ARTS Obispo's Open Studios Art Tour is one of the largest Open Studios in the country, with over 200 artists participating annually. 2010 marks its 12th year with some big news - free catalogs! Open Studios showcases the quality and diversity of art produced in SLO County. Visitors can see and purchase a wide range of original work by local artists who appreciate the opportunity to share how, why and where their art is created. This event is not only a showcase for artists and a feast for collectors, but ARTS Obispo's largest annual fundraiser. The funds from Open Studios support ARTS Obispo's community-based programs such as Arts in Education, Art in Public Places, and Art After Dark, supporting arts and culture in San Luis Obispo County. 

Encaustic wax was used over 2500 years ago by the Greeks, and is composed of beeswax, tree resin, and pigment, applied hot and fused to create a beautiful, translucent, sensuous quality that can’t be achieved using paints alone.

You will learn how to combine encaustic with other mediums such as printmaking and collage. Fall in love with the smell and feel of beeswax, explore the textures and lustrous depths of encaustic and re-discover this fascinating medium. What will be covered in this workshop? Safety, preparing surface, supports, melting wax and pigment, mixing colors, creating smooth or textured surfaces, collaging materials, xerox transfers, dipping lines and edges, embedding objects.

Lynn Kishiyama will guide the student in the techniques of brushing, scraping, layering, adding lines, edges, dipping and pouring wax on a variety of supports.

This is a two day workshop that will focus on hand building sculptural techniques with the students studying the model and learning the process of abstraction. The primary task will be viewing the three dimensional form and extracting an alternative vision that can be transcribed into a form from clay.  Students will work in water-based clay and build a hollow sculptural form, pressing pushing, using hands and manipulating the clay to create shapes that will bring the clay to life.

Clay can be purchases on site. Each student will use between 25 to 50 lbs (cost $20 per $25lbs). Students may make arrangements with the instructor to have larger pieces fired after the workshop.