Inventive Sketchbooks at Cloud 9

Set up ready for the workshop

If you've read this blog before you'll know that I love running workshops, I love that each time I run a workshop it's different and I learn something new, even when I've run the session many times before. Yesterday I ran my 'Inventive Books' workshop at the lovely Cloud 9 Studio Gallery in the centre of Dumfries. I had three great participants and we all had a productive, creative and enjoyable time. The gallery is a lovely place to visit, there are lots of lovely things to look at (and buy!) and Julie, the owner is really friendly.

Making pages for our folded books

Making pages for our folded books

Making pages for our folded books

It's unusual for me to have such a small group, hosting workshops can be expensive so generally places need a higher number of participants to make it work financially. It's a very different dynamic working with a small group and it was a nice change. The participants were all very creative people as well so that also changed the dynamic, throughout the day I had to remind myself that I was working as it was such a relaxed atmosphere it was more like a creative conversation than teaching.

Folding our books

Folding our books

Folding our books

I shared my processes for making my favourite folded sketchbook and envelope sketchbook and everyone had a chance to make one of each using a selection of papers that they felt inspired by or drawn to. One of the reasons I love making my own sketchbooks is that I can select the papers I use and make it personal to me. I like to draw on a range of different papers so making my own books means that I can pick out the papers I like and use them to create a sketchbook I know I'll want to work in.

Making covers

Making covers

Beautifully finished folding book

We also discussed ways of working in sketchbooks. Like many things, I think that for most people getting started is often the hardest part. As a starting exercise I gave everyone a word or phrase to get them going, I kept these deliberately vague so that lots of different ideas could be generated, it doesn't matter if these ideas don't lead to a final piece the important thing is to get going and start the creative process both in terms of thinking and making. Over the years I've backed myself into a corner (creatively speaking) so many times by getting overly focused on finding the 'right' idea to work on. Over time I've learnt that it's better just to do something, anything as the thoughts and ideas will flow much more easily.

Starting to work in our sketchbooks

Starting to work in our sketchbooks

Starting to work in our sketchbooks

Sketchbooks are very personal things and I love that each one made on this workshop is so different and reflects the personality of its maker. I finished the workshop feeling inspired by the conversations we'd had and happy that I was able to share some of my favourite techniques and hopefully inspire my participants to carry on their creative journey.

Finished books

Finished book

Finished book

Even more Sketchbook making shennanigans

Assorted books made by members of Myriad Studio group

One of the things I enjoy about running workshops is the challenge of adapting what I'm teaching to suit my audience. Back in November I got to run my Inventive Sketchbooks workshop twice in one week but for two quite different audiences. The first one was for Myriad Studio art group, led by artist Katarina Prior and based at Eden Arts in Penrith and the second was at Carlisle Youth Zone for the Junior club (ages 7-12.) Two quite different audiences...

Looking at samples

Choosing papers

Choosing papers

The Myriad Studio session was a lot of fun but also really quite relaxed. Everyone was an adult and had come not just to learn something but for the social and therapeutic benefits of art making too. There were also a few people I knew who'd been on some of my other workshops which was lovely. It was a very friendly group and I was able to run the session in a very laid back, informal way, taking people through the process step by step and helping when needed but mostly just chatting! It's lovely working with groups like this, it hardly feels like work at all and I often get to have a bit of a play myself.

Creative chaos!

Creative chaos!

Creative chaos!

In contrast the session at the Youth Zone was what you might call action packed! I really enjoyed it, it was a lot of fun and I was lucky to have some fantastic staff supporting me but I was also very tired at the end of the session. We were busy all evening, the workshop was run on a drop in basis and we had so many children come and join in which was really good. There's often an interesting dynamic with workshops with energy going back and forth between leaders and participants; for this session it was high energy the whole evening and so by the end of the night I was ready to drop.

Finished books...

Finished books...

Finished books...

It's very different working with adults and children and I get a lot out of working with both groups, I like the differences and adapting what I'm doing and how I approach things for each different groups. One of the things that I love about working with people in general is being able to light that creative spark; whether it's showing someone who's already very competent a new way of doing something and sending them on new creative path or seeing a child genuinely proud of what they've been able to create with me. Sometimes I look at my schedule and think I must be insane but other times I look at what I actually do in that crazy schedule and realisle how much I love it how lucky I am to be able to do this.

Blackbirds and Revelations

View of the Fells, torn and layered tracing paper and silver paper

Following my show 'As the Crow Flies' at RSPB Geltsdale I've been reflecting on my practice and what I want to achieve in the short and long term. Having my exhibition at Geltsdale has been a really positive experience right the way through from being asked to exhibit to taking the work down. Everyone at the centre has been very helpful and supportive and I love the gallery space with all it's quirks and beautiful sunny window.

Feather drawing and collage

Handmade Sketchbooks

Hand dyed fabrics and threads

Knowing that I had a space to fill helped me to focus and get working, providing the proverbial kick up the rear to get into my studio and get making rather than just thinking about it! It provided me with an incentive to work on ideas I'd been making notes about for ages and I was able to create a body of work that I was mostly happy with and that worked together.

Sketch of one of the birds in my garden

I was really pleased when I hung the exhibition with how it all came together, seeing my work in the space I was able to see how all the elements of my work complemented each other and I felt a strong sense of achievement. It was also a huge confidence boost and this combined with the lovely comments that were left in the visitors book have led to a renewed sense of belief in my work and fuelled my desire to carry on making and showing my work. I was made up that when I went to take the work down they said it had been one of their most popular exhibitions and they'd like me to exhibit there again when I have some new work. Selling several pieces of work was also a very big confidence boost and has put me in contact with some very lovely people.

A walk near Ivegil

A walk near Ivegil

Treasures collected on a walk near Ivegil

Since I put the exhibition up it's fair to say that I haven't made a huge amount of new work, partly because I've had some very busy periods with lots of other projects to organise and deliver and partly because I've been taking time to reflect. I've been doing quite a lot of bits and pieces in the studio but I haven't got stuck into a new body of work yet.

Views of my garden

Views of my garden

Views of my garden

I don't necessarily view this as a bad thing as one of the things I've been reflecting on is how to keep a good balance in my life. One of the ways to do this is to not push too hard at things and to do what I feel like doing. With this in mind I've been spending a lot of time outside gardening and bird-watching recently which I've really enjoyed and which is inspiring me. I'm confident that this inspiration will start to come out in my work even though I might not be sure quite how yet. Walking and being out and about in the environment feels like the right thing to be doing at the moment and ideas are starting to grow in my mind (and sketchbooks.)

Solar Dyeing

Solar Dyeing

Solar Dyeing

Actually, the influence of these apparently unrelated activities is already coming through as I've been experimenting with solar dyeing and have a series of jars full of fabrics and plant stuff sitting on various sunny windowsills! Hopefully these jars will provide me with interestingly coloured fabrics after a month or so and I will be able to incorporate them into my work. Everything is connected and the more I relax and follow my instincts the happier I am with my work. Not forcing myself into a particular way of working allows me to see the connections and explore them, hopefully leading somewhere interesting...

Anselm Kiefer Artist Rooms Exhibition: Engage Workshop

Cutting and Sticking=Happiness!

The Anselm Kiefer exhibition has finished at Tullie House after a four month run. I've been involved in quite a few of the engagement projects around this exhibition and feel like it's just about all I've blogged about for a while! As well as being an excellent exhibition I've really enjoyed the engagement work, working with different groups on a range of activities form organising family friendly activities to working on an audio visual installation with students from James Rennie School and Beaumont College. My last activity was a short talk and workshop with Engage, which is the National Association for Gallery Education. This was a really nice way to finish up the project as the group were very interesting and interested!

We all love cutting and sticking

Making envelopes

Making folded Square books

I began by giving a talk about the Skyground project and then I ran a shortened version of the Mixed Media Sketchbooks session that I ran for Secondary school students as part of the engagement programme for this exhibition. I enjoy running this workshop as it is very accessible, the basic processes are so simple that even people a bit unsure about doing creative things are happy to get stuck in but it can also be expanded to create really interesting artworks. We focused on two main activities, envelope sketchbooks and folded square sketchbooks.

Joining together the envelopes

How to fold the squares

More envelopes

Most of the workshop was spent chatting with the participants, talking about how to adapt the activities for different audiences and projects. For example, the envelope sketchbooks are good for trips as they can be made of papers collected on the trip and can also be used to store small mementoes, such as tickets. I was a little bit stressed at the start of the session as Mark Newport (sound and digital artist) and I were putting up the Skyground installation (or rather the weather was preventing us) but it actually ended up being a good session with lots of ideas exchanged and a positive, productive atmosphere. By the end of the session everyone had a sketchbook to take home and, hopefully, had had a good time.

Making Sketchbooks: AENW Workshop

Making folded square sketchbooks from recycled papers

Recently I was asked to run a short workshop at Tullie House for Art Educators North West, a group of teachers and others involved in art education who meet regularly to share ideas, experiences and skills. The workshop was to tie in with the Anselm Kiefer exhibition currently on show at Tullie and the programme of workshops being offered to schools.

Some of my sample sketchbooks

Folded Square Sketchbooks

Folded Square Sketchbooks-Opened out

The workshop I've designed for the schools in connection with the exhibition is a mixed media book making workshop so for this session I adapted that idea. I wanted to run a workshop that would be both enjoyable and useful so I was aiming for something that the educators would be able to take back and use with their students but that would also be fun to do.

Me showing one of my books

Folded square sketchbooks made from prints taken from painted fabric

One of my envelope sketchbooks

I always feel very nervous before I run a session for teachers, it's very scary teaching a teacher! However, everyone was really friendly and the atmosphere was relaxed and positive. I also got lots of positive comments so that's always a good confidence boost. I really hope the session was useful.

Envelope sketchbook seen from above

Envelope sketchbook

Envelope sketchbook

The workshop focused on three different ways of making sketchbooks; a folded square book, an envelope book and a variation on book maker Hedi Kyle's blizzard book. The other focus of the session was what paper to use, I wanted to look at using a range of recycled and discarded papers (rejected prints, junk mail, old maps, unneeded photocopies and so on.)

Preparing squares

Putting the squares together

Preparing squares

I had a range of books that I'd made to show the group and once we'd looked at those we got stuck in to the making. What I like about all three of these books is that they're basically very simple but there is a lot of potential to do quite exciting things with them. My favourite is probably the folded square book, it is just made of squares of paper but the way it is folded means that as well as being a flat sketchbook it can also be manipulated into more of a 3D form. It is a very tactile form and interesting to play about with.

Selecting and preparing papers

Preparing pages

A finished sketchbook

I also really like the envelope sketchbook, using an existing envelope as a template a range of envelopes are made from different papers and then joined together to form a book. The envelopes can be used to store things as well as being drawn on or written on as sketchbook pages. Like the folded square books they can also be made into more 3D forms. I think it would be great to work with a group making these and then use everyone's finished books to make an installation.