This will be a shared journey expressing the inspirations, creativity, and magnificence of our glorious surroundings of Ghost Ranch, NM.  This will be my third time teaching there under the wings of my long-time friend/fellow artist Lesley, and I thought it would be fitting to create as a combined project two things that become integral components of one another. 

Our first project will be a simple flying bird pendant (representing the deeply cherished spirit of our artistic aspirations within our bodies and souls), constructed of a wire outline shape that is covered with muslin and then stitched, or painted, sewn or wired, and stuffed lightly with cotton batting.

Our birds will then become part of a simple antique linen-covered small pocket-sized book, one consisting of watercolor pages that are sewn into the linen cover with a simple waxed linen thread. The covers can be painted, stamped, stitched, wired, or left alone to enjoy the beauty of the hand-woven fabric, which will be included in your kits.

Imagine your bird necklace tied to the front cover, in a place where it can be removed and worn around your neck, hung from a lamp shade, tied to a weathered old branch or stick; I want these things to become part of a studio shrine created once you head back home, filled to the brim with memories, visions, words of poetry you may have scrawled into the dirt and onto a page.

At week’s end, the last couple of hours of class we will dedicate to a timed sharing of the things we’ve dreamed and created amongst fellow like-minded spirits.  This will be a beautiful opportunity to take photographs of one another’s pieces of work that we will have coaxed into being, side by side.