Instructor Voices

14 Oct

Posted at 19:00h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Puppets, Stories: Unique Offerings
[caption id="attachment_13846" align="aligncenter" width="600"] The class display at Show and Tell (2013)[/caption] If you are looking for a unique class at the Folk School that incorporates visual art, mixed media, and performance into a week of puppet fun, check out David Stephens' class Hand-and-Rod Puppet Construction (April 10-16, 2016). When David teaches his class, an infectious feeling of whimsy, fun, and joyful energy permeates the campus. David has been a puppeteer and puppet maker for over 20 years and is founder of All Hands Productions in Atlanta, GA. I sat down with David during his last class here at the Folk School to find out a little more about the magic of puppetry. [caption id="attachment_13855" align="alignright" width="249"] David with his new alien creation[/caption] CP: Is the person who creates the puppet usually the puppeteer? DS: Some people are just builders, and some people are just performers. I do both and I feel like I am a more informed builder, because I am a performer, and vice versa. Understanding the mechanics of how the puppet is made makes me a better performer. Thinking like a performer makes me a better builder, because I know what I want the puppet to be able to do. It can be a symbiotic relationship. I like the visual art aspect just as much as the performance part. Making a puppet from scratch is very gratifying. You take this idea in your head and realize it in three dimensions, which is pretty cool. CP: Describe what a week is like in your Hand-and-Puppet Construction class. DS:  For the first few days, everybody is making the same basic form. By the end of the week, students are creating their own characters, using their imaginations to come up with different facial feature combinations. The personalities of the puppets start to come out later in the week. You see this extreme change in the room from things that look very much the same, to very distinct looking characters. The difference between the puppets that I make and the puppets that these students make is about 20 years of experience. We are all working with the same basic pattern. Experience is the only difference; otherwise we are making the puppets from exactly the same patterns and materials.

09 Aug

Posted at 18:00h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Book Arts, Stories: Paper Art
[caption id="attachment_13548" align="aligncenter" width="600"]A rare book in need of restoration A rare book in need of restoration[/caption] [caption id="attachment_13546" align="alignright" width="212"]Gian Frontini teaching in Lower Keith House Studio Gian Frontini teaching in Lower Keith House Studio[/caption] Gian Frontini has taught book making and restoration at the Folk School for many years. He runs a small bindery in Amherst Island, Ontario, and concentrates on restoration and conservation of early leather and vellum bindings. I talked Gian about his upcoming class: Book Restoration Clinic, about book making, the Folk School, and more. Enjoy our interview! CP: Tell me about yourself. Where are you from, and what originally brought you to Brasstown? GF: I live on an island in Lake Ontario with my wife Pat, who is professional potter and weaver. Amherst Island is a wonderful and peaceful place, ideal to lose yourself in your craft. My wife is English and I am Italian. We both came to Canada 50 years ago. I was employed in an international company and Canada is the place we loved the most of everywhere I worked all over the world. Brasstown came into our life when Pat met Martha Owen in 1999 at a spinners' conference. The next year we came to the school, and since then it has become a bigger, and bigger part of our life. [caption id="attachment_13544" align="alignright" width="272"]GIan's South Shore Bindery on Amherst Island Gian's South Shore Bindery on Amherst Island[/caption] CP: I know you have a cabin very close to the Folk School. Do you spend some of the year here? GF: We spend three months of the year here, usually in the fall and spring. The summers are too lovely on Amherst Island and I love the fierce frozen wastes of the Northern winters. It is incredible that we have the choice of such lovely places. CP: Why do you like teaching at the Folk School? GF: The Folk School is an unique sharing experience for both teachers and students. It is rare to find a place where you can freely exchange ideas and knowledge. I love teaching at the Folk School because I learn from the students and make so many good friends.

30 Jun

Posted at 21:03h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Dyeing, Stories: Surface Design
[caption id="attachment_13338" align="aligncenter" width="600"]Kathy Hays displays her eco print creations outside the Wet Room. Kathy Hays displays her eco print creations outside the Wet Room.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_13334" align="alignright" width="234"]Class projects Class projects[/caption] I stopped by the Wet Room to visit Kathy Hays' recent class "Eco Printing Meets Felt Making" to see what they were creating. I talked to Kathy about her craft and the joys of eco printing. Enjoy our interview! CP: Tell me about where you're from, what you do there, and about your craft. KH: I’m from Florida, an unusual area for felt making due to the climate. I began making felt here at the Folk School in 1999. After struggling and trying to figure how to make felt on my own, I was able to come here and after the first day, it was like all my questions were answered! The rest of the week was purely a bonus. CP: How is Nuno Felting different from other felting? KH: Felt making is wool fibers being arranged and then adding soap, water, and agitation. In the case of Nuno Felting, you are merging fibers through another fabric. The term is a little ambiguous. That fabric can be cotton, linen... anything that is thin enough for it to come through. It creates a unique texture when it does that.

25 May

Posted at 12:12h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Cooking
[caption id="attachment_13059" align="aligncenter" width="600"]The "Science of Bread" Class Photo, May 2015 The "Science of Bread" Class Photo, May 2015[/caption] Magical. That’s the word used over and over to describe a week at the Folk School. And there’s always something that makes the visit extra special: last May it was the baby barn swallows peeking over the edges of their nests in the rafters outside Davidson Hall. Bread-OutdoorTrio This year it was the mountain laurel in full bloom; the mother-to-be barn swallows sat patiently atop their nests. The Folk School is a magical place, but also, when you’re there, you slow down and pay attention to things like the birds and flowers. [caption id="attachment_13066" align="alignright" width="215"]Nicholas holds the focaccia fresh out of the oven. Nicholas holds the focaccia fresh out of the oven.[/caption] I was at the Folk School last week to teach my annual “Science of Bread” class—not a magical name by any means, but bread-making can be wondrous even when you know about the microorganisms and molecules that make it work. In addition to making dozens of loaves, the class started a sourdough starter by attracting wild yeasts and bread-making bacteria from the air into a container of flour and water. They also braved the production of salt-rising bread, a first for me. Making salt-rising bread is similar to creating a sourdough starter in that ingredients (in our case, raw potatoes, corn meal, sugar, and baking soda) are left out to attract microorganisms that cause the bread to rise when the dough is mixed the next day. (“Salt-rising” is a misnomer.) The ingredients are kept at 110 degrees, however, so that the microorganisms attracted to the mixture are different than the usual ones; this results in the unique flavor and aroma of salt-rising bread.

19 Mar

Posted at 13:06h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Clay
[caption id="attachment_12744" align="alignright" width="300"]Rob unbricks the kiln. Rob unbricks the kiln.[/caption] It's like Christmas Eve over at Smoke in the Mountains Pottery today because it's the day before the big wood kiln will be opened and unloaded. Many potters from all over the region contribute pots to be fired the traditional way in Rob Withrow's huge wood kiln. This is Rob's 13th wood firing at his studio. I stopped by and caught him taking a little peek inside the chamber and took the opportunity to talk to him about the firing and clay in general. Join us in the sneak peek... CP: So what are you doing right now? RW: I'm unbricking this kiln here that's been cooling for five days. We heated it up to 2500 degrees using only wood, and now it's like Christmas! You open it up and see what's inside and this time the kiln fired so beautifully; it's such a joy. CP: Nice, How many time have you fired this kiln? RW: It's been a hard road but I stuck with it, and by golly the community came forth and helped me all along the way. I fired it nine times unsuccessfully. A weaker man would have caved or a smarter man would have stopped, but I kept going and here we are! The community came together and knew I was having problems. We put a new chimney on it and it works like a charm now. Now it's a third of the wood, and a third of the time (than when we first started). [caption id="attachment_12738" align="aligncenter" width="565"]Beautiful pots from the March 2015 wood firing Beautiful pots from the March 2015 wood firing[/caption]

06 Mar

Posted at 15:52h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Felt Making
[caption id="attachment_12659" align="aligncenter" width="600"]Felted Rug Class with Becky Walker in the Wet Room Felted Rug Class with Becky Walker in the Wet Room[/caption] Felt is the oldest known fabric used by man. That stands to figure... felt is so easy to make, it was probably first discovered by accident. The recipe for felt, after all, is wool, moisture and agitation. Picture lining a sandal or shoe with raw wool to act as a cushion. Now picture walking around on that wool, smooshing it with every step, maybe sweating on it a bit to add the needed moisture. By the end of a long walk, you're not taking out bits of raw wool, but essentially a felted sock that fits your feet perfectly. While felting techniques have come a long way, that essential concept of felt making is still the same.  I sat down to talk with Becky Walker about her adventures with felt making. You've seen Becky around the Folk School campus wearing a knit hat, sweater or socks, or maybe on the dance floor wearing her felted name tag. Wherever you may meet Becky, her enthusiasm for her passions – music, dance, good food, good friends, animals and fiber – becomes clear right away. Let's meet her. [caption id="attachment_12657" align="alignright" width="208"]Becky and her felted name badge Becky and her felted name badge[/caption] CC: How did you first become interested in becoming a fiber artist? BW: Well, my mother taught me to knit when I was a real little kid, I was about seven. I've always loved animals, or anything with fur, anyway, and one thing lead to another. I've pretty much continued knitting through out my life so far. So I haven't knitted all my life yet (she laughs). CC: How did you discover the Folk School? BW: After I met Steve, my husband. He was a Folk School person and this was one of the first places we came. His son, Able lived over here, and he wanted me to meet Able and his mom. Of course we had to come dance because we were right here. Actually, I had encountered the Folk School in my early 20s in the book Handicrafts of the Southern Highlands. There was a chapter on the Folk School and I thought, “Wow, that seems like such a great place. I'd love to go there!” but didn't really think I ever would. So the fact that we came here right away was pretty neat, and I've been loving it ever since. It was a while before I got to take a class, so anyway, we'd come here to dance and see family. CC: What kind of fiber arts do you do? [caption id="attachment_12666" align="alignright" width="217"]Felted Rug with Woman Felted Rug with Woman[/caption] BW: Well, felt making is what I've become known for and I dabble a little bit with spinning. I'm not very good, but I just need to sit down at my wheel and do it more. CC: Martha Owen, the Folk School Resident Artist in Knitting and Spinning, told me a story about teaching you to spin and you told her you might be more interested in felt making, right? BW: I told her that I loved her, that I was interested in spinning, but I wasn't really ready to sit still yet. And so when I said that, she said “Well, you know, there's this thing called felt making and it's really active and I think you would like it. Carla is teaching a class here at the Folk School sometime coming up pretty soon and I think you should try that.” So I did.

04 Mar

Posted at 17:55h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Soap Making, Stories: Unique Offerings
[caption id="attachment_12633" align="aligncenter" width="600"]Tim Tyndall teaches Soap Making in the Wet Room Tim Tyndall teaches Soap Making in the Wet Room[/caption]

When I was a Work/Study in 2011, one of the classes I chose for my work/trade was Dr. T’s Soap Making class. For a total beginner, the class was an amazing introduction to the chemistry and art behind creating your own customized cold process soap batches. Dr. T (aka Tim Tyndall) teaches Soap Making regularly at the Folk School. I'm a huge fan of Tim and his soap... Enjoy our interview.

[caption id="attachment_12629" align="alignright" width="216"]Checking the temperature of the milk and lye. Checking the temperature of the milk and lye.[/caption]

CP: How did you become involved with the Folk School?

Dr. T: About 10-12 years ago, Charlotte Latin School bused their 8th grade “graduates to be” to the Folk School for a celebration where students could choose 2-4 classes over a 2-day period. A parent who had been a customer and attended one of my demonstrations here at the Soap Shed, suggested to someone at the Folk School that they contact me to do Soap Making segments for the Latin students.

The Folk School contacted me and I came down to initiate a soap class experiment. Things went well; the students were pleased; I had fun; and I was asked to propose what regular soap classes might look like for the curriculum. Soap Making classes have been a part of the “curriculum” since then. I guess I have kinda been the “lead dog,” so to speak.

CP: Why do you like teaching at the Folk School?

First and foremost, I have always loved teaching. I have been an educator and administrator at all levels from private high school, community college, and university, focusing in science. I live in Spruce Pine, NC where we have the Penland School of Crafts and taught in Rome, Georgia, home of the Berry School. These schools, like JCCFS and Berea, focus on the goal of helping mountain or rural people marshall their skills and talents from generations of practice towards economic gain and enrichment for themselves, their families, and their communities.

I expected this would be the “Spirit of the Folk School” which I so richly enjoyed my first visit. To be a part of that AND to share some of my self taught skills as a contemporary soap maker is a most satisfying endeavor. I have learned much “Lore” and have a cadre of stories about the history of soap making as a foundation craft in an earlier time and an artisan craft today. I teach because it is FUN and I love seeing my students accomplish things they came to the school thinking they could not do or understand. They surprise themselves and give a thrill at the same time. That’s why I like teaching at the Folk School.

16 Dec

Posted at 16:45h in Instructor Voices, Stories: Cooking
[caption id="attachment_12123" align="aligncenter" width="599"] Student Matt waits in front of the outdoor wood fired oven adjacent to the Cooking Studio while his artisan loaves bake.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_12128" align="alignright" width="202"]Woodfire-NanetteSpices Nanette in the Cooking Studio[/caption] Love the magic and allure of the wood fired flame? Do you savor the flavor of food cooked in a brick oven? The Cooking Studio at the John C. Campbell Folk School has not one, but two, wood fired brick ovens for students to bake all sorts of savory and sweet treats, from flatbreads and loaves, to roasted meats, fish & vegetables, to delicious curries & stews, and even pies, cakes & gingerbread cookies. In 1998, when I was asked to become the first Resident Artist for Cooking at the Folk School, I was eager to learn the art of wood fired baking in our brand new Woodstone Domed Pizza Oven which was installed in the Cooking Studio on the ground floor of Davidson Hall. We recognized the growing revival of interest in wood fired baking and we wanted to make these techniques available to our own community. A few years later, we added the second outdoor student-built oven, housed under a student-built timber-framed pavilion. Clay instructor, Mary Dashiell and her husband John designed and led the construction of that oven.