Purchase this digital product and receive a link to the YouTube video of the CraftyMonkies Online Interactive Workshop featuring leading designer, tutor & craft expert Gary Mills and his fabulous Inspiration Strips.
Once you have purchased this product, the PDF document you will receive contains a link to the private-access video on YouTube
We're really excited as always to welcome Gary Mills into the CraftyMonkies October schedule. In this, one of his wonderfully unique and crafted art and design classes, Gary will be teaching Inspiration Strips; here's the talented Mr Mills to tell you all about it!
Introduction by Gary:-
Have you always wanted to learn more about being creative? Have you wanted to explore design, but never had the opportunity? Well, this is just one of the lessons specifically designed for you by Gary Mills, where he has created a series of individual lessons that specifically are designed to be accessed by everyone and at all levels and abilities; This is for all of you who would like to learn and have a go, and those who enjoy being creative but would like to become a little freer and more open to some new ideas. If you love, colour, doodling and playing with scraps of paper, cloth, and ephemera then you are really going to enjoy your time on any of Gary’s Art and Design short lessons.
This lesson is about creating design-based inspiration strips or mini decorative pattern “stories” to inform and inspire both textile design and graphic design. These could later develop into print, embroidery, or a surface design. Even mounted and framed they also make great visual art you will be proud of.
You will be taking ideas from African tribal costume and decoration (images supplied), then through undertaking a series of processes to extract shapes and patterns to translate into your own ideas and design. This will not be a conventional art & drawing lesson, far from it; but rather a fun and informative approach to creating art & design.
What You Will Learn in this Online Interactive Workshop:-
In this short 1 ½ hour lesson you will cover exporting a pattern and shapes from chosen photo images, application of water colour paint techniques, illustration, and collage.
The outcome to this project is a series of decorated strips in mixed media approaches 1 ½ “ x 17” mounted
Skill Level for this Online Interactive Workshop:-
Gary has many years of experience as a professional practitioner and teacher of art and textiles; his lessons are so enjoyable, fun, and very well organised with his clear and patient guidance. This lesson is suitable for all; if you are a beginner this is a great way to find your creative ability through learning process and skills which explore the rudiments of creative art and design practices. For those with some confidence and experience you could add further diversify to approaches in your own artistic ability and imagination.
Material requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-
All the materials are easily accessible. Such as papers and inks and paints can be sourced from local shops or online and most other materials can be found around your sewing box or in your desk draw.
You will need for this workshop:
· Something to make black ink permanent marks with, such as a gel pen, ball point pen
· A Glue stick such as a Pritt Stick or similar
· Masking tape
· A set of simple water colour paints
· 1 sheet of good quality paper A3 either water colour paper or mixed media paper 250g /m2 -135lb (I have used a sheet from Winsor & Newton brand but there are many on the market and some art suppliers will sell individual sheets of paper)
· 1 x sheet of good quality cartridge paper for mounting your finished work
· Some lengths of either red raffia or red embroidery thread for wrapping around the strips
Equipment requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-
· Sharp paper scissors / craft knife and cutting mat
· 2x containers such as a jam jars to hold some clean water.
· A large plate or a palette for mixing paint
· 1 small paint brush 1x medium sized flat paint brush
· Some paper kitchen towel to hand
· Ruler or quilting / crafting square
· Pencil and rubber
· Important: A hair-dryer to hand when speed-drying is required
Additional Information relevant to this Online Interactive Workshop:-
Those attending the workshop will receive Gary’s Selection of images to use as inspiration for this design-based lesson.