Media Contact:
Renée Roberts, NWSSA Office Administrator
206-395-9736 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | @nwssa_renee | http://www.nwssa.org
29th Annual International Stone Carving Symposium
July 9-17, 2016
Camp Brotherhood, Treacy Levine Center, Mount Vernon, WA
The Northwest Stone Sculptors Association invites you to join us at the Treacy Levine Center at Camp Brotherhood for up to eight days of stone carving, communing with nature, and enjoying the camaraderie of fellow stone enthusiasts. Bring yourself, your creative energy, your humor, tools, and a favorite piece of stone. If you don’t have stone or tools, we have an entire tent set up for beginners with tools and instructors.
Guest Artists:
Form and Process: Senden Blackwood
Poised in harmonic tension, Senden Blackwood’s elegant stone sculptures are inspired by the pure underlying forms of nature. These works are deceptive in their apparent simplicity, belying the personally demanding work processes involved in their creation. The solemnity and stillness of the richly worked stone invites quiet contemplation, encouraging us towards a meditative experience of the work, where, for a time, the world drifts away. He’ll be sharing his process and some of his self-taught skills.
Integrating Multiple Media: Georg Schmerholz
As a result of exploring a multitude of sculptural materials as a working professional for 3 decades, Georg’s focus evolved towards combining different media, partly as a reflection of the influences of the various countries he lived in, including the impressions of his formative years in Transylvania, Romania. He will not only cover the aesthetics and technical challenges of this approach to sculpture, but will also share his insights into Sculpture as a Means of Exploring Consciousness, which in his views are inseparable from a deeper understanding of art’s purpose. Georg’s association with NWSSA goes back to the early 90’s when he was an instructor at the first symposium at Camp Brotherhood.
Elegance in Jade: Deborah Wilson
Acclaimed contemporary jade and granite sculptor will be offering a workshop in jade. Her work reflects her love for organic forms and her ongoing interest in utilizing the characteristics that define this “stone of heaven.” A good selection of precut Canadian and US jades will be for sale to create small scale sculpture and pendants. Class limit is 10 people, so register early and watch your registration confirmation for details.
Beginning Stone Sculpture: Ruth Mueseler and Tamara Buchanan
Throughout the week, Ruth and Tamara will be hosting a beginner’s workshop focused on safe tool usage and introductory instruction. Ruth is a conglomerate of art education teacher, silversmith, art foundry worker and 25 year stone carving veteran. Her heartfelt work ranges from miniature to monumental. As an instructor she is thoughtful and will engage you with humor and respect. Tamara has been sculpting for over 25 years. Featured in many shows throughout the West, her work has won several awards. She loves sharing the process of carving and has been teaching at her studio on Lopez Island for over 10 years.
About the Northwest Stone Sculptors Association
NWSSA is a nonprofit (501c3) membership organization serving as a resource for stone sculpture. It develops educational opportunities and provides a support system for all those who love stone.
The Northwest Stone Sculptors Association was founded in 1984 with the purpose of providing access to stone and stone carving tools and to promote stone sculpting in the Northwest. Our first meetings were held in the studio of Fremont sculptor Meg Pettibone, our Founder. Her dream was to revive the dying art of carving stone. Our first NWSSA Symposium was held in 1986 in the Methow Valley on the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains. We have since grown to include stone sculptors and associates throughout the western US, Canada, and other parts of the world.
http://www.nwssa.org
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