£190.00 - Two-day workshop
Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th May, 2019
10:00am - 4:00pm
** Only 2 spaces left **
On this two-day weekend course you will be guided through the steps Valerie uses when creating her own felt artwork. You will be encouraged to explore the qualities and behaviours of wool fibres, silk threads and fabrics through the wet-felting process. This workshop is suitable for all levels of ability from beginners to experienced felters, and only requires of you to engage your own creativity.
On day one you will first explore marks and textures through rubbings, collage and drawing. Through discerning observation, you will enhance, isolate and develop line, texture, form & colour to create a series of drawings. These will then be used as inspiration to develop experimental pieces, manipulating fibres and textiles using the layering technique.
Day two will be dedicated to creating your main felted artwork. Working from your own starting point as well as your drawings & samples from the previous day, you will develop your piece gradually applying fibres, threads and inserts in fine layers. At the end of the day, you can expect to take away with you a (mostly) finished felt artwork.
What You Need To Bring
In preparation for the day, take time to consider some ideas to use as your inspiration - this can be a favourite photograph, an artwork, collage, magazine tear, etc…
X3 small medium and large towels
Plastic bag
Fabric scissors
Pointy tweezers
Soap solution (if you have a preference)
Water sprinkler (if you have one)
Felting palm (if you have one)
Ruler/ pen/ Notebook
iPad, camera phone, or camera (if you have one)
Using tools and materials you are familiar in handling can be helpful; so please feel free to bring along any of your own equipment or resources you may wish to work with over the weekend.
I will be providing:
Small bubble wrap ( 50 x 70cm)
Pipe insulation rod (50cm)
A piece of netting (approx 50x70cm)
A pair of ties
Hand-wash liquid soap
Light weight (150gM) merino prefelt approx size 50x30cm
Merino wool fibres
Open mesh fabrics such as silk, cotton muslin
Some embellishment fibres
Drawing/painting tools and materials
THE WORKSHOP SPACE
All our workshops are held in the Loom Shop on the second floor of the Weavers Factory. We keep the number of places low to enable our tutors to give each student the right amount of attention, creating both a relaxed and pleasurable experience. Free tea, coffee and biscuits are provided.
The Loom Shop: Our large double-height education space is located on the second floor of the Weavers Factory. The large stone mullion windows which were essential for weaving in the 19th Century, give plenty of light for working and wonderful views across Uppermill and Saddleworth Moor. The room is full of original features including Georgian brick walls, fireplaces, oak beams, and Victorian wooden hooks for coats and bags. Course attendants have exclusive use of our private toilet on the first floor.
The Weavers Factory: Our Grade-II listed building is located on New Street in Uppermill, Saddleworth. Unfortunately our listed building status prevents us from making the Loom Shop wheelchair-friendly, please email us before you book if you have any special requirements.
Getting here: Uppermill is located on the outskirts of Greater Manchester, seven miles from the city centre and less than an hour from Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Hull, Bradford and Preston. It is easily accessible by both car and public transport.
Car: Free parking is available in the adjacent New Street Car Park, the nearby Saddleworth Pool and at five other car parks in the centre of Uppermill. (NB: New Street itself is a busy street with a 30-minute limit so please park in the neighbouring streets without time limits)
Train:
Manchester Piccadilly to Greenfield (19-min), then 10-minute walk to the gallery Click here
Leeds to Greenfield (48-min), then 10-minute walk to the gallery Click here
Bus:
180 & 184 (Manchester and Huddersfield) Click here
350 (Ashton-under-Lyne) Click here
352 (Holmfirth) Click here
ABOUT VALERIE
Valerie’s main fascination lies within the manipulation of fibres and textiles as an expressive art form. Taking the rural environment as her inspiration, she explores long-term interests of texture, colour, layering and process to create contemplative and ethereal artworks. These are highly textured felt pieces in which cloth is embedded and threads unravelled as a painter with its brush.
Brought up in France and French Polynesia, Valerie originally came to the UK to study textile design. After a period working in the textile industry and in local government, she is now a practicing artist working and living in West Yorkshire. In 2015, she was awarded the Embroidery Magazine’s Best Emerging Textile Artist at SIT Select Showcase, as well as Best Picture in Show at the Great North Art Show in Ripon.
Links
Instagram valeriewartelleart
Wesbite www.valeriewartelle.co.uk
Weavers Factory Workshop Terms and Conditions
What To Expect
Weavers Factory workshops are designed to take you away from it all and provide the environment, time and guidance you need to create. You can expect a warm welcome, skilled and friendly tutors plus the chance to meet like-minded people keen to share ideas and experiences - you can even leave us to clear up the mess! Arrive in time to meet other participants over a cup of tea or coffee and biscuits. For full-day courses you will begin your session at the appointed time and there will be a mid-morning break for refreshments and a chance to talk over progress with others. We do not provide lunch but feel free to bring your own food and sit in the garden (weather permitting) or relax in one of our lovely art galleries. There are some great cafes in the village; you can have a nice lunch at The Reclamation Room, or lovely tea and cake at the Cake Kitchen. Finish time is given as a target – there is some flexibility depending on how your work is progressing and depending on the tutor and the group. We aim for your time with us to be a real treat; you could always learn a new skill in a shed or a draughty village hall with a curly sandwich, but we want you to have more fun than that, so we make sure you’re looked after in a high-quality environment with good company and inspirational tutors.
What You Need To Bring With You
This varies from workshops to workshop, please see specific workshop information above.
If you cancel
If you change your mind within 14 days of booking or purchasing a gift voucher you are entitled to a full refund according to the Consumer Credit Act. If you change your mind more than 14 days after booking we will be more than happy to transfer your full fee to any other workshop (if places are available) providing that it is not within 3 weeks of the start of the workshop. If you wish to cancel your booking at any time more than 3 weeks prior to the date of the workshop your fee will be refunded minus a 20% administration charge, alternatively you can transfer the full fee to something else without penalty. If you are cancelling a place which has been booked using a gift voucher, a cash refund cannot be made. However, up to 3 weeks prior to the workshop the voucher can be transferred to something else. After that, normal cancellation terms apply. No refunds or transfers can be made to anyone who cancels less than 3 weeks prior to the date of the workshop, however you are free to send a substitute. If we are able to resell your cancelled place within 3 weeks of the workshop we will refund your fee minus a 20% administration charge.
If we cancel
In the unlikely event that The Weavers Factory needs to cancel a workshop for any reason you will receive a full refund of the fees paid or we can transfer the value to another workshop, subject to availability.
Please note as we are a small private organisation who receive no funded support our viability is finely-balanced because of our commitment to provide the best experience possible at the most affordable price. To achieve this for all our customers, we have to enforce a rigid cancellation policy, or risk price increases to everyone. This seems only fair, especially when workshops are in such demand.