Penland

I'm feeling really lucky that I have several exciting art related things to look forward to this summer. In August I'm going to be the studio assistant for Laura Wait in the class she's teaching at Penland. The class is called Writing as Image: Exposed Sewing. I just checked and there's still at least one opening to take the class. Laura creates amazing imagery based on lettering and handwriting. Here's one of her paintings titled Scriptorium # 2.

The class is also about handmade books with exposed sewing. That is my favorite type of handmade book. A book with exposed sewing usually shows the pages through the back also. You can make neat patterns with the sewing, straps, covers, and pages like I did with these 3 blank sketch books.

Taking a class at Penland is a fantastic experience. The school is in the North Carolina mountains. There are so many trees and plants, it's a crazy experience for this Colorado girl! There's a stand of bamboo, there are magical trees called Tulip trees, and vines all over the place.

There are also cool artistic walls, gates, sculptures, and decorated trees. 

But of course the best part of Penland is the classes and the people you meet. There's sooooo much creativity and fun! I love watching people working in the glass and metal studios. Every discipline has something interesting going on. Here's a photo from Laura's class that I assisted with 5 years ago.

So, even though it's expensive, a class at Penland is totally worth it. Oh, and the food is fantastic!