"Gargoyles, Monsters in Stone"
Presenting Artist: Virginia Witt-Abbott
Students discover the thrill of re-creating stone sculpture in clay. Lessons of art history and sculptural relationships with architecture and their function will be brought to life with the inspiration of the childrens book
Gargoyles, Monsters in Stone¯ by Jennifer Dussling. Children will be challenged to work and think in 3 dimensions and how simple tools can add shape and texture.
Virginia Witt-Abbott was involved in the Redondo Beach Hands on Art program for four years before coming back home to Gig Harbor. She has been an Art Director and Creative Director for advertising agencies in Chicago and Los Angeles for the past 25 years and is currently one of the owners and Creative Directors of Trio Advertising, Design, and Solution. She is co-chair for Peninsula Hands on Art Gig Harbor and along with being a contributing artist is a docent for her daughter's 4th grade classs.
www.triods.com
"Surrounded by Shapes"
Presenting Artist: Carla O'Connor
Travel in leaps and bounds from the age of dinosaurs to the face of modern man. The basics of shapes and their association in nature will be explored when watercolor artist Carla O'Connor presents "Surrounded by Shapes," the basics. We are all surrounded by shapes, but how does this translate into what we draw. Children will learn to draw a simple face and a dinosaur by a process that can be utilized in their everyday lives.
Gig Harbor resident and nationally celebrated watercolor artist Carla O'Connor shares with us her vast experience. Carla teaches approximately 12 water media workshops each year across the United States and Canada and is the recipient of numerous American Watercolor Society International awards. Carla feels passionately that children need to learn the basics of organic and geometric shapes to create a great foundation for future artistic development.
www.carlaoconnor.com
"Harbor Heritage Scenes in Pen and Ink"
Presenting Artist: George Harter
Students will learn bits of Harbor Fishing Fleet history as well as the process of translating a photo into an illustration. Students will be re-creating in pen and ink the
Heritage fishing vessel which is part of Gig Harbor's rich history. Students will learn to use the basic techniques of pen and ink including how to re-create, Harbor Heritage Scenes.
George Harter worked for his own commercial design company for 24 years in Bellevue before retiring here in Gig Harbor. The business kept him in touch with his two passions, art and architecture. Now that he is retired he enjoys drawing and painting and he is convinced that there is no training substitute for selecting a project and just doing it.
"Word Art"
Presenting Artist: Tracy Fisher
Through the use of acrylic paint on canvas and painting the American Flag as a backdrop, Tracy will teach art through the expression of words. The American Flag will symbolize the unity of our country while the students will then use their school word (example: O.R.C.A.S.) to symbolize the unity of their school. This incorporated with words to symbolize their own personal values and individuality will create a one of a kind piece of art for their home. The words they choose will tell a story of how they feel at this particular time of their lives.
Born in Laguna Beach CA, Tracy Fisher has been a resident of Gig Harbor since 1966. Her love of painting and belief in the unique healing power of words has been combined to create Tracy's painting style and word art¯ technique. She now helps bring young cancer patients and their parents together by painting words of love. Words touch lives, words heal and words recall specific memories.
"Rustic Dream Weaver"
Presenting Artist: Peeta Tinay
A primitive version of an American Indian style dream catcher, Peeta Tinay's "Rustic Dream Weaver" will include details of its inspiration from Indian culture, and provide the students the opportunity to work with a variety of natural fibers including rattan, sea grass, and coir (coconut fiber). Students will be able to incorporate beads, feathers, and other found objects into their creations. They will learn to make the basic rattan loop, how to start the wrapping and looping technique and how to end with a final wrap.
Artist, owner Peeta Tinay of Tinay Studio/Custom Wicker in Tacoma is a 21st century woman who specializes in a 19th century art form. She is one of just a handful of U.S. women who restore antique wicker furniture, and even rarer, creates by hand wicker planters, tables, trays and baskets patterned after vintage originals. She has been featured in Arts & Crafts Magazine, Old-House Interiors, Home & Garden, and Old House Furnishings.
www.tinaystudio.com
