Sunday, June 19, 2016

One Last Look at John C. Campbell Folk School


Mornings at JCC begin with an optional program called Morningsong.  


On the last day the performers were The Pressley Girls -- daughters of a long time blog friend, Tipper of the Blind Pig and the Acorn blog.


In the afternoon of the last day, the student exhibit  is a great way to see all the wonderful creations of the past week.


Enameling



Doll making






Chip carving




Spinning and knitting


Clay


Woodblock Printmaking 






Blacksmithing


Campbellin -- this class constructed a simple three string instrument and learned to play it.



Glass mosaics







Oil Painting






Stained Glass



The music class played and sang.. .



And the Campbellin builders showed their prowess with their newly constructed instruments.



 Thus endeth the week at JCC. Something for everyone and a constantly shifting array of courses. 


Saturday, June 18, 2016

Two More Studios and a Reading


Printmaking with Jim Horton and his assistant Nancy Darrell was a class I'd love to take. The studio was quite near the dining hall and I must have stopped in four or five times. So why do I have only these two pictures when there was an array of fancy and photogenic carving tools and many intriguing projects underway? 

I did get lots of pics of the finished projects which I'll post tomorrow when I cover the student exhibit.


Below is the compound where many of the classes are held. . .


Chip carving with Wayne Barton, assisted by Rick Svitzer, was a popular class.

Several folks told me that Wayne is probably the best chip carver in the US or possibly in the world.


I watched his knife glide through the wood as if it were butter.


I presume all these finished pieces are his work.




Writing classes don't actually lend themselves to picture taking nor to the Student Exhibition held on the last night. So we were given a room and a time for the students to read excerpts of what they'd been working on to any who were interested.

Douglas is working on a coming-of-age story set in Biloxi during Hurricane Katrina.


Willetta has finished her first novel, begun at JCC a few years ago, and is embarking on a cozy mystery, starring a retired third grade teacher who knows everything about everybody (and every body) in her small town.

And Charles has begun an enigmatic novela  obscura, about an American academic in Germany and Switzerland and the mysterious promise that binds him.