Painting on Silk Workshop

Price:

• Early Bird (book by 18 April): £60
• Full price (book after 18 April): £65

Price includes welcome coffee and shortbread, and short curator talk about current exhibition during lunch break. Lunch available to buy in coffee room.

This workshop will give participants an introduction to the fascinating craft of painting/dyeing onto silk. Suitable for beginners or those who have tried this fascinating craft before. Come join us at the Dalgarven Mill Museum of Country Life & Costume for a fun and creative silk painting workshop! Let your artistic side shine as you learn the beautiful art of painting on silk. This hands-on experience will teach you various techniques to create stunning designs on this luxurious fabric. Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, this workshop is perfect for anyone looking to explore their creativity. Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to learn a new skill in a picturesque setting!

This workshop will give participants an introduction to the fascinating craft of painting/dyeing onto silk. Suitable for beginners or those who have tried this fascinating craft before.

Guide to workshop content:

1. Introduction, materials/equipment/dyes issued.
2. Examples of silk painting shown and discussed.
3. Selection and preparation of designs/ideas and transferring of these onto silk and using a variety techniques to experiment with
4. Working on a larger piece using technique(s) of your choice.

Demonstrations:

• Stretching/preparing silk
• Gutta/resist technique
• Colour mixing using the dyes
• ‘Wet on wet’ and anti-spread technique
• Use of salt and water to create interesting effects on silk
• Hairdryer/Landscape method

You will experiment on small pieces and learn about colour mixing (these samples could be made into cards).

Once you have practised the above techniques, you will be able to progress onto a larger piece if time allows, which could be taken away to be attached to a cushion and /or embroidered . . . or simply framed as a picture !

You will be supplied with the following:

Ponge/Habotai silk pieces (A4 size )

You can purchase additional larger pieces if required

Dyes, gutta, salt, sugar and water mixture

Wooden hoops and wooden frames, pins to secure silk

Pencil , papers and tracing paper, masking tape, glue

Please bring along to the workshop the following:

• A few sheets of paper towel
• Small plastic bag (A4 size)
• Apron
• Plastic household gloves or disposable ones
• Clean old tea towel
• A hairdryer if you have one and are able to carry it

Images/Inspiration:

Please bring a selection along of any images you might like to use on the silk, e.g. flowers, birds, landscape photos in a mixture of sizes.

I will help you select the most suitable for a particular technique and for transferring onto silk and guide you with scale and details.

Select clear images, in colour preferably and those that haven’t too much detail, to transfer onto the silk.

I will have some images, books, photocopies etc, to use on the day too.

Looking forward to meeting you soon for a fun and enjoyable day!

Tutor: Moira McLennaghan, B.A.HONS Design, Post Dip Textiles

A textile artist trained at GSA and Scottish College of Textiles in the Borders, Moira is an Art and Design lecturer with over 30 years teaching experience within the Further Education sector in the areas of Textiles, Digital Design and Fashion Design.

A current member with the UK Guild of Silk Painters, she has exhibited her work widely with them and curated the Scottish branch’s first textile exhibition at The Lillie Art Gallery Milngavie in 2018. There she was a children’s Art Tutor for their Saturday workshops for over 20 years and often included silk painting and batik methods into the curriculum.

A member of the Glasgow Society of Women Artists and the Batik Guild of the UK, she has also exhibited in the Resipole Gallery, Ardnamurchan as part of that group .

In 2013 she designed a 3 panel/5 foot long silk-painted textile depicting Glasgow’s buildings heritage and the River Clyde, which was then constructed by herself and the Glasgow group. It was exhibited at the Commonwealth Games the following year and will eventually be archived for the future at the Mitchell Library in Glasgow .

In 2018 the UK Silk Painters asked her to design a 6 foot square panel as part of the 150th anniversary of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. This was completed by the Scottish members in the July for an exhibition at the Mackintosh Club in Helensburgh.

She is now chairperson of the group and is currently expanding the activities and involvement as she is keen to teach her craft to all areas of Scotland to help promote this ancient and amazing craft!