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2008 ART WORKSHOPS AT BINDER PARK ZOO
Once again, Binder Park Zoo is hosting a series of Nature Art workshops taught by local illustrator Gail Guth. This year’s workshops schedule features:

FIELD SKETCHING: ANIMALS!
April 26, 2008 -or- August 16, 2008
$55 per person (includes lunch)
Must be 13 years or older to participate
Download Registration Form
A repeat of last year’s popular workshop,this program focuses on the challenge of capturing the essence of animal shape and motion from live subjects. We’ll start with a bit of classroom instruction, slow-motion DVD’s, and a warm-up with one or two Zoomobile animals, then move outdoors to sketch the zoo’s residents. Basic sketching materials and weather-appropriate clothing are all that’s required. Class repeats AUGUST 16: sign up for either or both dates, the classes are the same.

FUR, FEATHERS, AND SCALES: ADDING TEXTURE TO ANIMAL DRAWINGS AND PAINTINGS
September 13, 2008
$55 per person (includes lunch)
Must be 13 years or older to participate
Download Registration Form
Not all fur, feathers, or scales are alike. They grow in patterns, they vary from one part of the animal to another, they vary in length and thickness. They follow the animal’s form and help define it and add detail. Once you are comfortable drawing your basic animal forms, detailing their outside coverings is the next step in accurate and beautiful animal art. We’ll study the basic structures and varieties of each, observe growth patterns, and looks at ways to reproduce their accurate look in our work.

Our primary emphasis will be on pencil technique, but we will discuss color techniques as well (colored pencil, watercolor, and acrylic or oil).

MAKE YOUR OWN SKETCHBOOK/NATURE JOURNALING
September 27, 2008
$55 per person (includes lunch)
Must be 13 years or older to participate
Download Registration Form
Nature Journaling combines a daily diary with a sketchbook, and allows for a very personal and thoughtful approach to both. A Nature Journal can range from a “traditional” sketchbook with just a few thoughts and observations penciled in around your sketches, to a full-fledged diary of thoughts, observations and emotions peppered with a few sketches that inspired those thoughts. We will look at samples of nature journals and sketchbooks, discuss basic sketching techniques and supplies and how to put together a field kit for easy portability. Making your own sketchbook adds even more personal dimension to your Nature Journal project! Store-bought sketchbooks are fine and some are quite elegant (and expensive!), but handmade ones are fun, easy to make, and just that much more “yours”. They also make great gifts for your sketching friends. We will make a soft-cover, hand-sewn sketchbook with materials you select from those provided; if you like, you can further embellish your sketchbook after the workshop with scrapbook materials available at local craft departments. Your book will be hand-sewn, an easy process that results in a book that is sturdy, durable, and lies flat for easy sketching.