Summer Reminiscing

York Days
As the leaves begin to change, apple picking is on the brain and chimneys are being prepared for nightly fires, it's nice to reminisce about the summer here in Maine.

We had a great summer with lots of events at Artascope including summer ArtEscape Weekend Retreats, Artist Series and Art Night Out Classes, but did you know we took the show on the road? Betina and Suzanne sold their beautiful work while promoting Artascope Studios at York Days this summer. It's a great place to meet some new folks and let them know about our studio offerings. Our stewards have also been out on a cruise ships and participated in Buxton Days to broaden our base and get to know our growing community. Always a great time. Can you feel the sunshine?

New York Etsy Visit
Our talented manager, Suzanne Kiertianis, made a special trip this summer to visit the Etsy Lab in Brooklyn, NY. For those who are unfamiliar with the Etsy phenomenon....check out http://www.etsy.com/ to see what this craft industry giant is all about!

Suzanne has a fabulous time! There was a recipe slam night and bake sale during her visit. Baked goods were for sale from Sweet Tooth of the Tiger who inspired the event. All participants brought in recipes that were scanned and printed onto colored paper and everyone combined them all to create a simple'zine style binding. Suzanne added Cinnamon Puffs to the event, a favorite that her grandmother taught her to cook. She brought her Brooklyn friend with her who shared her mother's sacred Kugel recipe! All the goodies were delicious and Suzanne loved the lemon cookies the best. Etsy is that fabulous website that everyone should know about and now they have opened a small portion of their creative studios to the public! So glad Suzanne was able to get a taste of the Etsy way of life!

What creative plans do you have this week?

Wireworked Votive

Looking to learn some wireworking skills that go beyond the realm of jewelry making? Betina Clark will show you ways to work with copper, brass or silver wire to twist, shape and wrap to create these fun and elegant luminaries. Monday September 29th 6-9pm $45

Wireworking Briolettes

Using sterling silver wire, findings, and a few beads to accent your set, learn the secrets to success of wirewrapping briolettes. Stephanie Plourde, one of our new Artascope Teachers, will help you create a stunning pendant with coordinating earrings. Makes 1 necklace and pair of earrings. Thursday October 2nd from 6-9pm $85

Stained Glass Panel

Learn the secrets of stained glass while creating a dazzling accent for your home! Gayle Raposa will help you create your own design or use one from our collection. We have a colorful selection of glass to inspire you as you learn to cut, grind, tape, and solder your panel. Saturday Oct 4th from 2-6pm $65

Just follow this link and sign up....it's that easy....http://www.artnightout.com/sept2008.htm

Metals Anyone? Betina's Class Reviews

Metals Review
If you are looking for a great class to learn about metals, how about checking out one of Betina Clark's offerings! She recently taught two different metal techniques in our Metalsmith studio that will be coming back again in the Art Night Out fall schedule very soon. Check out the studio pictures we took during the classes.

Sewn Metal Jewelry:This is a great place to get familiar with our studio and working with jewelry. Students try out different hammers, stamps, and master the rolling mill while learning about basic drilling techniques. Playing with textured metals and accent beads, Betina assists students to create wonderful design that is sewn together! Each Student made a pendant or pair of earrings.

Hammered Metal Jewelry:Betina's popular Hammered Metal Jewelry took center stage a few weeks back. Students used heavy gauge silver, copper or brass wire to create marvelous pendants, rings, bracelets and earrings. they learned how to shape, hammer and finish their work with professional metalsmithing tools. The results were fantastic. Lots of clanging and chatting during class while everyone worked hard on making their unique jewelry. You will definitely turn some heads wearing one of your own beautiful creations.So have I peaked your interest? Betina will be back in the studio teaching Hammered Metal Jewelry on Monday October 6th from 6-9pm. The cost is $55 per student and you can register online. It's really important to preregister to ensure you reserve your spot. Betina will be teaching the Sewn Metal Jewelry class on Thursday Oct 23rd from 6-9pm for $75. Feel free to follow this link to our October class listings. You can register from this page and learn out more info on the class. http://www.artnightout.com/oct2008.htm

Artascope Teacher Highlight-Clint Fulkerson

Clint Fulkerson is our newest Artascope teacher. We are so grateful to have an innovative, talented metalsmith and artist working in our jewerly studio along side our other talented staff. Clint just kicked off his first Artist Fall Metalsmith Series on Wednesday nights starting last Wednesday the 17th. We expect great things from his students and will be sure to showcase their jewelry when finished.

So how about a little history on this talented artist: Clint Fulkerson is a Portland native who spent his childhood playing video games, making labyrinths for his hamsters, building model ships, teaching his brother how to draw in exchange for Kung Fu lessons, and pondering the true colors of dinosaurs.

During High School, he experimented using pen and ink, pastels, watercolor, acrylic paints, and ceramics. He took oil painting classes on Saturdays at Maine College of Art. In his Senior year, Clint was chosen to attend Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, where he tried cyanotype printing and steel forging. He went to Massachusetts College of Art intending to study illustration, but chose to study metalsmithing after seeing the tools and the incredible, small-scale objects students were making in the department. While at Mass Art, he also studied intaglio printing, black and white photography, glass casting, welding, website creation, and 3D computer modeling.

In Boston, he taught wax carving and lost-wax casting at Diablo Glass and Metal, and made jewelry from his studio there. He also worked at Haynes Flute Company casting flute parts in silver and gold, soldering, and managing inventory. In July of 2006, he and his wife Kate decided to move back to Portland, but first took a month long adventure in England, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. They had the opportunity to see a daunting amount of art, especially in London, Paris, and Amsterdam.

He currently has a studio in Portland. His drawings are in the Drawing Center's viewing program and is represented in Portland by Four Walls Gallery. You can learn more about Clint and view some of his 2 dimensional work at http://www.clintart.com/. To learn more about his Artist Series at Artascope Studios and check out our newest offerings, go to http://www.artnightout.com/artistseries.htm.

Sampling of Early September Art Night Out Classes

Sampling of Early September ANO Classes
SO how did you spend your Labor Day? I am sure it seems like eons ago, even though it's only been a few weeks. Libby Barrett spent the morning of Labor Day Libby spent teaching and learning with an Artascope student Lisa, who really has been wanting to do some book binding. Together they worked hard in our paper studio to deconstruct the ins and outs of making books, in order to figure out how to put it all back together again. It was a successful venture and both Libby and Lisa enjoyed their time and learned a lot about this craft. Not a bad way to bring in the September month.

Lavish Scarf with Diane
Diane Brakeley taught the Lavish Fibers Scarf class last week. Students learned to design and combine fibers onto a soluble Mokuba Free Lace which is then stitched together with colorful threads in our sewing room. The scarves are carefully washed to dissolve the Free Lace backing to leave you with unique, exotic designs. Paula is modeling her beautiful scarf for us! Valerie, another Artascope patron was a part of this class and a very active student during the summer months. We love it when our students are inspired to come back time and time again.

You maybe wondering what exactly is Mokuba? It's a water soluble products suitable for your sewing needs and it is quite unique. Typical water soluble products have 1-2 layers of plastic, slippery layers. Mokuba Free Lace is thicker than most, so it's less likely to tear and fold on you as you work with it- particularly at the stitching phase. It is the highest quality of water soluble being sold, plus is very easy to work with.
Painted Floor Cloth
Libby Barrett was back on the scene with her 2 week Art Night Out Class, The Painted Floor Cloth. The first night is spent planning out designs, sketching and figuring out the right paint combinations. The underpainting or background will be applied to allow a solid week for it to dry. The follow up week, students will lay down their final designs. Always a great class. Whenever you walk by the painting studio, there is always a little laughter and lots of creative energy bouncing around the room. Always a fun place to stop and check out the progress. There's lots more classes where these came from....are you game?http://www.artnightout.com/sept2008.htm

Artascope's 3rd Anniversary and The End of Summer Sale Follow up

Happy Birthday Artascope!
We celebrated our 3rd birthday with a very successful End of Summer Sale last weekend. The weather was perfect....if not a little too hot for some looking for a cool Autumn day. The fog rolled in late in the afternoon to announce the end of the sale. No one was disappointed with the great goods we had to offer and there weren't too many shoppers left without an item or two from all our gifted artists.

A neighbor of mine commented that it was nice to have a little excitement in South Portland and the we created quite a traffic buzz. People kept pulling up and taking a peek at what we were up to. It was nice to see the community so alive! We created lots of new contacts from people near and far that were always curious about us, but had never stopped in to check us out. Stewards were available to tour the crowds around the studio and gallery. We couldn't ask for anything more.

Suzanne presented Catherine with the sweetest chocolate cake for their shared 3rd year anniversary. These two hot shots are the reason Artascope runs so smoothly. Catherine was smart to gobble up Suzanne when she had the chance. They are a great team and the proof is in the pudding...or the cake in this case. I've included a shot of a few of our Artascope Stewards past and present surrounding Catherine and the luscious cake. Be sure there was much sampling occurring after the photos.

So check out some of the action from the day's event. Excitement is already building for our 34rd annual holiday show....can you believe it's just around the corner? Get ready to shop for sure!

Artascope Steward Spotlight- Diane Brakeley

Diane Brakeley
On Sept. 20, Diane Brakeley, our very talented Artascope Steward and Teacher, will be selling her artwork at the Maine Genealogical Society’s 2008 Annual Conference. This conference will be held at the Wyndham Hotel in South Portland, Maine. Vendors will be open from 8am to 4pm. Most booths will be advertising genealogical groups, selling historical books, or offering photo refinishing.

So how does Diane fit into this fascinating group? She makes found object jewelry, using items that have a history and a genealogy of their own! Not to mention that Diane is a genealogy enthusiast herself.

Her favorite items right now are her bracelets made from vintage cuff links or lapel pins. Your male ancestors might have left behind boxes of these items. If you can’t throw these away and they are just sit in a box, maybe you would like to talk to Diane about making them into something memorable for you to wear. She can refashion them into really unusual bracelets. She can make you a necklace from your grandmother’s silverware (or someone else’s) or weave the seat of your favorite ladderback chair with your grandfather's ties! Check out her typewriter key jewelry made from typewriters from the 20s-40s, too.

Diane's booth at the Genealogy conference is called “Presents with a Past” if you find yourself wondering through next weekend. Diane's business name is Della Mano Designs. Dellamano is her maiden name, which is Italian and means “of the hand”. Rather appropriate for what she does! Check out some of her newest work at our Artascope Gallery. Diane will be back teaching at Artascope on Monday September 22nd, 6-9pm, with her Mail Art Class. Take collaging to a new level and chat with Diane about her genealogy weekend...should be fun. Find out more about Diane's upcoming classes by following our link. http://www.artnightout.com/sept2008.htm

Artascope's 1rst Annual End of Summer Sale Excitement

End of Sale Preparations
The word it out and everyone is gearing up for tomorrow's great End of Summer Sale here at Artascope Studios. Although the rain clouds seem to be appearing on the horizon and the threat of a few raindrops may be in our near future, looks like everything will clear up for our big day tomorrow. Temps in the upper 60s/lower 70s and lots of sunshine midday. What a perfect fall day.The artists are preparing for the big event, the staff is making sure everything will go smoothly and hopefully you are anxiously waiting to see all the goodies we have to share! This is a great time to do some early holiday shopping and meet the artists. All participants will be there on hand to talk about their work, answer questions and help you find the perfect treasures. We will have a central check out inside in our newly remodeled gallery, so there is only one place to stop with all your items. We accept credit cards, cash and checks to make your buying experience convenient and easy. So what are you waiting for? See you all tomorrow from 10am-4pm! http://www.artascope.com/shopsummersale08.htm

Fall Artist Series News

There's a little chill in the air. It's time to start thinking about taking some of your activities inside. So what are you planning to do for yourself this fall? What about learning a new craft or deepening your artistic skills?

Suzanne, our amazingly talented studio manager, has been working hard over the summer to wrangle up some very talented teachers and expanding our Artist Series listings. The Artist Series is a 6 week class to allow you to really indulged your inner artist, investigate materials and connect with fellow free spirits. Our Early Fall Artist Series will begin this Sunday, Sept 14th, with a brand new addition, PMC with Ann Liller. She has become quite a PMC star over the years. Her Art Night Out Classes and ArtEscape Weekends are always packed, so make sure to take advantage of learning about this amazing silver clay material with our PMC guru. Class from 10am-1pm.

We will have a busy Monday from 10am-1pm with two Series offerings. Libby Barrett will teach Decorative Painting while Christina Taylor will host her metalsmithing class. Tuesday mornings, Gayle Raposa is back with her popular Stained Glass Artist Series. Wednesdays are another busy day. Liz Prescott starts us off early with Acrylic Painting from 9:30am-12:30pm and our newest Metalsmith teacher, Clint Fulkerson, will make his debut with his Wednesday night jewelry class from 6-9pm. Look for a future blog on this exciting new teacher....

10am-1pm on Thursday, Sue Drown-Trout returns for Batik and Dying and Suzanne Kiertianis, the mastermind behind all this, will end the week with her Sewn Beading class. We request preregistration for all courses to ensure running the classes without a hitch. Please click on this link to find out more details about these fantastic offerings. http://www.artnightout.com/artistseries.htm

So now all you have to decide....which one should I start with! Feel free to give us a ring if you are having trouble deciding which one. Our talented staff of Stewards will be able to help direct you to the right choice...like there's a wrong one!

September Art Festivals and Show Spotlight

Picnic MusicArts Festival
Artascope Teachers, Sue Hellier and Betina Clark are participating in the Picnic Music + Arts Festival, Saturday, Sept. 13, 11am-6pm in Lincoln Park (Congress + Franklin Art) There is going to be about 70 participating local artists, musicians and crafters.Sue will be showing some new work (framed original block prints, small prints on linen, and mixed media collage) along with the usual Zaz & Moe fare, printed clothing & homewares, SS jewelry, button bracelets and cards. Betina will be sporting her new line of silver jewelry with some old favorites. Check out more about this festival at http://picnicportland.wordpress.com/ . Sounds like an absolute blast!

Laudholm Festival and Artascope's End of Summer Sale
Talented Batik Artist and Artascope Teacher, Sue Drown-Trout, joined Sue Hellier in an absolutely beautiful show with many of the best craft artists from across New England at the Laudholm Nature Crafts Festival in Wells, Maine. The festival raises funds for the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. Check out highlights from last weekend's show at www.laudholm.org/crafts_info.htm. If you were unable to catch Sue in Wells, word on the street is that she may be showing some of her goods at our Artascope End of Summer Sale this Saturday the 13th from 10am-4pm, so come check her out along with our 20 other talented Artascope folks.

End of Summer Sale Press

End of Summer Sale is almost here... So has anyone checked out the latest and greatest addition of the online newspaper: southportlander.com? Artascope has made their front page with our upcoming End of Summer Sale. We are very excited about art sale event. We have over 20 confirmed local artist participating in the outdoors sale. Perfect way to start September and maybe get in a little early holiday shopping. The studio and gallery will be open as well, so make sure to take a peek inside to see all the extra goodies! http://www.southportlander.com/

Artascope Studios
End of Summer Sale
Saturday Sept 13th 10am-4pm
(rain date Sunday Sept 14th)

Private Parties and Classes Galore!

Over the summer, Artascope Studios hosted a plethora of a fantastic private parties and classes. We thought you might like to take a look at some of the events we have hand crafted for our community.

Mosaic Garden Stone with Grandma:
One very special grandma,featured in the pink flowered shirt,treated her grand kids and a friend to the Mosaic Garden Stone Party. They created elaborate scenes that we sure to make their gardens look spectacular.One of the grand kids designed a killer whale, another made a cool looking monster of some sort and the third worked hard on her sunflower scene. An excellent day for everyone!

Collage Charm Pendants:
Deb taught a private party in collage charm pendants a few weeks back for a group of friends. Everyone got into creating their own personal designs using some great papers and other materials from our stash. The group learned how to solder their images between two pieces of glass to make some very special necklaces. Everyone went home wearing their work to show off to their families.

Sewn Beaded Cabochon:
Suzanne taught a private sewn beaded cabochon class to one of our summer stars, Valerie. She learned basic peyote stitch in the round pattern to set a beautiful piece of dichroic glass! Valerie learned how to work with seed beads, a needle, thread, wax and a fun thread burning tool in order to create her elaborate piece. Quite a masterpiece.