Make a Hanging Mobile: Kinetic Art Workshop

A mobile is a sculpture that refuses to settle on a final version of itself.

Kinetic artist Dana Angotta opens with a short look at where kinetic art came from and a grounding movement exercise, then turns the room loose on materials. Students design and build a hanging mobile of their own, working out balance by trial and error until the whole thing floats the way it should.

Good to know. $115 for the afternoon, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Pour and Flow: Acrylic Paint Pouring

Acrylic pouring is the rare art form where the less you interfere, the better it usually goes.

This beginner-friendly session covers mixing and layering the paints, several different pouring techniques, and how to steer the flow across a canvas to get marbling, cells and blooms. Nobody in the room can predict exactly what they will end up with, which is the appeal.

Good to know. $90 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Cloud Study

Clouds are the thing every landscape painter has to solve, and most people avoid solving.

This introductory acrylic workshop goes through several common cloud types and talks properly about light, texture, environment and intent as the paintings develop. Students leave with a finished cloud study and, more usefully, a way of looking at a sky that survives long after the class.

Good to know. Ages 16 and up. $130 for the afternoon, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Cyanotype on Fabric

Cyanotype on paper is one thing. On cloth it behaves differently, and that is the whole point of this session.

The workshop covers the photosensitive chemistry and the prep work needed to coat your own textiles, then puts it into practice on tea towels and fabric patches. Students see first-hand how material and weave change the way the blue develops, which is knowledge that transfers to anything you print on afterward.

Good to know. $102 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Block Print Your Holiday Cards

A hand-printed card is the one piece of holiday mail that does not go straight into the recycling.

Students create an original image, carve it into a printing block, and print a small edition to send out. The session covers the essentials of relief printmaking — transferring your design, carving safely, inking, registration, and pulling a crisp impression on good paper. Start early enough and you will actually get them posted.

Good to know. $130 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Make a Hanging Mobile: Kinetic Art Workshop

A mobile is a sculpture that refuses to settle on a final version of itself.

Kinetic artist Dana Angotta opens with a short look at where kinetic art came from and a grounding movement exercise, then turns the room loose on materials. Students design and build a hanging mobile of their own, working out balance by trial and error until the whole thing floats the way it should.

Good to know. $115 for the afternoon, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Introduction to Cyanotype: Botanical Sun Printing

Cyanotype is nearly two centuries old and still the most satisfying photographic process there is, because you can watch it happen.

Students work with light-sensitive materials, plants and daylight to make striking blue-and-white prints of botanical subjects. The chemistry is simple, the results are not, and the two hours cover enough that you could keep doing this at home in your own back garden afterward.

Good to know. $70 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Print Your Own Holiday Cards: Screen Printing Workshop

Screen printing gives you crisp colour and a stack of identical cards, which is exactly what December calls for.

Working from a selection of seasonal designs, students learn the basics of screen printing and produce a small edition of festive cards to send out. It is a hands-on afternoon rather than a demonstration — you are the one pulling the squeegee, and you go home with the results.

Good to know. $110 for the afternoon, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Pictures in Weaving

Tapestry is the oldest way of making a picture that you can also fold up and carry home.

Working on frame looms, students build a sampler tapestry and use colour, line, shape and texture to create imagery rather than pattern. The weekend covers the foundational techniques — plain weave, hatching, colour blending, slit tapestry, interlocking — each one a different way of making an edge or a transition do what you want.

Good to know. $330 for the weekend, in the Fiber Studio at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Pour and Flow: Acrylic Paint Pouring

Acrylic pouring is the rare art form where the less you interfere, the better it usually goes.

This beginner-friendly session covers mixing and layering the paints, several different pouring techniques, and how to steer the flow across a canvas to get marbling, cells and blooms. Nobody in the room can predict exactly what they will end up with, which is the appeal.

Good to know. $80 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Introduction to Cyanotype: Botanical Sun Printing

Cyanotype is nearly two centuries old and still the most satisfying photographic process there is, because you can watch it happen.

Students work with light-sensitive materials, plants and daylight to make striking blue-and-white prints of botanical subjects. The chemistry is simple, the results are not, and the two hours cover enough that you could keep doing this at home afterward.

Good to know. $80 for the session, in the River Room at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.

Pictures in Weaving

Tapestry is the oldest way of making a picture that you can also fold up and carry home.

Working on frame looms, students build a sampler tapestry and use colour, line, shape and texture to create imagery rather than pattern. The weekend covers the foundational techniques — plain weave, hatching, colour blending, slit tapestry, interlocking — each one a different way of making an edge or a transition do what you want.

Good to know. $330 for the weekend, in the Fiber Studio at 286 Whisconier Road. Prices and openings change, so check the registration page before you plan around it.