Flora on the Gel Plate: a #PostConsumerWaste Art Project
Date: Mar 1-3, 2024 (10am-4pm; 1 hour break for lunch)
Cost: $385 NOW $300 (hurry! last-minute signup discount)
*Scholarships are available, email RMFS for full details.
Level: Beginner & Intermediate
Instructor: Robyn McClendon
Location: Grand Lake Center – 301 Marina Dr, Grand Lake, CO 80447
In this 3-day workshop we will explore an age-old art technique of mono printing to capture the amazing details of flora on paper. Using many of the techniques that I share in my newly released book “Gel Plate Printing for Mixed Media Art” you will learn how to create beautiful images with acrylic paints and inks. Printing with wild abandon there is a freedom in learning the basics and best practices for printing some amazing images using inspired color palettes and plant material to create your own very unique images.
We will then in the second half of this workshop bind these images in a book structure that I have designed that uses #postconsumerwaste, cardboard boxes, to create a beautiful highly functional book structure. This easy to learn and create book does not require sewing. We will actually be tying and knotting string to create a lay flat structure whose pages turn with ease of a traditional book.
What is a #PostConsumerWaste Art Project?
As an Artist and Creative that receives a large amount of inspiration for my work from nature, I have reused found objects and antique age ephemera and fabrics in my artwork for many years. As a content creator I’ve created hundreds of videos teaching many of my techniques to creatives. As I look out into the world and gathering inspiration from the many found objects it became increasingly harder for me not to notice the number of papers, junk mail and cardboards boxes, to name just a few of the categories the consumer waste falls into. It really hit home during the lockdown years of 2021 and 2022, I, like many others, was forced to order my supplies online and the amount of plastics and papers that come across my threshold was disturbing, I felt obligated to do something with this consumer waste. Thus, was born #postconsumerart in homage to artists using consumer waste in their creations. Inspired by Marcel Duchamps readymade art of the 50’s, a new direction was formed to capture some of the similar culturally inspired concepts that his art reflected. I try to discover creative, inspiring and yet effective ways to re-use these waste products in my work.
Supply List
- Gel Plate, 8×10 – (here’s a 10% off coupon for students who don’t have a plate; just go to gelliarts.com and use the coupon code ROBYNM at checkout)
- Brayer
- Acrylic paints an assortment (any that you already have or standard beginner grade paints)
- Copier paper
- Ink pads preferably a dark blue (and any that you may already have 2-3 will be plenty)
- Scissors
- Metal ruler
- Glue stick and or PVA white glue
- Glue brush (an old paint brush is perfect)
- Hand held single hole punch
- Ball of twine or yarn (anything you may already have)