Book of Shadows

Mixed media, altered book workshop with Cathy Stoyko

                       at the Abbey in Cumberland Oct. 6th and 7th

      Join Cathy Stoyko at the Abbey Studio in Cumberland for an intensive 2 day exploration of mixed media painting and altered book techniques, visual story telling and creating with intention. Using 2nd hand and 'freestore' children's board books as the base you will create a personal art book, your own a 'Book Of Shadows'. It could also be called a Book of; Wisdom, Dreams, Magic, Prayers, Visions... you decide. We will use images a

nd text to tell stories, honour muses, manifest visions, record dreams, recipies, significant memories, lists and more. This may end up being a work in progress and a jumping off point for future projects. Learn fun mixed media techniques that can be applied to other art practices, perfect for new and experienced artists.

     "We will start by sanding and priming the pages with gesso. While these are drying we will look at examples of altered books and mixed media art and I'll demo a variety of mixed media techniques. Then we will start creating backgrounds and layers on the pages. For each page spread I'll suggest some ideas and give you prompts to jump off from. Work stations with tools, materials and prompts will be set around the room to use during the workshop and a creative flurry will be had!"

    Cathy has been active in the arts in the Comox Valley community for over a decade and loves to share her passion for creating. She has taught various mixed media art workshops in the past for children and adults at the Dennman Island Arts Centre, at the Abbey, Comox Valley Art Gallery and through the Denman Island and Cumberland community schools.


    The workshop will take place on the weekend of Oct 6th and 7th. Conact Cathy for more information and to pre register at cdstoyko@unserve.com or call (250) 218-0704. Bring a lunch or plan to pick something up at one of the near by Cumberland cafes. Class size is limited to 10 people and if you register by Sept. 30th  pay only $100(m

ost materials and tools are included and provided). Those who register will get a list of suggested ideas and things to bring like personal ephemera, photos/copies and basic tools to bring. 

The Abbey Studio is lcated at the corner of 1st & Penrith Ave. in Cumberland.

Collaborative Book Projects For All Ages

above pages from a community art jam, collaborative  book
"I believe__________" (you finish the sentence)




Recently I was staying with a dancer friend of mine in Seattle, Julia. She is working on a collaborative story book with her daughter's class, her daughter is eight. My daughter is close to the same age and I have been thinking about doing a similar project at her school. Hearing about her book got me inspired again. Julia's idea is to retell the story of The Woman Who Swallowed A Fly (I don't know why she swallowed a fly...) Each child makes up their own verse and designs a larger, fancy capital letter to start the verse off with. Also, everyone creates an image in a specified size to go with the verse. She plans to altar an existing book or create a book and then arrange the pages with a verse and an image on each page. Her vision is for the book to be large and in the style of an old fashioned fairy tale book. Sounds like a fun project and I hope to keep you updated and post a photo of the finished book. Here are some photos of 'fun for all ages' collaborative book projects that I've organized in the past. I encourage you to create your own collaborative book project. Plan an art jam, take it to the classroom or collaborate with others from near and far through the mail! See my older posts from 2010 for more details, photos and instructions about collaborative book projects like:

October- Exquisite Corpse Collaborative Board Book (how to)

 November- Art Jam Report  "I believe_______"

 December- Moonlight Madness Collaborative Book Project

Exquisite Corpse collaborative board book

 
collaborative alphabet book

Random Acts of Creativity and Love

  Valentine Fairies Shower Cumberland with Love!

Feb. 14th, 2012 was my first Valentine's day in Cumberland B.C. I was delighted to learn that it's a modern Cumberland tradition for anonymous 'Valentine Fairies' to plaster the main st. with hundreds of hearts bearing words of wisdom about love. I had the fortune of strolling down Dunsmuire St. that day on my way to the park and took these photos. Enjoy!