Forge: Taste of Blacksmithing [2 remaining]

See what the buzz is all about and get introduced to the Good Forge at Brookfield Craft Center. This Sampler
Workshop gives students an overview of the basics of blacksmithing, and a chance to create a small project.
Students should expect to gain some working knowledge of hammering steel on an anvil and complete a small
ornamental piece to take home. This taste of blacksmithing may very well whet your appetite for more in-depth
workshops in blacksmithing and bladesmithing.

Paper Arts Studio: Book Making [Sold Out]

This class will provide an introduction to basic book making in which students will start with simple snake accordions, progress to large format accordion books, learn the basics of sewing, and finally Japanese stab binding.
Students will learn to plan their projects according to which type of binding they are using; how to properly fold paper; how to measure and cut boards and papers; glueing with glue sticks; punching in preparation for sewing; and several types of sewing. At the end of the class the students will leave with at least 6 different types of books.
Students should have a basic familiarity with scissors, measuring, perhaps cutting with a knife and straight-edge, and gluing. Students will be working with sharp tools and glue sticks. They will finish the class with the books they made and several tools they can take home to continue to make books.

Modern Craft: Photo Editing [1 remaining]

Learn the basic tools of Adobe Photoshop for photo editing and image alteration. Edit and perfect lighting of your
photos, learn photo editing workflow, and create fun graphic photo collages with Photoshop’s lighting, brush and
drawing, and color tools. Students can come in with their own photos already taken, use samples from free online
sources, and our own photos taken with our phones or cameras on campus.
Learn how to embed photos, navigate lighting and editing tools, use masking tools, and create collages and cool
tricks with filter settings. Students will leave learning the basic layout of photoshop including layers, settings, color channels, and file storage.

Ceramic: Mishima, 4 Different Surface Techniques on a Bowl [Sold Out]

If you are looking to uniquely decorate your work, contrasting colors can make your pottery stand out. Mishima and Sgraffito are two distinct carving techniques to provide this contrast. In this workshop, we will briefly analyze the work of other potters utilizing these different methods, to expand our horizon of decorative pottery. We will experiment with different carving tools to see which one functions best for each of us. If you have a preferred carving tool, please bring it. We will use colored slip and or underglaze to highlight the contrast. We will have pieces ready for applying the techniques.

Glass: Intro to Bead Making [Sold Out]

Come learn to make your own glass beads! This 4-hour workshop provides you with the opportunity to try your hand at lampwork on a propane/oxygen-fueled torch. Learn studio safety, torch techniques, and develop an understanding of glass bead creation. After this short workshop, you should expect to have a handful of your very own beads. We will be working with an open flame so please wear a long-sleeved shirt, clothing made from natural fibers and pull long hair back.

Woodturning: Turned Wooden Platter with Crushed Stone Inlay [Sold Out]

Learn to turn a wood platter and embellish it with a decorative ring of crushed precious stone such as lapis lazuli or turquoise. Students will turn the platter, glue in the stone, then return their work to the lathe to sand the stone smooth and apply a food-safe finish to the wood. Not only will students learn some basic woodturning skills, they will also pick up some knowledge about design and proportion.

Jewelry: Patterned Sterling Silver Bracelets [Sold Out]

Whether one or a whole armful, sterling silver bangles are a must on your wrist classic! They look great in different widths, with different textures, decorated or plain. In this class students will learn how to measure and calculate their bangle size, the use of mandrels, sizers, dies, jewelers saw, and the basics of sanding, filing, soldering, texturing, embellishments, patina, and polishing. We will make 3 bangles from a variety of plain and patterned wire.

Fiber: Needle Felting [Sold Out]

Explore the magic of needle felting while creating an animal such as an Owl entirely from wool! Needle Felting is an easy-to-learn craft in which you sculpt wool fiber simply by poking it with a single barbed needle. The class will explore the unique characteristics of wool, felting needles, and felting surfaces. Participants will discover how to form realistic features and learn techniques to achieve desired form and finish. By the end of this session, students will realize they can create anything the can imagine with a barbed needle and a bit of wool!

Nature Printmaking with Stand Alone Book Making [5 remaining]

Allowing nature’s raw beauty inspires unique designs and compositions through the art of printmaking. Students will find their own materials outside the classroom and create multiple prints using hand printing. We will transform those prints further by painting, collaging, or drawing, lots to explore! Students will use design and composition to arrange the naturally found materials of their choosing and create aesthetic works of art. Simple printmaking techniques will be discussed and practiced. If desired students will be demonstrated how to create a stand-alone book for their prints.

Attending Shorter Sessions at BMB [88 remaining]

I will be attending 1 x 2 hour session and 2x 1 hour sessions instead of one 4 hour session at the Brookfield Crafts Center

ATTENDING BCC [20 remaining]

Select if you signed up for a full day workshop at the Brookfield Crafts Center.

S1: Art in Verse: An Ekphrastic Poetry Workshop for Art Educators [17 remaining]

Victoria Nordlund
Ekphrasis is the art of describing visual art through vivid and expressive language, bringing paintings, sculptures, and other artworks to life in new ways. This generative workshop will explore how poetry can deepen your connection to art, inspire your teaching, and unlock your inner poet! Come away with the tools to integrate this powerful form into your curriculum to build connections, applicable in museums, art critiques, student exhibitions, and cross-school collaborations

S1: Changing Design Landscapes: Still to Moving Image [19 remaining]

Heather Elliott-Famularo; Steve Harper
The Motion Design industry is a large, diverse, and ubiquitous field which offers many exciting career opportunities for young artists and designers - and yet most people don’t know much about it. In this hands-on workshop, we will introduce participants to the industry, examine animation principles, and create moving imagery. Participants will need a laptop with Adobe After Effects installed (ideally with minimum system requirements see: https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/system-requirements.html) to do the hands-on portion, but anyone can attend to observe.

S1: Puppet Building and Beyond [8 remaining]

Dan Rosenthal-Baxter, Tariffville and Squadron Line Schools, Simsbury, CT
Elementary
Making puppets is a rich, flexible art form for engaging students in behaviors that support creativity and innovative thinking as they explore materials, invent art-making techniques and repurpose objects to make something new! Once built, puppets continue to give students opportunities to imagine and observe, to process experience and express ideas. In this workshop we will spend time in hands-on exploration of mixed-media puppet building strategies; create a variety of types of puppets; and discuss some of the challenges and opportunities in implementing a puppetry unit. Bring a digital device, if you can and paper and pencil

S1: Empowering Students through Digital Illustration [18 remaining]

Beyond digital illustration techniques: This workshop will review Adobe Photoshop fundamentals for character illustration, looking at shape, line weight, and color theory. These techniques can be used within a broader unit challenging student to develop a vision of themselves through the power of storytelling and using various resources including the hero’s journey, drawing exercises, envisioning, and self-assessment. Students should bring their own device with Adobe Photoshop (14 day trial can be used). A graphic tablet is desirable but not essential. Lesson plan and resources included.

ATTENDING BCC [22 remaining]

Select if you signed up for a full day workshop at the Brookfield Crafts Center.

S2: 10 Reason Why You Should Be an Arts Administrator [17 remaining]

Rick Sadlon;Amy Perras
Arts Education needs strong leadership to assure a successful future and prominent place in our school curriculum. In this session attendees will have an opportunity to hear from experienced Arts Leaders and Administrators why Arts Administration is such a vitally important and rewarding career path for Arts Educators. This session will be presented by members of the CT Arts Administrators Association.

S2: Building Your Portfolio for Art School Admission [17 remaining]

Roxy Ryan & Robert Calafiore
University of Hartford Art School
Hartford Art School will lead an in-depth discussion on the key components necessary for building a strong portfolio submission for admission to any art university or college. We will include examples of real portfolios that students have submitted to us and achieved admission, as well as examples that demonstrate what is not admissible. Finally, we will discuss what recruiters were looking for ten/twenty years ago, and how that has evolved to what they are looking for today.

S2: Introspective Boy: Engaging Boys in our Classrooms [16 remaining]

Katie Burnett; Cristina Pinton
A presentation of artworks and prompts/lessons that have had positive impact on the retention of boys in high school studio classes as well as an interactive discussion on best practices engaging male-identifying students. How do we support a healthy development for creative expression for our male-identifying students through our arts programs?

S2: Engaging Student Voice [23 remaining]

Engaging students in recognizing when they are copying work, appropriating, appreciating, and when they are actually creating work using their own creative voice. Making the creative process visible to students will help them to evaluate whether their work is a copy of someone else’s work, inspired by another artist, or whether it is the assimilation of their knowledge about materials, their investigative process and their own ideas. Inspired by an NAEA presentation where the idea of copy, inspire and transform were explored, the presenter has modified and applied the content to her own practice and incorporated student self-reflection on plagiarism into their process portfolio.

ATTENDING BCC [22 remaining]

Select if you signed up for a full day workshop at the Brookfield Crafts Center.

S3: WOW Factor Lesson Planning [15 remaining]

Rick Sadlon & Amy Perras
Exceptional planning skills will make your classes more engaging and more fun for you and your students. In this session attendees will participate in the construction of exemplary "wow factor" Standards-based lesson plans that address all 4 Artistic Processes, promote Artistic Literacy and integrates Social Emotional Learning Competencies.

S3: Museums, Collections, Curators and Context: Exploring NCAS Presentation Standards in the Elementary Classroom Elementary [19 remaining]

Museums, Collections, Curators and Context: Exploring NCAS Presentation Standards in the Elementary Classroom
Elementary
Dan Rosenthal-Baxter, Tariffville and Squadron Line Schools, Simsbury, CT
Explore how Connecticut and National Core Art Standards can develop into grade level investigations of what curators, museums and collections are, and how they create contexts for art and artifacts that help all of us understand our world in new ways. I will share plans and artifacts from lessons and, along with hands-on activity, we will share and problem solve challenges we anticipate or have experienced in addressing presentation standards in the elementary classroom. Participants should bring: a digital device if possible, paper and pen.

S3: FORUM: Issues in Education [15 remaining]

Facilitated by Cristina Pinton
In this open-forum, facilitated discussions around contemporary issues including increasing behavioral issues in the classroom, identity issues, best practices and standards, teacher evaluation, STEAM, classroom management, advocating for your program, etc.

S3: Writing concept-based units aligned to standards-based curriculum [24 remaining]

Description: Participants will look at how to develop concept-based units and connect them to standards in their instructional practice. See how a concept-based approach encourages student engagement and higher-level learning, while meeting your learning outcomes designed to meet curricular goals. Alignment to assessment and instructional strategies will be discussed.