“Making Marks” the natural world

A workshop with Catherine Nicholls

This is a new workshop and something I have wanted to do for ages. I am excited to find and make tools for mark making from the “natural supplies” on the Sorrento Centre grounds.

Mark making describes the many different lines, dots, marks, patterns, and textures we can create in artwork. It can be loose and gestural or controlled and neat. It can apply to any material used on any surface. Making marks explores creating expressive lines, textures, and patterns using diverse tools – brushes, found objects, needle and thread  with media – paint, ink, dye, collage, and stitch.

In this workshop we will explore the marks found in the natural world and how we can create lines, shapes, and textures for creative expression, storytelling or representation.

We will be starting each day with a quick warm-up exercise to get those ideas flowing! Artists have “made marks” as a form of expression for ages and we will take a brief dip into the history of mark making and how it’s been used to create movement and light.

 We will be experimenting on both paper and fabric and students are welcome to work on one or the other or back and forth between the two. Students will be shown how to make a few simple tools to add to the personal nature of their work.

We will be working with Procion MX dye, earth pigments,  resists, paint and screen print inks to create a ground for further exploration. Your design may end there or continue in layers. Students will explore more detailed layers using pen and ink, the drawn line and of course stitch. We will consider the possibilities of scale and repetition within designs and the possibilities.

This workshop will be mostly a series of technique based activities. Students can begin with a source of inspiration like an image or a collection of previous ideas as a starting place or allow yourself to led by exploration and experimentation. Sometimes having a place to start can be helpful…just saying.

Students can approach this workshop as a series of samples and explorations or work with intention towards a goal. As always composition and the elements of design will form a part of our study and samples often have a way of coming together to create a unique textile masterpiece.  

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A few extra thoughts to get the most from your “Making Marks” workshop experience…

On Sunday September 27th, you will have access to our workroom from 3 pm (and to your rooms at 4 pm) so make sure you bring all your supplies when you check in.  You can access the room after our welcome dinner on Sunday evening if you arrive a little later. I am hoping you will  set up your table and be ready to go on Monday morning.

I hope you will come to our welcome dinner on Sunday the 27th of September at 5:30 pm. It’s a wonderful way to get to know fellow students and a chance to catch up with pals if you are a returning student. The Centre is allowing people to sign up for the supper even if you choose the “no meals” option for the rest of the weekend.

Meal times during the workshop: Breakfast is available – 7:30 to 8:30 | Lunch is 12:30 to 1:30 | Dinner is 5:30 to 6:30

Workshop times  – we start at 9 am, break for lunch at 12:30 for 90 minutes (you will have time for lunch and a walk to the lake or maybe the shops, or a nap!) Instruction begins at 2pm but you will be able to access the workroom at 1:30 (probably a little earlier) if you want to. We finish for the day at 5:30

We have access to a couple of fridges in and around our workshop area if you would like to bring snacks or drinks of any kind. We also have coffee and tea available at any time.

Our evenings are an informal time for gathering, stitching, chatting, knitting or whatever you like. There is no instruction during the evening but you are welcome to work on your workshop pieces  or anything that you bring along. Many students enjoy a glass of wine and a snack or two and will bring along a bottle and a few snacks to share.

Getting to know your fellow students is one of the best parts of an in-person workshop and I would invite you to bring along an item for show and tell. And on the same note, if you have attended a Sorrento Centre workshop in the past and have a completed piece to share, I would love to see it.

A complete supply list will be available thirty days before the start of the program.

Catherine Nicholls

Quilt- Embroidery-Mixed Media-Painting-Art Cloth-Drawing-Stitch

Catherine lives and works in Gibsons, B.C. and draws inspiration from the natural world, her travels and the people she meets along the way. Stories, legends and the history of people, place and culture are the creative raw materials for her work. Catherine’s work is developed through painting, drawing and collage, usually on paper. Careful planning and exploration of ideas allows a more liberated and intuitive approach when it comes to fabric, paint and mixed media techniques. She works on paper and fabric with discharge, dyeing, drawing, painting and printing. Textile pieces are then densely stitched either by hand or machine, and often both. Catherine has exhibited in North America and Europe individually and as a member of SiX and is one third of thr3fold journal, “the journal of creative vision”. Teaching has formed a large part of her daily life, with workshops in locations around the world in patchwork and quilting techniques, sketchbooks and journaling, life drawing, design and other passions. Catherine is very proud to be an ambassador for Madeira threads. corvidcreations@hotmail.com

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