Take a stone sculpture class in a working sculptors studio. Learn about the many stones available in our local deserts. We will be carving alabaster from Anza Borrego Quarry in California, and soapstone from Canada. The students will learn about the many different kinds of colorful and exotic stone used in sculpture. We will be learning how to use pneumatic air chisels, and other hand tools to rough out the initial design. Students will also work with handmade Italian Files and sand paper to refine their images. The end result will be an original piece of art created from stone. The class will take place at Stoneworks NOTE: An extra fee for the stone will be paid directly to the instructor. The fee will be based on the size and type of stone chosen to work with.

In this six-week series we’ll explore the endless possibilities for using materials not usually combined and a collage method a bit off the beaten path; machine and hand stitching. Techniques will include embossing and stitching metal, painting and gluing lace, paper and fabric transfers, embroidery, and adding embellishments. Each week we’ll work with a different technique and at the end of the series we’ll put all our samplers together into a small wall-hanging you’ll be proud to hang in your home or give as a very special gift. $20. material

This class uses the portrait to heighten our skills of observation. Students are encouraged to work large and freely while allowing the portrait to emerge. Simple tools are taught which help students see the relationships of forms, shapes and values to each other and to the whole. Underlying anatomy is discussed to support the structure of the drawing. Generous demonstrations are accompanied by a clear commentary during which students are encouraged to ask questions. Critique is held during class to support students in cultivating a discerning eye. The class is open to and encourages all levels of skill. This instructor has twenty five years experience painting and drawing the portrait and figure professionally. Supply list will be given before first class meeting.

Join Chris Cozen, Working Artist for Golden Artist Colors, as she presents techniques and processes that explore abstraction. Beginning with a visual prompt (bring your own 8x10 photo images that inspire you or work with those Chris has) you will explore the images for their unique abstract voices: COLOR, FORM, LINE, TEXTURE and SPACE. Explore each separate voice and its influence in a composition with paint, acrylic textures, and techniques. Learn to interpret and synthesize busy images into powerful compositions with incised drawings, textural applications, color studies, and refined glazing & more. We’ll be working on 4-6 separate pieces over the two days so bring prepped canvas or boards or gessoed 140 or 300 # water color paper no larger than 18x18. All other paints, products and tools will be provided by Chris, compliments of Golden Artist Colors, Inc.

Each session includes technical, aesthetic or historical related topics. When specific painting and or mixed media exercises are offered, they are optional. Participants work on their own projects in a supportive and encouraging environment with lots of individual attention. Begin a new painting or bring in something unfinished that you may want input on. Beginners are welcome.

The best light is right at dinnertime, and some of the finest images happen after the sun goes down! Join us for a small group evening photo shoot. We will explore the world of long exposures, shadows, and changing color. Surfer’s Point in Ventura can offer some amazing light, sunsets, ocean views, surfing and sailing action, and seabirds. We will meet for a discussion on capturing dramatic light, long exposures, sharp details, and composition. Then we photograph until “Last Light!” Bring your camera, and borrow a tripod!

You have a good camera and you want to take your photography to the next level. It is time to learn how to use those features and use more than that Auto Function. This ½ day Workshop will concentrate on the questions “What makes a powerful image?” and “How do I capture that power in the camera?” We will cover the basic concepts of photography: vision, light, and the elements of composition. Then we will touch on the main tools and techniques used to capture that vision: exposure, depth of field, shutter speed, and lenses The workshop will include demonstrations, examples, presentations, a lot of discussion - and some good talk about "The Rules". Bring your camera & manual (if you still have it!) This course is open to anyone with an interest in improving his or her photography – Digital, Film, Point and Shoot or DSLR.

Now that you know what you want to capture – now how do you do it? Today’s Digital cameras can do everything for you – find faces, wait for the smile, take movies, tell you where you are, and even order dinner! There are millions of correctly taken pictures taken everyday, sent to friends, printed and stored away. But are those millions of snapshots better photographs? If the camera is making all the decisions, are your photos any different than those countless other snapshots? How do you get past the snapshot? How do you create powerful images? How do you take photographs that people will ask to see? Start with the Fundamentals of Composition! What are the elements of a powerful image, why do some photographs have impact, how do some tell a story, inspire, provoke emotions…. Follow with the Fundamentals of the Camera! Exposure, Shutter Speed, Aperture, Depth of Field, and Camera Speed. These 5 fundamentals are the building blocks of photography; let the camera handle them and you will shoot “nice” shots; learn to use them and you can create wonders! In this full day workshop, we do just that – learn the fundamentals: take the mystery out of F-Stop, learn how to expose correctly, freeze action, capture speed, get the detail, make it sharp, and give your photographs some “Wow”! For both Digital or Film – the Fundamentals are the same! This is a discussion and hands on course; with examples, demonstrations, and a photo assignment. We will take a shooting break, and upload for a critique and discussion. Film shooters can bring a few favorite prints. This course is open to anyone with an interest in improving his or her photography – the camera itself isn’t so important – this is about learning how to use it! Open to all digital and film shooters. Bring your camera and if you have it - your manual.

Adobe Lightroom along with Apple’s Aperture are two new programs that are a dream for digital photographers. They offer excellent editing, file management, printing and webpage creation. The programs are intuitive, relatively simple to understand and learn, and provide a huge improvement in managing your digital files! This ½ day workshop will work through each of the 5 modules of Adobe Lightroom: Library, Develop, Slideshow, Print, and Web – with an emphasis on developing and managing your images.

The main topics:

Importing & managing your files

Auto functions

Photo editing & color management

Using and creating Presets

Synchronizing between images

Exporting and finishing in Photoshop

Creating a slideshow

Printing

Creating a webpage

The course will be beneficial for photographers looking for an introduction to the functions of Adobe Lightroom. It will be a presentation and discussion course with some opportunity for hands on examples.

Digital Cameras take millions of nice photos. What do you do with those thousands of photos? How do you edit them, store them, protect them, and show them? Most of all – How do you find them? With the ease of creating hundreds and thousands of photographs – managing them has become a very big issue! This may not sound exciting – BUT – a good system will dramatically make your photography a lot more enjoyable! This ½ day workshop covers “What happens after the Shoot”. We will work in the new world of “Digital Workflow”: Photo Editing, Naming, Cataloguing, and Showing. We will work examples through the full process, with presentations, discussion and hands on demonstrations.

The main topics:

The file naming alphabet: RAW, JPG, TIFF, PSD, DNG – what, why, how

Downloading, renaming & organizing,

“Metadata” & why is it such a good thing?

Photo editing, steps that every photograph needs.

What is a “Catalogue” program & why are they so great?

Protecting your work,

Showing your work.

The course will be beneficial for photographers that would like to learn more about “DAM” - Digital Asset Management – (the current process that answers the question “Where did I put that photo?) It won’t be simply a photo editing class, PhotoShop or Lightroom class – but will use Adobe Lightroom, PhotoShop and Microsoft’s Expression Media.

Open drawing session with a live model in a comfortable, studio environment. Bring your own materials and supplies.

drop ins: $10. per session

Artists' Trading Cards, popularly known as ATCs, are tiny works of art which are traded among artists as networking tools. Modeled on vintage advertising cards, painted miniatures of past centuries and sports-themed cards, these playing-card sized (21/2" x 31/2") masterpieces are avidly traded and collected--never sold. This workshop provides materials and instructions for getting started and then continues with explorations of various techniques to use in producing the cards. Their small format can also serve as studies for larger art pieces and a user-friendly opportunity for artists to try something new on a small scale. Cards are traded at each meeting so that participants collect a wide range of styles and formats. 2nd Friday of the month, September through June, 1-3pm.