue sticks, and oil pastels. This was a seriously mixed media project done over two days and the kids loved seeing it all come together!

Rubber block carving next Tuesday at the Arlington Arts Center

Rubber block printing isn't very difficult, but sometimes choosing a really good image is. In my workshop at the Arlington Arts Center next Tuesday evening, I will help participants choose or adapt an image that has the right balance of size, detail, and contrast to create a big,bold, sharp-looking handcarved stamp. Supplies are provided, and you can register online at: https://arlingtonartscenter.org/education/adult/

Inspired by Gordon Hopkins

I'm back with the very little ones at the Arlington Arts Center. The mood as always is in between exhausting and exhilarating. And then they produce these wonderfully free abstract mixed media works very liberally inspired by some pieces by Gordon Hopkins and I just smile.