The Cleveland Institute of Art’s Pay-As-You-Go Life Drawing kicks off its summer session on June 2, 2010.  It runs on Wednesday evenings from 7:00-9:00PM.  It runs $15 per session, paid upon arrival at the door.  Simply go to CIA at 11141 East Blvd, park in the rear parking lot, and go to room 303.  You can go for one, you can go for all, or you can go whenever you feel like it.

The summer course catalog is up and available for the Cleveland Institute of Art Extended Studies and Community Outreach.  There are many classes and workshops available for young artists and adults, but here’s one of our picks:

Liquid Media Drawing

Wednesdays, June 9 to July 28th, 2010, 8 sessions, from 6-9pm.  $340.  Taught by Susan Danko.

Explore the potential of liquid media to create expressive works of art.  You will work from observation, imagination, and reference material of your choice to develop individual projects using a medium of your choice.  Emphasis will be placed on developing skills in working with liquid media such as ink, watercolor, acrylic, oil, latex, gouache, and enamel paint.  Drawing tools such as pencil, conte, charcoal, or pastel may also be utilized to support & develop your drawings if desired.  Experimentation is encouraged.  Open to beginning and advanced students.

Susan Danko has been creating & exhibiting her work since earning her BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1998.  Susan participated in juried, solo, and invitational shows at the Cleveland Botanical Garden, Butler Museum of American Art, and SPACES gallery. 

 To register for the class, please call CIA’s Continuing Education department directly at (216)-421-7460.

With the weather turning to fall, and artists closing up their studio windows, we thought it would be great to give you some ideas to ensure your health and safety throughout the fall & winter months.

 1.  Ensure that you have proper ventilation or equip your studio with an Allerair purifier.  Remember, odorless does not mean “fume-free.”

2.  Wash your hands when finished working on your art.  Even better, use Artguard Barrier Cream on your hands prior to working to make cleaning up easier. 

 3.  Don’t sweep or dust away pastel dust.  Use a vacuum cleaner with good suction and a great filter to sweep it up.

 4.  Store solvents away from heating vents, stoves, or other sources of heat.  Be sure that if you put a solvent in a new container that you mark what it is on the outisde.  Keep solvents in glass jars with metal lids.

5.  Don’t pour solvents down your sink.  Follow directions on the packing for proper disposal.

6.  Don’t pour acrylic in the pipe, as it may clog your pipes.

7.  Keep your art supplies out of the reach of pets, children, and adults who may mishandle them. 

8.  Don’t point your brushes by putting them in your mouth.  Simply mold the wet bristles with your fingers.

9.  Don’t eat while you’re working in your studio.  Keep drinks far away from your work area, as you could easily wash a brush in your iced tea and not realize it until you’ve tried a sip.

 10.  Don’t feel silly wearing a mask in your studio.  They’re made to protect your health.

Feel free to post a comment with your helpful & healthy tips for a safe studio.