Winter/Spring 2020 Past ProgramS

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January 15, 2020

ANNUAL SHOW AND TELL

All attendees at this meeting will have an opportunity to bring their artwork and discuss it with the group. This is a great opportunity to get some constructive suggestions or just show and talk about what you are currently working on or about your plans for the future. This is always an insightful and popular meeting to attend that will help you get to know your fellow LAG Members and Guests! 

February 19, 2020

GLASS MOSAICS

Deana "Dee" Everson will demonstrate and discuss glass cutting techniques and tools, glues and mortar, grouting, substrates, mosaic applications and how she does her 3D glass mosaic artwork. Dee’s mosaics evolve out of her love and passion to experiment with a variety of textures, colors and sizes. She currently resides in Orland Park, IL and holds a degree in Graphic Design from the American Academy of Art (Chicago) and studied at the Chicago School of Mosaics. The beauty of the glass along with its different textures, transparent qualities and intense colors that are released when light pours through the glass excites Dee as she sees her mosaics come alive with beauty. Dee is also an art instructor for children and adults and explores all kinds of mediums, but is most enamored by colored glass.

Visit her website at www.artclassesbydee.com

CANCELLED: March 25, 2020* (4th Wednesday)

DISCOVERING ART FRAUD WITH MICROSCOPY

Joseph Barabe will discuss the compelling and intriguing topic of identifying art fraud and forgery with the use of the microscope. He gained his experience in this topic as a Senior Research Microscopist and Director of Scientific Imaging for 24 years at McCrone Associates, Inc. (Westmont, IL). While working there, he mentored under the tutelage of Dr. Walter C. McCrone where he learned the special skills necessary to examine and analyze the materials constituting historical and contemporary works of art, historical objects, and documents. His analytical duties included the analysis of art objects such as paintings and prints, ancient documents and historical and archeological artifacts using a variety of analytical tools including polarized light microscopy, SEM with x-ray spectrometry, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, and other analytical methods as appropriate. He has performed forensic document examinations including forged and altered documents; paper, ink and toner comparisons, writing sequence determinations, and printing process identification. His scientific imaging specialties include photomacrography, photomicrography and invisible radiation photography. His famous projects include: analysis of the ink on the Gospel of Judas, the Archaic Mark forgery, the Voynich Manuscript analysis and the Zapruder film imaging project. Prior to joining McCrone, Joe was senior scientific photographer at the University of Chicago. He currently continues his work in this interesting field of art fraud as a Director and Senior Research Microscopist at Barabe & Associates LLC. 

Visit his profile at https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-barabe-17130415

CANCELLED: April 15, 2020

FIGURE DRAWING

Ellen Rottsolk (back by popular demand!) will spend the evening exploring the relationships DaVinci and other artists used to draw the human figure. Please bring paper that is 81/2”x 11”or larger, pencils and an eraser to be able to follow Ellen as she demonstrates figure drawing techniques. Ellen received both a Bachelor of Science in Art Education and a Master of Arts from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. She has taught art at the high school and junior college levels and also has taught numerous classes for DuPage Art League including beginning & advanced drawing, perspective, portraits and pastel painting. She is a winner of numerous awards and has exhibited in shows throughout the area.

CANCELLED: May 20, 2020

ART JOURNALING

April Schabeswill demonstrate how Art Journaling gives importance to the wonderful little moments in life that would pass us by if we did not take the time to mark them down. She will show us that just by jotting a few words, sketches, collage or doodles on the pages of your journal, you will give importance to these little moments in life. Our lives have become so busy that days and weeks go by and we don’t even know what happened along the way. Art journaling is a fun and creative way to record and cherish these moments. In looking back, these moments may actually be big moments that sparked creativity and peace in our own being. Such a simple thing, an art journal, to guide and record our creative journey! April resides in Orland Park, IL and currently teaches Creative Art Journaling at The Center in Palos Park, IL.

 Fall 2019 Past Programs

August 2019

*Lemont Artists Guild End of Summer Social-THIS EVENT IS NOT AT THE LIBRARY

When: Wed. Aug. 28, 2019

Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

WHERE:  Lemont Center for the Arts  (https://lemontcenterforthearts.wordpress.com/)

1243 State St., Suite 101

Lemont, Illinois 60439

Bring a Friend too!! Light refreshments will be served.  Just a gathering to share with each other, talk about our summers, about ourselves, and what will be happening with LAG for 2019-20!   We will also get the chance to view the current exhibition there, which is an exhibit of the late William Uznanski’s Photography.  (Note: There will be more details announced on the reception for this exhibit, that will take place on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019)

THE REST OF THE FOLLOWING TAKE PLACE AT THE HOMER TOWNSHIP PUBLIC LIBRARY:

September 18, 2019

PAINTING WATERCOLOR EFFECTS WITH ACRYLICS

David R. Becker will focus on demonstrating watercolor effects using acrylic paint instead of watercolor paint. His expertise will guide you to new heights with acrylic paint that you may not have known was possible. David is a signature member of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, an illustrator, and an art instructor. He has won many awards in watercolor societies throughout the country. He also has written two books, “Watercolor Composition Made Easy,” and “How to Sketch with Watercolor.” His personal goal is to teach as many people to draw and paint as possible through his workshops, art gallery and weekly newsletters. He studied at the American Academy of Art in Chicago and worked at two major advertising agencies in Chicago as an illustrator. He is also an art instructor and now he teaches all over the country. He is particularily recognized for his watercolor scenes of his beloved city, Chicago. He is now focusing on his newly formed business BeckerArtLLC. Visit his website at www.beckerart.net

October 16, 2019

ALCOHOL INKS

Deborah Spertus will demonstrate working with the fascinating medium of alcohol inks. She will have alcohol ink and small pieces of paper for participants to experiment with and try out the medium. She is an accomplished abstract surrealist artist and has her BFA in Art History, an MA in French and did an internship at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.She has studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, Lill Street Gallery, the Evanston Art Center and also learned from working with artists in their studios. She had a ten-year career as a muralist and decorative artist where she needed to learn multiple styles, techniques and materials. She likes "creating pieces that have enough complexity and interest that the viewer continues to discover something new about them over time." 

Visit her website at www.spertusstudios.com

November 20, 2019

FLOWER COLLAGE USING WATERCOLOR EFFECTS 

Elizabeth Waddington will have you thinking “outside the box” as she demonstrates Brusho crystal color pigments and art tissue. She will have a lot of examples that show the progression of this amazing collage process using watercolor effects. She lives, gardens, and paints in McHenry, IL where her garden "never fails to amaze her with surprises like a hidden blossom, a posed praying mantis or a plant thought dead comes back to life." She is very dedicated to the naturalness of her subject matter, as she has grown every flower she has painted and admires everything about them including their shape, luminescence and color in which she hopes she captures their soft aura and sprightly compositions. She majored in art at the University of Illinois, and has worked at Crate and Barrel doing store design and window displays for ten years. She exhibits her artwork at many art and garden fairs and festivals throughout the summer.

Visit her website at ewaddington1.wixsite.com/lizpaints

Winter/Spring 2019 Past Programs

January 16, 2019

ANNUAL SHOW AND TELL

All attendees at this meeting will have an opportunity to bring their artwork and discuss it with the group. This is a great opportunity to get some constructive suggestions or just show and talk about what you are currently working on or about your plans for the future. This is always an insightful and popular meeting to attend that will help you get to know your fellow LAG Members and Guests! 

February 13, 2019* (2nd Wednesday)

CARICATURES

Dan Laib got his start as an artist drawing Sesame Street characters with his crayons at the age of five years old. He always loved to draw and create and started selling his paintings on canvas and wood at city festivals and before long, he was selling caricatures too. He has entertained with his caricature art at major venues in Chicago, IL and in recent years has tapped into his passion for teaching art and workshops in libraries and schools all over Chicagoland. He will demonstrate how he does his caricature portraits. He will give a short review of facial proportions and talk about where he gets his inspiration and how he exaggerates facial features. His website is www.danlaib.com

March 20, 2019

PAPER FILAGREE, QUILLING

Betty Burian Kirk started her art endeavors as a weaver, but her knowledge and skills have grown to encompass spinning, felting, kumi himo, tassel making, marbling, quilling, and the areas of color theory and design. She is an Illinois Artisan and exhibits her work at art shows throughout the area. She will do an interactive program on Quilling which is an art form that involves the use of narrow strips of paper that are coiled, shaped, and glued together to create decorative designs and images. Participants may purchase a kit for $3 which includes a tool to make a card with a snowflake design, strips and envelope. Her website is www.bbkirk.com

April 17, 2019

DISCOVER WATERCOLOR, BOLD, LOOSE AND FUN

Dan Danielson’s fascination with watercolor began at the American Academy of Art, studying under well renown, Irving Shapiro. After an exciting creative director career in advertising, Dan began painting full-time and teaching. For this program, he will demonstrate his watercolor techniques. In 2018 he won a spot in the prestigious National Transparent Watercolor Show in with his watercolor of a hippopotamus. Currently, Dan teaches at the DuPage Art League and other regional groups. He is a member of the DuPage Art League and the Illinois Watercolor Society. His website is www.dandanielson.com

May 15, 2019

PHOTOGRAPHY-LIGHT TECHNIQUES AND DIGITAL EDITING 

Mike Bessler's passion is to create enhanced photographs on canvas that will capture the awe of nature. He does photography workshops at Starved Rock State Park near Utica, IL and exhibits at the Plainfield Art League Gallery and Naperville Art League Gallery (IL). His works have been sold nationwide to private and corporate customers. His program will be an introduction to what is available from the online ADOBE ® photograph editing programs. This includes ADOBE ® Lightroom on laptop and mobile phone demonstrating basic uses, cataloguing, editing, and free vs. paid features. He also will touch on basic editing in ADOBE ® Photoshop. One of his other favorite topics to be discussed will be composition including the law of thirds, filling the frame, a moving subject, depth of field, flash fill and whatever else he has time to go over. His website is http://www.besphoto.com/

Fall 2018 Past Programs

September 19, 2018

PLEIN AIR LANDSCAPES

Tom Henrichsen believes that working from life teaches an artist how to see and in this belief, plein air painting is critical to his development as an artist. He has a background in the study of fine art and a career as a musician and teacher. In 2005, he devoted himself full time to painting and he displays and sells his work at fine art fairs throughout the Midwest. He is a member of Oil Painters of America. He is represented by The Brigantine Gallery in Downers Grove, IL and Eurekan Art Studio in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. He will talk about the use of a secondary limited palette when painting outdoors. When indoors, he uses a full palette and bases his watercolor and oil paintings on his plein air watercolor sketches. His website is http://tomhenrichsen.com/

October 17, 2018

WOODBLOCK RELIEF PRINTMAKING

Ben Calvert, a winner in the 2018 Alliance of Fine Art’s Annual Best of the Best Exhibit, will demonstrate woodblock relief printmaking. He started wood block printing by taking an independent study course at Knox College and his first print, “Invasions” was published in Catch, Knox’s literary magazine. This medium became a sustaining passion for him. He has a strong feeling for nature and the wood compliments his images. He also uses linoleum blocks and prints on Japanese Kozuki paper using oil based inks. He has exhibited his works in solo, juried, and group exhibitions and is an instructor at the Elmhurst Art Museum (IL). He will go over techniques used while carving on a wood block. He will also cover registration in multiple color works. His website is www.benjamincalvert.com

November 14, 2018* (2nd Wednesday)

GRID PORTRAITS

Samantha DeCarlo is a Chicago-born artist and paints in a wide variety of styles and uses many mediums. Her art focuses on the art of story-telling, creating environments not seen in the real world. She is captivated by science fiction and fantastical novels, in which her work reflects all inner thoughts of transportation to somewhere a little more spectacular. She will show us how she does her popular portraits using a grid with creativity. She will discuss grout, gels, modeling gel, found objects and tissue paper among other media. Including creating art, she also is an art instructor, a muralist, a graphic designer and illustrator. Her website is www.samanthadecarlo.com

December, 2018

LAG Holiday Party, Location and Details TBA (no meeting at the library)