TRUSTING YOUR INTUITION WITH DEBRA FRITTS
Join artist Debra Fritts in Puebla City in trusting your intuition to create a sculptural piece that holds the energy of self and inspiration from the beauty of Puebla.
Puebla is the capitol of the State of Puebla, Mexico. It’s a tile laden city with an historic story. It is believed that the nuns of Santa Rosa Convent created mole poblano for the King of Spain. He was so thankful for this very special mole, that he sent tiles from Spain as a gift of appreciation and those tiles still line the ex-convent’s kitchen walls. For over 200 hundred years, Talavera Uriarte hand painted tiles and pottery have been created with only five colors, blue, black, yellow, green and a reddish pink. Today, Talavera de la Reyna is the more modern painted pieces that are sold world wide.
Puebla is also known for Calle de Los Dulces, or the Sweets Street lined with shops selling a wide variety of sugary treats. Lucky for us, Ana Elena Martinez, a pastry chef and owner of Margú, a bakery with four locations in Puebla, will be our guide. This is her home so she knows where to take us.
The Workshop
Using a chunk of clay we will work solid and manipulate the clay until a personal visual appears.
This can be human, animal, plant…there is no limitation on subject.
Once the clay is strong, we will carve out the interior of the form. Surface treatment will be added by using slips, oxides and dry clay.
Let this beautiful city in Mexico give you new information for your art.
Schedule
Day 1, February 16. Everyone arrives in Puebla at Hotel Boutique Casareyna. We will meet at 7:00 for botanas and a margarita.
Day 2, February 17. Breakfast at the hotel and then we depart for the studio. We will be in the studio all day, breaking for a walking tour with lunch. Dinner this evening will be at Tacos Arabes.
Day 3. February 18. Breakfast at the hotel then in the studio all day breaking for lunch. Dinner will be provided.
Day 4. February 19. Breakfast at the hotel and then it’s a half day at the studio. We will have cemitas for lunch and then head to Uriarte for the Talavera Tour. Dinner will be provided.
Day 5. February 20. Today is a travel day. Breakfast at the hotel then off to the nearby colonial city of Cholula. We will visit the Cholula market with our friend Monica Mastretta who will also teach a cooking class in her beautiful home. If we have time and the energy, we will also visit the Zona Arqueológica de Cholula, an ancient Mesoamerican site known for its huge pyramid & tunnels.
Day 6. February 21. Today will start with breakfast at the hotel and then, depending on whether our pieces have cooled from the firing, we will go to the studio or walk to the Amparo Museum.
Figure see at Amparo Museum. Photo by Joe Molinaro
We will add cold finishes to our pieces either this afternoon or the next morning. Free time and dinner will be at Ana Elena’s home - we are in for a special treat.
Day 8, February 22. Breakfast at the hotel then off to the studio to finish painting. We will have our show “n tell before going to lunch. Free time this afternoon before our final dinner at Salon Mezcali.
Day 9, February 23. Art Escape is over and you can leave anytime today.
This Art Escape Includes:
Four days of class with Debra
Seven nights accommodation at Hotel Boutique Casareyna
Walking Tour
Uriarte (Talavera) Tour
Visit to Cholula Market and Pyramids
Private cooking class
A special dinner at Chef Ana Elena’s home
Private Facebook Group
A new art tribe
Privada 2 Ote. 1007, Centro, 72000 Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Pue., Mexico
Price for this workshop is $4,100 and includes lodging (based on double occupancy, there are a limited number of single rooms available for $900) and all but one meal. A $1,000 non-refundable deposit is due now with the remaining due Dec. 3, 2024. The workshop is limited to 12.
Please do not make your plane reservations until notified.
AIRPORT: Puebla International Airport otherwise known as Hermanos Serdán International Airport. Km 91.5 Carr Fed Mexico/Pueblo Municipio, de Huejotzingo,
Airport Code: PBC. United has a direct flight to Puebla. Taxis are available 24/7. Uber is around $600 pesos.
We will Provide
clay
slips
oxides
boards to work on
spray bottles
Dowels - 7/16 inch diameter, 12” long
Artists Supply List
Sketchbook with resources and ideas
Apron
Photos of animals, flowers, etc.
Tools for working in clay - a wire cutter, needle tool and loop tools for carving (see below)
Brushes (see below) - cheap utility brush, soft watercolor brushes and one detail brush
Clay tools
Brushes that Deb uses
Ana Elena’s bakery - Margu. Check out the artwork that she had made for the shop!
Debra Fritts is a studio artist working in Abiquiu, New Mexico. She received her undergraduate degree in Art Education from the University of Tennessee and continued graduate studies in ceramic sculpture, painting, and printmaking. Debra currently conducts figurative sculpture workshops at her studio, and master classes nationally and internationally.
Debra enjoys national recognition for her work in ceramic sculpture through invitational exhibitions and awards, museum exhibitions and collections, gallery representation, private collections and publications. Her one of a kind sculptures are hand-built and multiple fired with a painterly glazed surface. The work is a continuous story of awareness and the celebration of daily living.
