Engineers solve puzzles.
A maze is a collection of paths that usually have an entrance and a goal. Some require persistent following. Some require resourceful problem solving. Some mazes lead to treasures. Some to mysteries. Some mazes are built to entertain. Some are designed to test the courage of heroes.
Engineers build solutions.
With a nod to the Japanese master Denha, construct a battery powered pump that will lift steel marbles 8”
continuously. Then catch and channel the marbles through switches. spirals and jumps ready to begin again.
By the afternoon, you will be able to send your marbles to a friend’s machine and have it return. The goal for the day: a workshop wide web of marbles in motion.
Fee: $70
Engineers explore the properties of materials.
Humans have invented ways to make marks that are their own since the beginning of civilization. Perhaps making marks is the beginning of culture?
70 years ago Charles and Ray Eames created interchangeable cards that connected to build sculptures and structures. They marked their cards with the forms and colors of modern art. With a nod to their genius, we have created blank cards for you to experiment with.
Ryan has been working to create radically simple access to the exquisite speed, precision, and power of the Laser Cutter.
Use the most basic analog drawing tools and gridded paper to construct a maze within the boundaries of a square, a circle, or…for the season…a heart. The machine will reproduce in birch the paths you have crafted. A little glue up. A little sanding. A steel bearing will work its way through your labyrinth.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Adults and Ages 17+
Cost: $75
Ryan Paxton is a designer, workshop director, and ceramicist.
One of Susan remarkable gifts: her eye for the intentions of your fingers. She can help you see and recreate the elegant architecture of your hand in a small clay maquette. Imperceptible pinches find proportion, balance and gesture. Sand and finish a hardwood base. The hands will be dried and fired and your to pick up in a week. No experience necessary.
Monday, February 3, 2020
Adults and Ages 17+
Fee: $75
Susan Clinard is a sculptor, activist, and an Artist in Residence at the Eli Whitney Museum.
Craft a gift for a loved one…or for yourself. Carve a classic wooden spoon from New England hardwood. An introduction to traditional techniques by a master of the art (with a little modern technological help to get things started.) Bring utility and beauty from a piece of wood once considered dead, and perhaps en route to the wood stove.
No experience necessary. Reinaldo will help you access your inner woodcarver in one evening.
Monday, January 27, 2020
Adults and Ages 17+
Fee: $75
Reinaldo is a carver, woodworker, educator, and gardener.
To accept one another, we must understand how much we share.
In December, the New York Times published an article titled Around the World in 5 Kids Games. It observed children from different backgrounds playing hand-clapping games in five New York neighborhoods. The words and movements in each chant were different. The joy was the same.
Learn games from Haiti, Korea, Yemen, Poland, and the Dominican Republic (simplified a bit). Play jacks and spin tops from around the world. Learn that play is a language that transcends borders.
The Swiss Artist Paul Klee was born 140 years ago. Invention was changing the world – Bell's telephone, Edison's light bulb and phonograph. Klee brought invention to art. His inspiration: find art in unexpected materials and places.
Learn to 'paint' with tissue paper and glue to assemble beautiful and mysterious backgrounds. Sculpt fish by using Quilling techniques (rolling colorful paper strips). Why fish? Fish are nature's boldest experiment. There are at least 5000 types that no one has yet discovered or imagined. (Well that's until you're done.)
Dominoes were invented in China 1000 years ago. They traveled the world and developed new games and customs in each culture that played with them. Construct a classic set of dominoes. Play both common and uncommon games from the North, South, East, and West…in friendly competion.
In the afternoon, organize to build a 1000 domino rally…with thoughtful cooperation.
Fee: $70
Hone your puzzle-solving skills and thrive, despite starting off with nothing. Skyblock is a popular challenge map for Minecraft that starts you off with extremely limited resources, yet with careful planning, it's possible to expand and accomplish tasks that seem impossible.
In this workshop we'll walk step-by-step over the basics of multiplying your starting resources, and later work as a group to create a bustling city from nearly nothing.
Fee: $70
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