Home Calendar Diary Building Projects Links www.strawbalestudio.org
Building with Earth ~ creating Sacred Space
Celebrate Valentine's Day with this Women's Weekend.
Saturday, February 14, 2009. 10 am - 5 pm
Sunday, February 15, 2009. 10 am - 5 pm
Bring a Friend! Attend one or both days!
Who should attend? Women who are artists, home owners, future natural builders, those needing a time of renewal, and the curious!
Get to know your earth! We will go over the basics of mixing and applying earth as a sculpting medium & wall plaster, in order to create more sacred nurturing spaces in our lives.
Earth is the basic material used in adobe, rammed earth & cob homes. And earth is the primary ingredient in strawbale wall plasters, earth ovens, earthen floors, benches and sculptures! When simple local ingredients (sand, clay and fiber) are mixed together, a very durable natural material is formed which you can use as a sculpting medium or plaster to "naturalize" your existing dwelling, or use on a natural structure you will build in the future!
In this workshop you will have learn how to
- Learn how to identify and locate the materials needed to make an earthen mix (used innatural building for earthen walls, earth plasters, benches, sculptures).
- Make earth mixes for several different applications
- Sculpt on interior surfaces over drywall. Learn to make flour paste and an adhesion coat.
- Apply a finish plaster to an interior strawbale bench
- See many examples of how earth is used to sculpt space in the different structures on this land.
Saturday: shape a model of an imaginary structure you might want to build ~ or a make a sculpture of your choice ~ which you can take home with you. Both days will cover the basics of mixing and applying earth as a plaster and sculptural medium to projects in the main house. On Saturday model making will be included. On Sunday, in addition to the basic workshop we will also learn to mix and apply a sparkly finish "Alis" plaster with mica !
Tour the earth-plastered Strawbale Studio and you will see the Rocket Stove Heated Bench, the wattle & daub Spiral Chamber, an Earth Oven and a number of earthen applications in the main (conventional) house: earth plasters over dry wall, sculptures, sconces and an earthen bench.
Come prepared to spend about 30 - 45 minutes touring buildings on the land. Please be prepared to keep warm so we can all enjoy the tour. Boots, hat & gloves. The rest of the time we will be in the main house, a comfortable place to mix and sculpt.
Bring a "bag lunch" and snacks to share for the day.
Optional supper potluck & overnight on Saturday evening if you wish to attend both days. Bring food to share.
Fee: Early Bird Special: $35 per day or $60 for both days if paid one week in advance.
After that date, the cost is $50 per day or $70 per weekend. Call or email to register.
Bring a Friend and Group Discount = 15% off for each person.
Some scholarships and worktrade available.
Contact: Deanne, 248 628 1887. ecoartdb@gmail.com
for questions and to RSVP.
Location: Rural Oxford, MI. One hour north of Detroit
Instructor: Deanne Bednar, has been doing natural building and earth sculpting since 1996. She is an artist and educator, loving to bring nature and living together. Illustrator of 3 books on natural building (the Hand-Sculpted House, the Natural Plaster Book and the Cobber's Companion) Deanne has a broad understanding of natural building techniques and materials. She has co-built the Strawbale Studio, the Kensington Kid's Cottage and 2 other small buildings, as well as a rocket stove heated bench, several cob ovens, a wattle and daub structure. She has been part of thatching several buildings, and loves to use natural local materials in all aspects of natural building and art.
More information on Earthen materials & natural building:
http://strawbale.pbwiki.com/Natural+Building+Strategies
Comments (0)
You don't have permission to comment on this page.