KathyAnneArt: Alaska Fiber Festival March 2010

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Alaska Fiber Festival March 2010

From March 7 thru March 12, 2010, I will be at the Alaska Fiber Festival teaching a series of workshops. Starting on March 7th with Beginning Digital Printing then onto March 8th and 9th will be Extreme Textural Surfaces. Next March 10th, Mixed Media Fiber Journal, March 11th, Limbs: Abstract and Figurative and finishing with March 12, Abstract and Textural Surfaces with Canvas.

The Alaska Fiber Festival started in 2004 and is bi annual event hosted by a group of volunteers who bring exhibits from across the globe, along with workshop instructors for a week long festival. The festival takes place in Anchorage, Alaska.

These 5 workshops in 6 days will be the subject of my next few blogs. You can go to the Alaska Fiber Festival Site to see all the class descriptions. What I will focus on is the idea behind the workshops and how I developed the original work each workshop is based on.

Limbs:Abstract and Figurative is scheduled for Thursday March 11, 2010. The visuals enclosed show both pictures of my work and photographs that inspired my Limbs Series.

At one point on my artistic journey, the forms of trees from the southwest were my sole inspiration. Trees have always influenced my work in different ways. The forms and shapes in nature are a wonderful way to be inspired and look to creating what you feel and see.

The possibilities that are created with spontaneity, a rotary cutter and nature's inspiration are incredible. Using a cutter and matte along with a variety of hand dyed fabrics, the cutter becomes a drawing tool. During this workshop students will learn free hand cutting techniques to cut and piece their composition. If students are already familiar with these types of techniques it will be an opportunity to pursue fabulous results and increase their skills.

Magic happens as each students work
will be uniquely their own. Everyone will
show their own style evident as they cut and sew. By the end of this workshop all will have an idea how to successfully create compositions to build on as they work on this process later. And they will always be able to contact me with questions on the process.

Supplies for the workshop will include a sewing machine, rotary cutter, mat for cutting, fabric, thread and a few straight pins. I will teach my easy way to sew curves without clipping. You will be amazed what interesting shapes will occur in your work that you couldn't imagine before you start. Join us!