In final week’s Half 1 publish I launched you to 4 of my most up-to-date Dwell On-line Cloth Collage college students from the “class that wouldn’t be divided.” They have been studying a lot by hanging out collectively that that they had little interest in being divided into Zoom breakout rooms.
Every class appears to develop its personal persona and this one was so very supportive of one another—although that’s what tends to occur in most lessons—fairly beautiful for me as an teacher. Such an ideal neighborhood has change into “collaged” collectively. I thank all of you on the market for the useful and productive power you’ve shared—and proceed sharing.
Above, is the (very giant) “blue morpho swallowtail” that Ros Petitt started in an earlier on-line class being auditioned on one in all its doable backgrounds. And beneath, is the category as a complete. Thanks for the week, women, you have been all so very pleasing to work with.
Since I nonetheless want to interrupt up this October class into two weblog posts, I’ll proceed to “stroll” across the classroom within the path I took on-line to view, annotate, and provides normal suggestions. Every particular person despatched Tom photographs of their works-in-progress, which he then arrange in albums—chronological order by first identify. Within the material collages you see beneath, you’ll be launched to; Marcia Kraus, Pam Shaw, Ros Pettit, and Terri Drimel—who picked up their scissors and glue and continued to remain targeted and work exhausting on their material collage topics all through our 5-day workweek. I’m very pleased with the way you pushed by means of all these material collage partitions that popped up.
Under you’ll meet them and their paintings, their tales and feedback, and their show-and-share picks of quilts that they talked about throughout our mid-week after-class get-together.
Get pleasure from as we speak’s tour and you’ll want to take a look at last week’s Half 1 publish, the place you’ll be able to meet Ann Wilbur, Catherine Lane, Donna Cook dinner, Liz Chronister, and their menagerie of colourful creatures.
As all the time, click on on any smaller photograph to view bigger and to scroll by means of that specific gallery.
A reminder that every one my 2025 material collage lessons—each in-person and on-line—are scheduled and open for registration. Click on the 2025 hyperlink beneath for extra info, together with dates, charges, and descriptions.
2025 Dwell On-line and In-Individual Cloth Collage Lessons
Marcia Kraus
Marcia Kraus is from Harmony, North Carolina, and arrange a short lived workspace in her daughter’s previous bed room—a couple of of us commented what a pleasant shade background it made for our on-line visits! The partitions have the identical form of heat that Marcia mentioned she wished to carry out in Lily. She selected autumn leaves and colours to work with and began utilizing the curves and patterns present in her materials to superbly interpret the contours she noticed in Lily’s face. After class ended, Marcia despatched us the photograph with each eyes in place—her Lily is coming to life.
From Marcia:
I selected this animal due to her coloring and thought she could be enjoyable to do. I personally have no idea this animal in any respect so I made her feminine [named her “Lily”] and with Susan’s assist made her what I wished her to be.
The category was superb! I’ve to confess I used to be terrified to even do a web-based Zoom class however I made it although simply wonderful, because of Susan and Tom. Susan was very beneficiant in giving us all any info, questions we requested, displaying us what to search for when selecting material, any info we wanted it was equipped.
We established a routine of Susan going from individual to individual to debate their mission how we may make it higher, what colours would assist to make that occur. It was all value spending the cash to attend a web-based Zoom class with a inventive teacher who cares about what you’re doing along with your creativity. I might do all of it once more in a heartbeat!
Pam Shaw
Pam Shaw of Laguna Woods, California, has so many nice recollections of her childhood buddy, Quirky. She shared them with us in school and now, beneath, with you. I cherished that for a portrait of Quirky, she selected brightly coloured and massive patterned materials—quirky, you possibly can say? He’s gonna be superior, his nostril already is. I all the time recommend that folks go massive on their collages, however one factor that was exhausting to appreciate on-line, is precisely how massive Pam went. I heard gasps from the category after they noticed this photograph of Pam and Quirky—massive recollections, massive portrait.
From Pam:
My collage is a portrait of our childhood household pet, Quirky. He was a Boston Terrier and a beautiful canine for kids. The 4 of us siblings examined his endurance each day. He had such a unusual persona. If he was irritated with us, he would growl. All of us knew he would by no means transcend a growl and we took nice sport in teasing him to get a very good lengthy growl. It appeared like he was an on/off swap. As children all of us thought it was hilarious. For those who poked him he would growl till you took your finger away.He by no means actually minded what was occurring and was most completely satisfied being across the household. Every time he was round different canine he was all the time up for a struggle so he was just about confined to our home and yard.
I had two sisters and we loved dressing him up in our doll garments and sticking him in a doll stroller. There have been a couple of occasions when he would have an “accident” whereas sporting our doll garments after which we have been those within the canine home. Our dad had tied a thick rope onto a department of one of many timber in our again yard. Quirky would leap up and connect his enamel to the knot and shake it viciously whereas his ft have been off the bottom. So long as somebody stood and watched him, he would proceed growling and shaking on the tip of the rope.
On the finish of Quirky’s life my older brother was drafted and despatched to Vietnam. Every time we heard from our brother he would all the time say that he hoped Corky would nonetheless be alive when he returned. He was eighteen years previous when my brother got here residence and was capable of see him once more.
Pam Shaw Present and Share
Ros Pettit
Ros Pettit lives in Ellicott Metropolis, Maryland, not too removed from the place I grew up, so she appears kinda like a neighbor. I’ve labored along with her each in-person and on-line—really, she attended our first ever 5-day on-line class—the place she first started her grand butterfly. Understanding that it was time for this piece to be completed (although she has accomplished and started different initiatives since), Ros wished to not solely work on the background, however to play with these third draft additions of tulle, netting, and different translucent materials, as you see draped over the butterfly, above.
From Ros:
The story of the butterfly is curiously a reasonably benign one. I wished a lot to create my candy canine in different colours. Correctly, Susan prompt that I ought to make a “less complicated/not as vital” mission first. It took many renditions of my first mission to get to a close to completion with this mission, however I’ve discovered SO MUCH that I’m grateful to have caught with it!
Ros Pettit Present and Share
Terri Drimel
Terri Drimel joined us from Heart Metropolis, Minnesota. It was so good to satisfy her face-to-face since Terri’s identify has change into so acquainted—she’s joined us on-line on many different events together with our 2024 four-week February Fish and summertime Bug and Butterfly Work-Alongs (that by the best way, we’re bringing again for 2025). Terri despatched us the outcomes of these lessons to share along with her classmates in her show-and-share, beneath. The creative exuberance that may be seen in her fish and butterfly got here out on this loving portrait of Molly—the place Terri has already given Molly her glowing eyes and the start of her joyful expression.
From Terri:
My topic is our beloved Australian Shepherd, Molly, who handed away very unexpectedly in 2023. She was 13 years previous, spent her life with us on our little passion farm, cherished to journey and camp out and was loopy in regards to the Minnesota snow. She was a excessive power and really beloved and constant member of the family.
I had an “aha” second as I struggled with the attention. I watched the preparatory video a number of occasions in regards to the eye. I nonetheless struggled with methods to decide what materials to make use of after which HOW to make use of the materials to make up all the pieces that goes into the attention and the encompassing bony construction, lashes, fur, and many others. I lastly found out how to have a look at the attention when it comes to values and discover these values in my materials. It’s exhausting to clarify however I used to be in a position to determine a option to open my understanding of what I wanted to do.
