December 16: Card Painting with Courtney

Five ladies made LOVELY cards on Friday, December 16. Courtney Armstrong was the instructor. Check the class calendar for upcoming classes at the Topeka Art Guild!

During our Festive Open House, a few young artists dropped by to make ornaments.

December 6

November 29

It's always nice to have a mix of returning artists and new artists! I didn't do a very good job taking pictures this week....
We need an updated picture of that Van Gogh!

And our young ATC artists work so independently that I sometimes forget to get their pictures. 

November 15

A nice big group again! Unfortunately, I didn't capture EVERY artist....

November 1 and 2
In the Classroom...and in the Gallery....

November 1: We had a very small group of five in the Acrylic Painting for Beginners. 

There was also quite a bit of activity during Thursday's Open Studio hours. In the classroom, ten artists were working, while other artists were busy in the gallery, hanging a new exhibit. 

October 25

We had eight painters in the classroom! Several pieces were not yet finished. I hope to get photos of those lovely works next week. (I also missed a wonderful chickadee painting that was finished this week, but I didn't get a photo!)

October 18

Ten people in the classroom! Another great day! I was too busy to capture ALL the great art.

October 11

Ten painters made art in the Topeka Art Guild Classroom on Wednesday, October 11. It was a busy evening and some of the art did not get captured....but we all had fun!

October 4

Seven artists in the classroom.

September 20 and September 27

Seven in the classroom on the 20th. Six on the 27th. Each week we had a combination of returning artists and new artists!

September 13

We had a FULL house on September 13!

Several of our young artists completed more than one small painting. The variety of subjects and styles was amazing. 

Even MORE wonderful was the spirit of cooperation and sharing in our small classroom. Our tables were filled. The classroom was HOT. The host did not have everything perfectly organized. In spite of the less-than-perfect set-up,  everyone helped out and we all had a good time.

September 6

August 30

Anna works on an "overpainting" of Van Gogh's "Starry Night." Adding colors and textures greatly enhances this thrift store find! There are all kinds of art. There are many different ways to LEARN art. During the Open Studio hours at the Topeka Art Guild, members and guests enjoy every aspect of art-making!

August 23

Only four of us were in the class room on August 23: Three members and one guest. Lin worked on a landscape. She agreed to let me photograph it as a Work-In-Progress. Connie continued working on a Santa, which she began last week. Lila was here, but she was working on the TAG data base. 

August 16

What a BUSY afternoon!

Laurine, mistress of subtle delicate colors, tried a new technique: an under-layer of brown paint.  I need to try this!

Lila has added a delightful elephant to her collection of masterful watercolors. (Or should I say "watercolor-style paintings that now include some acrylics?) 

Connie began painting a Santa. The face is delightful. His cloak is bright and colorful. But there was much discussion about the background. Critiques are still very difficult for some of us. We all have different opinions about things, and even though I am the "teacher" for this workshop, I am a less-experienced artist than most TAG members. It will be interesting to see what Connie does with the background next week.

Lin continued working on a cat portrait. It's fun to see how paintings progress. Scroll down a bit to see an earlier verson!

Guest Corinne almost finished a darling little owl painting. She's joining us again next week!

August 9

Nine artists met this week. They worked with watercolor, colored pencils, and acrylic paint. 

Guild members benefit greatly from these sessions. Those who wish for a critique of their work can request it. Others give hints and help with peers who are learning new media. Most of all, it is a social meeting of kindred spirits. 

Open Studio is available every Thursday from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. "Wonderful Wednesdays" started out as an acrylic painting class, but quickly became a second Open Studio event, 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. So members have two opportunities to meet during the day and enjoy the company of fellow TAG artists.

"Wonderful Wednesdays" are open to the public from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM. If you know someone who is interested in joining the Topeka Art Guild, this is the perfect opportunity to see what goes on in the classroom.

We hope to include early evening (4:00-7:00 PM) sessions in September. Contact LuAnn Lawhon admin@TopekaArtGuild.org  if you are interested in this!

August 2

Wednesdays have become a day for "painting friends" to get together! Six TAG members were in the classroom on the first Wonderful Wednesday of August. One more member dropped by, and a potential member came to see what it was all about.

guild: an association of people for mutual aid or the pursuit of a common goal.

The event-that-occurs-on-Wednesday started out as an every-other-week acrylic painting class in May. In June and July, the name was changed to "Wonderful Wednesdays" and a few other art media were added. A few young people joined us to make art, since it was summer vacation.

We are continuing to meet at the same time in August:
TAG members can come to the classroom at 1:00.
Members of the public are invited to join us at 2:00.
Materials are available in the classroom.
A donation to TAG is requested, but not required.

The goal of WW has always been to encourage people to join TAG. Perhaps the best way to do this would be to change the hours of Wonderful Wednesdays to the evening, so that working persons have a chance to join us?

July 26

On Wednesday, four adults and one nine-year-old met in the TAG class room to make art.

Connie English finished this  watercolor, a commission for the owners of this delightful pair.

Malcolm made an alcohol ink tile and two Artist Trading Cards. (ATCs)

LuAnn Pepperwood attempted a tutorial by Marilyn Allis, from one of the many books available in the TAG classroom. (She used acrylic paint instead of watercolors and over-worked it... but experimentation and learning are what's important!)

Thursday's Open Studio group may attempt this tutorial on July 27, so better paintings are coming!

July 19

On July 12, we had SEVEN people in the classroom.

On July 19... only two.

Connie English is a prolific artist who can complete a small painting during our short sessions.

July 12

Three young artists came to the Wonderful Wednesday event.

Here are the "Box Sculptures" that they made!

July 5

Five people took part in the first "Wonderful Wednesday" of July. Gel prints, textured ATCs, and acrylic paintings were made.

June 28

Brothers Kaiden and Sylas have been to the Topeka Art Guild before. They came to one of the "Art for All" workshops in January and each completed several small projects.

But this time, they decided to work on larger pieces. Each young artist mixed paint for the first layer, carefully covered the canvas, and waited for it to dry. Then the fun began.

Sylas planned to paint a beehive, and we discussed various ways to get the look of a honeycomb. He tried using a hexagon stamp that we made from an eraser, but after a few stampings, he decided that wasn't the look he wanted. Next, he tried a hexagon cutout. For the next hour, he patiently outlined that little hexagon,  placing rows of honeycomb cells on his canvas.

Meanwhile, Kaiden had painted a green outline of a cactus. He asked about using a cutout cactus shape for add more to his canvas, but was open to discussing other techniques. We went out into the gallery and took a look at a wonderful mixed media piece by Marie Plinsky. 

Kaiden decided to add cutout shapes to his canvas. Several other artistic problems were worked out, and he was pleased enough with his painting to take the picture shown below.

photo by Kaiden

    

And here is the mixed media piece that inspired Kaiden: Marie Plinsky's "2 and 1/2"

Six people were making art on Wednesday, June 28. Since the Topeka Art Guild class room only has ten seats, and the host is still trying to get everything organized... that's a great group!

June 21

It was a small but active group this Wednesday.

Adam and Simon made art with alcohol ink on ceramic tiles. Macenna painted with acrylic paints.

June 14

"Wonderful Wednesday" was SO much fun!

First to arrive was Ella, who comes from Missouri. She has a fun and personalized souvenir of her trip to the Topeka Art Guild. Ella painted a lovely flower painting (which didn't get photographed), experimented with alcohol inks on a ceramic tile, and delighted us all by posing for selfies with us at the end of class!

Our second group, Anna and Isaac and Oliver, also painted with acrylics. The brothers painted smaller paintings, which fit on mini easels. Mom Anna brought a photo reference and painted an 8 x 10 canvas. When the paintings were completed, they all  experimented with gel plate printing.

TAG members Connie and Laurine also attended the event. They worked quite independently so that our guests could have plenty of support. Unfortunately, acrylic paints are sometimes hard to photograph. The tiny image on the right does not capture the lovely background colors and the great stroke work of Connie's peonies.

Laurine brought her own oil pastels, drew a rustic fence, and decided that she does NOT like oil pastels! Her normal medium is pencil, but one of the goals of "Wonderful Wednesdays" is to give artists a chance to try new media and techniques.

-- LL 230614

Oil Painting with Tyler Thornton

Pictures from the November Class:

Gel Plate Printing

Intro to Gel Plate Printing, with Michaela Butterworth

Sunday 11/5     2023
1-4 pm 
$40

Ever wondered what gel plate printing is and how to do it?

Come and spend a super fun, messy, painty, delightful afternoon with me and your friends.

In this class you will learn:

•   
• What supplies are needed and why
•   
• How to use the supplies
•   
• Successful gel printing techniques
•   
• Texture effects and mark making
•   
• Multi-layered prints

You will leave with handfuls of gel prints that you can use for future projects or stand alone projects.

Class Supplies List:

paint, aprons and wipes will be provided

• 5” x 7” Gel Plate
• Soft Rubber Brayer
• Texture combs
• Non-abrasive marking tools like silk leaves and flowers, corregated cardboard, rubber stamps, household utensils, lace, plastic stencils, netting, fabric, plastic scrapers – these will get paint on them

You can buy a gel plate on Dick Blick and TAG gets a little money back: