In this, hands on fish printing workshop, Cyndi Lanier will share the basics and teach the method she uses to capture the initial images she uses in creating her art pieces. After learning a brief history of Gyotaku, students will learn how to prepare fish for printing, how to make special tools for inking, how to apply ink to the fish and then how to pull detailed prints on Japanese paper. Students will have an opportunity to print multiple fish species and take home 8-12 prints.
A final demonstration will be given on how to add the eye of the fish at a later time after the prints have dried completely. Fish and all materials will be provided.
Instructor Fee: Guests: $95, Members: $85.50
Supply fee: $50 - Payable to Instructor at class
Students: Minimum 8, Maximum 12
Note - we will be working with oil based inks. Please bring an apron or smock to protect clothing. Feel free to bring a snack or sack lunch.
** For students that are interested in taking their work one step further, Cyndi is offering another workshop where you can mount your prints to cradled wood panels and finish them to create completed, sealed, wall hangable artwork. Check out the 2-day workshop for Mounting and Finishing your nature prints Offered February 1st and 2nd
Cyndi Lanier is a Nature Printer and Artist based out of Wewahitchka, Florida. She views art, as she does life, as an exploration and a never ending journey of learning. She has explored various media including pastels, watercolors, photography and more recently oil painting. No matter the media, Cyndi has always been drawn to the nature as a subject. For the past 12 years she has included nature printing in her exploration of art, feeling drawn to capture the patterns and shapes created by “The Great Creator”. She views her work as a culmination of all the artistic endeavors she has learned on her path and enjoys sharing her knowledge through small classes in order to give her students the tools to encourage them on their own artistic journeys.
Cyndi has loved to fish since she was a young girl and that has sparked the passion for her most recognized nature printing works - Gyotaku or fish prints. For her original works, Cyndi’s process starts with careful set up and preparation of the fish and applying oil-based inks by hand in a precise method to capture the most intricate details on thin sheets of Japanese paper. Next, another layer of paper is dyed to create watery organic and abstract backgrounds. The papers are then wet mounted to cradled wood panels or canvas, dried and then finished using a combination of watercolor, inks and pastels to bring each piece to life. Once completed, each original is sealed with several layers of UV protective varnish. The finished pieces are a beautiful combination of both art and science!
