PAST CLASSES
CREATIVE JOURNEYS
WHEN: Saturdays, August 20 and 27, 2022, from 10 am to 1 pm.
WHERE: Questa Youth Center, next to Questa Public Library, Municipal Park Drive, Questa, NM
COST: Free
CONTACT: Text or call Mark Lewis Wagner at (510) 220-4157 to hold your space.
Mark Lewis Wagner lives in Questa and Oakland, CA. He is a digital and traditional artist and educator. Clients include Pixar/Disney, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, and SpaceX. He has taught art and creativity in graduate school, state prison, elementary school, and online, to both kids and adults. See more at his website.
His non-profit, Drawing on Earth, holds two Guinness World records for large chalk drawings. They have worked with 30,000 kids and drawn on three continents—so far! Their mission is to connect art and creativity to youth and communities around the world.
INTRODUCTION TO WEAVING
WHEN: Sundays, June 26 through July 31, 2022, from 3 to 5 pm.
WHERE: Questa Youth Center, next to Questa Public Library, Municipal Park Drive, Questa, NM
COST: Free
CONTACT: Text Nick Nagawiecki at (847) 691-1250 to hold your space.
After the successful Intro to Weaving workshop April 3 and 10, the class will continue. Nick Nagawiecki will lead interested people of all ages (ages 12 or under need to be accompanied by an adult) in learning enjoyable basic weaving techniques with wool provided by our local Virsylvia Farm animals and their owners, Tyler and Amelia. Space will be limited to 10. Materials provided. Donations for materials and the teacher much appreciated.
PANDEMIC POETRY PROJECT, P3
May 14 and 21, morning and afternoon sessions
According to P3 coordinators Betsy Irwin and Carissa Ervine, “We want to illuminate how poetry flows through our lives—from nursery rhymes to rap music. We’ll share different poetry forms and techniques to help writers create a format for their work. Using the pandemic as a general topic, I believe writers can offshoot into infinite forms. That said, we’ll encourage students to anchor their poems on positive outcomes such as our innate strength during difficult times, the process of surrender, lessons we learn, or changes in our collective beliefs.”
Each workshop has two sessions. Morning sessions are geared towards teens while afternoons are reserved for adults. Aspiring poets will be coached in the many ways that exist to express themselves in writing.
The second set of workshops (dates to be determined) will take the pandemic poetry off the paper—and will focus on presentation. “Performance, or even how a poem can be intertwined into other art forms, is as important as putting pen to paper,” says Irwin. Future workshops will explore the concepts of sound (phonetics) and meaning (morphs) separately, circling back around to connect them. Body language, costuming, and combining poetry into visual arts are other topics we will introduce as students decide the best approach to performing their writings.
Questa Farmer’s Market will host P3 poets on the first Sunday of each month, starting June 2. “Having recitals at local farmers markets is a great way to get the public and our poets ready for a hoped-for larger performance, as plans shape up into the fall,” Betsy says.
P3 also hopes to host a countywide poetry effort as the project expands, inviting poets to submit their work for jurying. Betsy and Carissa are developing accompanying lesson plans, making it easy for teachers to introduce the idea of submitting their work while adhering to New Mexico’s curriculum guidelines. “We also want home-schoolers involved in the project,” Irwin remarked. “This will be a great way to help parent-teachers to round out their kids’ English program in a unique, community-oriented way.”
WHAT: Pandemic Poetry Project
WHEN: Saturdays, May 14 and May 21.
Morning sessions for teens meet 9:30 am – noon, afternoon session for adults meet 1:30 to 4:30
WHERE: Questa Youth Center, next to Questa Public Library, Municipal Park Drive, Questa, NM
COST: Free
CONTACT: questacreativecouncil@gmail.com to register and for more info.
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The QCC will continue to offer multi-generational classes and workshops, in 2022.
In July or August 2022, artist-educator Mark Lewis Wagner will offer his “creative journeys” workshop.
Suggested donation to cover supplies. Please note: children under 12 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.
Classes are held at the Cisneros Youth Center in the Art Room, located next door to the Questa Public Library, on Municipal Park Drive, in Questa, NM.
