Embellishment Class Offered At Calumet Art Center

Artists in the Keweenaw will have the opportunity this weekend to gain some expert insight on producing their artwork.

As the Calumet Art Center is preparing for spring classes, it will be hosting an embellishment class this Saturday.

The class helps artists to understand what elements to include and what to leave out when composing his or her display of expression.

The center is known for its primitive teachings including: grass basket weaving, quilt making with recycled fabric, and a summer off-campus class that explores ancient parts of the Keweenaw and uses natural occurrences, like bone pieces, copper and sand to create art work.

“That’s a five day class that’s really emergent into the life ways of the Ojibwa. We do a lot of work here in the art center, but we also do a lot of field trips. We go to the Gratiots, we do sculptures that are along the water. When the waves come in, they take them back. They retrieve the sculptures. We go to the cliffs and go to where the ancestor’s footprints were,” said executive director Ed Grey, who also says that part of the class teaches students to melt and shape copper with a small fire.

The center has offered its “Footprints of the Ancestors” class for six years now, partnering with Carroll University. However, this year, it will be teaching the five day class on its own, as the participating professor has retired.

Information on all classes and programs can be found at www.calumetartcenter.com