Description: In honor of the Día de los Muertos celebration, we will create two meaningful and beautiful shrines to celebrate and honor loved ones who are with us in spirit. Together we will build a life-sized altar and honor each students’ loved one with mementos, relics, photographs, favorite foods, candles, etc. After the full-sized altar is completed, the remainder of both days will be on learning techniques to create smaller wall shrines using the following approximate sizes: Mini shrine 3 ½” x 2 1/4"” x ¾”D; and another shrine 7”H x 5”W x 1”D; and/or 8”H x 6”W x 1½”D
With inspiration in class using metalworking techniques and personal ideas you will create a tribute to your special person, people and or animal(s). Throughout the class various metalworking processes will be covered including cutting, forming, shaping, texturing, attaching and coloring metals for your inspired and personalized shrines. Our goal is to create and collage items together into an incredible artistic tribute and homage.
Level: Beginner, Ages 14+
Please note: Registration will close Monday, October 21 at midnight.
Supply fee: The $25 course fee covers all supply materials needed. No extra supplies needed for purchase by students.
Students should bring: Consider bringing inspirational items to remind you of your chosen loved one(s) person, animal, or creature. Based on who you have chosen, we will decorate and embellish your shrine with keepsakes to personalize each shrine. You will build and construct your story or idea through the metalworking process and if you have objects and collectibles to enhance your shrine bring those to class. Items could include: photographs, drawings, magazine images, decorative papers, special fabric, tchotchkes, buttons, tools such as scissors, silk or dried flowers, etc., that reminds you of your loved one.
We will focus on the shrines being the following sizes: a mini tin shrine approximately 2 ¼”W x 3 ½”H x ½”D; 5”W x 7”H x 1”D and/or 6”W x 8”H x 1½”. Think about these sizes as you begin to collect your items. If you do not have items to collect, you can create items during the workshop to attach to your shrine!
About the Artist: Theresa Lovering-Brown earned her Bachelor’s of Art from SDSU, a Masters of Fine Arts from SIUC, and completed an Artist Residency at the Appalachian Center for Crafts. In 1986 she began her teaching career in the San Francisco Bay Area, and is now Professor Emerita from Monterey Peninsula College Jewelry and Metal Arts program in California. Theresa has exhibited nationally throughout the United States and internationally in Korea, England, Norway, and Spain. Theresa joined the Donkey Mill Art Center in 2021 and enjoys the amazing outdoor Metals Studio with the magnificent ocean view, birds singing in the background, and the wonderful people in her classes. She claims “it’s the best studio I’ve taught in throughout my career.”
About Our Programs: As a place of convergence, the Mill serves as both a community and a physical place–celebrating the power of the arts, bringing people, ideas and perspectives together. We are proud to offer adult and youth programs that focus on awareness of one’s individuality in the contexts of family, community and the natural world. Our classes & workshops are designed to inspire creativity, foster connections, and provide enriching experiences for all participants. We invite you to join us in the studio.
