Studio ArTour artist Dianne Lockerby will be teaching Raku pottery at the Paradise Center for the Arts this summer. Raku Workshop – A class to create pots & sculpture for the Raku firing will be offered June 11th 10am-Noon or June 28th 6pm-8pm or & July 9th 1-3pm at the Paradise Center for the Arts instructed by Dianne Lockerby (same creation class will be offered three times – choose the day that works for you). The Raku firing with Raku artist Mark Lusardi will take place on July 16th 9:30am to 4pm at Lockerby Sheet Metal.

To get registered call 507-332-7372 ext. 1 or 4, or email info@paradisecenterforthearts.org http://www.paradisecenterforthearts.org/education/

Raku is a fun clay experience!! A great introduction to ceramics and something that can be enjoyed by all. Due to the presence of fire and interaction with the fire during the firing process, there will be strict adherence to safety measures covered during the Creation classes, and safety measures will be adhered to on firing day. If an adult wants to take the Saturday $45 workshop they could share their experience (and their 5# of clay with their child) and both could create pieces and attend the firing. If you are not acquainted with the raku process, you can google it or find books at the library to see the process.

On firing day, July 16, glazed clay pots & sculpture from the classes will be loaded in the raku kiln, and kiln temps are rapidly increased to 1600-1800 Degrees F. Once the glazes melt & smooth out, the pieces are individually removed from the kiln. Pieces are placed in a can filled with combustible materials and the hot pot causes the combustibles to flame. A tight-fitting lid placed on the can smothers those flames and the resulting smoke can cause colors to appear on the pots. This fast fire process allows students to leave with their finished glazed pieces the same day. All ages are welcomed to watch the process, but children 14 and under will require adult supervision. Tuition of $45.00 , includes a Raku 2 hour creation workshop to create 2 pieces with the 5# of clay included in class fee and the Raku firing workshop on July 16. Scholarships are available for children.

For those experienced with clay, we are offering an additional day of firing fun on Sunday, July 17. Additional glazing techniques will be taught by Mark Lusardi from Continental Clay and participants can bring an additional 8-10 bisqued pots to fire. For this day, participants must furnish their own bisqued pieces. Clay may be purchased at the Paradise Center for the Arts – firing fee will be included in the purchase cost of PCA clay. There are size restrictions on pieces.

A 2 hour creation class, Saturday firing day on July 16 from 9:30-4, and 5# of clay is $45. This intro to Raku will allow you to fire 2 pieces. Scholarships are available for children.

For a grander Raku experience, sign up for 2 days, Saturday and Sunday, supply your own bisqued clay and fire up to 12 pieces. Cost is $45 for Sunday only or $75 for both Saturday and Sunday firings. Sunday class size is limited.

Bob and his girls picked up 2016 Studio ArTour brochures! Lots of fun! Bob creates clay fish. He tells his girls, “the best fish”! Thx Bob for getting out the word about the October tour!

Thanks to Rick, the brochures for the tour have arrived!  Ready to distribute and they look great!

Sue Peoples and Julie Nordine traveled to Madison WI to take a class on making a glass corsage with their friend Sara Sally La Grand. We made a variety of glass components on the end of a steel wire with the finished corsage in mind. We arranged the cooled bits and pieces into our desired corsage shape and wired it all together. It was fun to see all of the students’ different color combinations and creative components that made up their personalized corsages.

These earrings will be shown this Saturday, June 4th, at the St Anthony Park art festival. A new design, I will enjoy making them in various color combinations. These earrings and others will be available for purchase on the 2016 Studio ARTour!
#16
Sue Hammes-Knopf

Marsha Kolstad Morrill Kitchel
MKMK Studios
304 Washington Street, #4, Northfield, MN 55057  
612-245-2339

I’m a painter of landscapes and portraits and still life. Anything, really. I love driving down unfamiliar rural roads and coming upon a sight I just know I have to paint. If I’m on a plein air expedition, with all my portable gear and paints along, I will start right there to get a good likeness or nearly completed painting. I also take many photographs to assist my memory while finishing the painting in my studio.

My main medium is oil paint applied by brush and palette knife on canvas or board. Pastels come out of the box sometimes, too.

One fun fact:
Four of my paintings were used on the sets of the movie made here in Northfield this past January. At that time, the movie’s title was to be “The Last Love Letter,” but I think that might have changed. I know the hope of the director is to have a Northfield viewing of the movie this summer or fall, before its main release. So if you see the movie, look for them hanging on the walls! (I’ve attached their images below.) Three of them will be for sale in my studio during ArTour, and one painting is in a Northfielder’s private collection.

There will be over 24 paintings for sale throughout my studio and apartment, on October 15 and 16. I will also be previewing one large portrait marked for future exhibition.

Four rooms full of landscapes, portraits and still lifes, plus coffee and goodies in the kitchen. I hope to see you here!

Marsha
P.S. You will find me between the Library and the Grand!

I’m working on a jewelry series that will demonstrate multiple variations of a beaded shape. I recently received an established artist grant from SEMAC to create this series, (more about that later). In this piece I created the woven star with size 8 seed beads. Now I’m weaving size 15 seed beads onto the surface. Color and multiple bead sizes influence the changes.
Studio #16

Saw this boney specimen on my walk in the Carlton Arb.  I was inspired by the organic repetition.  The necklace I’m hand weaving also features repetition.   I’m using Delicas and size 15 seed beads to create the elements.  Maybe half way done.  Plan to show the piece, studio # 16, on the 2016 ArTour!

Avocados are really a healthy food but they can also give a beautiful color in the dye bath. It was really exciting to see the awesome color of this scarf from yesterdays dye bath. It is fun to be dyeing before local plants become available for natural dying.
From My studio
Judy Saye-Willis

Studio ArTour artist Julie Fakler will have her Safe Sanctuary and Prairie’s Edge Humane Society Portraits at the Waseca Art Center March 10 – April 2. Artists reception will be held March 18th 7-9pm. The paintings in this exhibit are all portraits of animals that were up for adoption with SAFE Sanctuary and Prairie’s Edge Humane Society. Please adopt don’t shop. The Safe Sanctuary Portraits (2014) and Prairie’s Edge Humane Society Portraits (2011) were made possible by a grant from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council. Waseca Art Center is located at 200 North State Street Waseca, MN 56093.