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Art Lab

(adults)

Mindful creative arts workshops, led by Hillsborough branch Adult Services Department Supervisor Jen Sulligan.

Libraries are open-minded environments that actively encourage and assist with exploration and learning. Art is something that becomes easily overlooked in a technology and science-driven world.  Art Lab expands access to the arts and reminds people of the joy that creative endeavors can bring. Skills-based arts learning, in a socially supportive environment, yields multiple benefits for adult learners... the arts are good for you! 

Supplies: All supplies will be provided by the library, no need to bring your own. Also, creating art can be messy, so please keep that in mind when choosing the clothing you will wear to the program. 

Schedule: Be sure to register for each date you wish to attend. 

December 7: Art journals - Handcraft a portable accordian-fold journal and explore the ways you can express yourself creatively on the go.

January 11: Assemblage art - Take a close look at the work of Louise Nevelson, known for her abstract sculptures made from cast-off pieces of wood uniformly coated with paint. Then, create your own assemblage from wood pieces and other cast-off objects on a panel. 

February 15: Sumi-e painting - The Japanese word for black ink painting, sumi-e is an ancient East Asian writing and painting style that employs brush and black ink on paper. Gradations of black in sumi art are achieved by using black ink at full strength or dissolving it in water to lighten it. Emphasis is placed on the beauty of each individual stroke of the brush. Using sumi painting papers made from rice, traditional sumi ink made from pine or vegetable oil soot, and bamboo sumi brushes, practice strokes to capture the spirit (Ch’i) of nature rather than a photographic likeness.

March 15: Painted story quilts - Artist and author Faith Ringgold is renowned for her painted story quilts. She surrounds her narrative paintings with a quilted fabric border, which creates art that tells a story in color, texture, and pattern. Students select a story to illustrate - either from a book, family history, or an experience of their own - then create their selected scene on fabric using watercolor pencils and pastels.

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