Carla Sonheim-Artist and Author – Art Camp for Women

By admin, on February 10th, 2012%

Below is a guest post from Carla Sonheim.

Carla Sonheim will be our guest artist/instructor for the Mini-Deluxe  Art Camp for Women, this fall from October 9-12.

Also, watch for Carla’s new book, “Drawing and Painting Imaginary Animals: A Mixed Media Workshop with Carla Sonheim.”  Published by Quarry Books,  due out in bookstores this fall.

Art by Carla Sonheim

Book Art with Carla Sonheim

 Hello! This is Carla Sonheim guest blogging for Art Camp for Women.

I am super excited to be teaching for two days this October in beautiful Colorado. We will be creating two or more artist’s books using the following ingredients:

  • 3+ T. watercolor
  • 1 c. gesso
  • 1 pencil
  • colored pencils,
  • markers,
  • and ink pens galore
  • a stack of junk mail
  • watercolor paper
  • a pinch of drawing
  • a pile of inspiration
  • a lot of creativity
  • and a whole lot of fun!
  • (all ingredients supplied at Camp)

We’ll start by splashing around paint on various surfaces (including junk mail):

This is the “No Worries” part of the workshop!

Carla Sonheim book 2

Book on Junk Mail by Carla Sonheim - her quirks are starting to show...

Then we’ll slow down and pull together the chaos with pencils, pens and more paint, if necessary.
(I tend to pull out animals, but you will be free to do your own thing, for sure!)

Carla Sonheim 3

Relax and paint

This is the “Still No Worries” portion of the workshop!

Carla Sonheim 3b

Squint your eyes - and there it is!

In my teaching I always include a short drawing session (don’t worry-these are easy drawing exercises for all levels of skill)  so you can get more comfortable with pen and paper and begin to know this truth:

D r a w i n g  i s  F u n
(it is!)

…and if you don’t think so, please consider letting me show you how fun it can be!

Bonus: 3 step – 10 minute – Art Tutorial

Even if you can’t make the workshop, you can still try some of these things at home:

  1. Get some watercolors and paper and paint a random “blob,” kind of like this:

    Carla 4

    Sample Paint Blob

  2.  Let dry completely.
  3. Turn your paper around and around until you “see” something… an animal, a face, the beginning of a landscape… then, using a combination of pencil, markers, colored pencils, ink, “finish” what is already started!

I’ve found this to be a great way to work in my sketchbook or whenever I’m feeling a little stuck… it takes all the pressure off of “what to draw” and I end up with animals and drawings of things that I would never have tried on my own!

Editorial note: If you can’t wait for Carla’s new book check out her book currently available:  Drawing Lab For Mixed-Media Artists: 52 Creative Exercises to Make Drawing Fun! also published by Quarry Books.

3 comments   About Camp, Art Camp for Women, Art Classes, Art Workshops, Bookmaking

Weaving Wonderment with Kelli Nina Perkins

By admin, on July 29th, 2011%

Click here to join us this fall October 11 – 17 in Winter Park Colorado

2 comments   About Camp, Art Camp for Women, Art Classes, Art Workshops, Books, Kelli Nina Perkins, Video

Kelli Nina Perkins|Art Workshops for October| A Peek to Pique Your Curiosity

By admin, on July 15th, 2011%

Kelli Nina Perkins a Peek to Pique

Peek to Pique - Art Workshops in October


Appearing out of the mist of the enchanted forest of the internet, Kelli lures us into her spell with the subtle approach to her oh-so-unsubtle, magical, mixed-media art.
“During Art Camp, we’ll have plenty of time to veer off the beaten path to explore randomness in all its forms.” Kelli invites and then casually adds, “We’ll make random poetry, do some random art journaling, make some random marks with bleach, paint, stamps and foil, meander on our pages with random thread sketching and see what happens when we leave the safety of our comfortable art nest. We may just find that we can fly!”

“We will?” We all gulp incredulously.
“I can’t write!” cries one.
“I do not do random well at all,” says another with despair.
“And I don’t think I am up to this!” sighs another.
“How do you propose we go about this?” We all look hopefully to Kelli, the blue-haired goddess.

“On the first morning of the art workshops, we’ll weave wonderment by incorporating vintage text from old books into a variety of forms, creating a subtext of meaning that burbles below the surface. Sorting through lost words, we’ll let other voices speak in lines of random poetry we turn into art.” Kelli is so clever, soothing our anxious voices.

“And then after our (scrumptious) lunch, we’ll surprise ourselves by finding out we can turn a simple pen sketch into a glorious fabric surface.” With a deprecating shrug she turns away.

“But then what will we do?” We call after her. She turns to smile and wave, fading back into the misty internet, leaving us waiting to hear more from Kelli in our next newsletter.

Leave a comment   About Camp, Art Camp for Women, Art Classes, Art Journaling, Art Workshops, Kelli Nina Perkins

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Blogging with Beth is coming to Mini Camp June 4-7, 2012

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