“BUST’ED” (but not flat in Baton Rouge - apologies to Bobby McGee) WITH BILL SKRIPS
Los Cerrillos, New Mexico
September 9-12, 2021
Bellissima Art Escapes is thrilled to offer this rare opportunity to learn from assemblage artist and painter, Bill Skrips, in his studio in the small mining town of Los Cerrillos, New Mexico. Yes, in his studio!
Cerrillos is on the scenic road from Santa Fe to Albuquerque, closer to Santa Fe. While it was once seriously considered as the capitol of New Mexico, today Cerrillos, with its dirt streets, is a picturesque reminder of the Old West.
Caliban
In this workshop, artists will make 2 different heads with shoulders (aka “Busts”) - one, a modeled head, starting with an armature of wood and chicken wire. We will then, using rags and modeling paste, work the wired armature to form a figurative head. Later, embellishing the sculpted form using paint and other possibilities, artists will be encouraged to continue working on their sculpture after the workshop.
Bill wants to impart sculptural basics that will allow you to work up other heads (and whatever forms you so choose) on your own and expand your creative horizons, techniques AND your work.
Our other “take “ on the subject will be to carve a head out of basswood and make a simple joint to add shoulders.
F’King
We will then add details such as eyes, “skin” etc etc after priming our carving. Bill will also demonstrate several of the techniques (using wood clamps, rasps, belt sander, vise, drill press, dowels) that he uses in his work that you can apply in the class or on your own
Itinerary
Day 1, Thursday Sept. 9. We will meet at Bill’s studio at 9:30 a.m. After settling into the studio, and after introductions, we will go over the schedule and then it is off to work! We will break for lunch around 12:30, walking nearby to the Black Bird Salon in this very small town (if it is still open).
After lunch, we will continue working on our projects, ending the day around 4:30. We will leave the studio and have an early dinner nearby.
Days 2-3, Friday and Saturday, Sept. 10-12. We will meet at the studio at 9:30, break for lunch and end the day around 4:30. Dinners will be on your own.
Blued
Day Four, Sunday Sept 12. We will meet in the studio at 9:30, continue finishing our projects, breaking for lunch. Then we will finish up, and around 3:30 we will pack up and have our Show ‘N Tell, sharing our work.
Sener
This Escape is Full
This Escape Includes:
Four days of instruction with Bill
Some Materials
Other materials will be for sale for your use
Use of tools on site (limited)
Welcome Dinner
Four lunches
Carving Tools
Price: $1,200, limited to 8.
A $600 non-refundable deposit is due upon registration with the final payment due May 1, 2021
Price does not include airfare to/from New Mexico, lodging or alcoholic beverages. There are many hotels, VRBOs and B&Bs nearby. Santa Fe is 36 minutes from Los Cerrillos.
Student Supply List
Modeling paste, 16 oz.
Plastic palette knife or knives
Small amount of white rags for covering (modeled) heads
Small doll eyes. Can be found on Amazon, Etsy, Craft stores - (2 pairs)
Thin wire to wrap heads or hold cloth, etc. in place while drying
Paint that you may want to use to highlight your finished form-(although, this can be done after the class at home)
Ephemera to embellish or for ears, etc. See Bill’s pics for examples.
Pencils, sharpies for detailing or delineating modeled form and carved head
We Will Provide
Soft carving wood-basswood or pine
Belt sander, drill press and scroll saw (limited use)
Armatures
Some vises and bench hooks
Clamps
Nails, dowels
Some rasps
Chisels/knives
Bits of wood and tin that you may want to use for noses, ears, etc.
Some items from Bill’s studio will be for sale for you to use (limited amount)
Abandoned
Flour + Exchange
Semaphore
Bill in his studio with my gift to myself!
Los Cerrillos artist Bill Skrips has always collected things or their constituent parts, treating them as raw material for his sculptural work. Sometimes mysterious in origin or purpose, sometimes more obvious, these bits and pieces tend to spur him on creatively. Added handmade components bring the sculptures to completion—including carved, welded, painted and otherwise constructed bits. In the work, he attempts a union between the humorous and the dark, which represents his outlook on life. Using the influence of Southern folk art as a springboard, his work often approaches the absurd and sometimes the surreal. In incorporating found, “dirty” materials, the grittiness of the work neutralizes its playfulness. His artwork rarely draws conclusions or edifies—he finds posing questions more satisfying.