From Sumo wrestlers, to the Cherry Blossom Festival, from Toyotos to Kimonos, from Sushi to Samurai, from Washi to Wasabi, Japanese culture seizes our imagination. Get an insiders view of the customs, rituals and ceremonies at the heart of Japanese life from Yuko Tanaka at this free lecture. Yuko arrived in Canada this January and after having survived her first dreary Montreal winter, she tells us, her desire to share her culture is in full bloom. Understanding the influence of seasonal change is a large part of the Japanese lifestyle and her exploration begins there. You will learn how a tea ceremony in May varies from a tea ceremony in January and why wearing a certain kimono pattern during the wrong season is like wearing white after Labour Day. What Hiroshige did in his famous painting depicting the Four Seasons after long months of work, Yuko will do with words in just this one magic night. Limited space. Please call to reserve a place.

Why limit the time-honoured and rewarding technique of quilting just to cloth when it works equally well on paper? Paper quilting is a new art form adapting traditional and non-traditional pattern-making to paper. It combines needlework and collage to create innovative designs incorporating montages of paintings, stitching and paper layering, accented with found objects. The skills are simple, the equipment basic and the materials easily found. The finished pieces can be framed, or used for covering books or boxes or making card

Was this fascinating, historical, kenetic puzzle the inspiration for a “Rubic's Cube”? Operating on different but equally enigmatic principles, Kate's Magic Cube is an object made up of eight small cubes joined together to make up a larger cube that opens into a seemingly endless number of different configurations. That makes altogether 48 different sides onto which you can affix different images, making it not only a great novelty object, but a totally original way to store and display photos of family, favorite paintings, graphics, text, etc. And it also teaches you many important skills in handling paper that will serve as a basis for many other paper-related projects.
Techniques learned: how to baffle your friends, and look like a magician, step-by-step instructions of construction and the secret of the hinging system by which each cube is attached to the others “invisibly”, attachment of the images to the cubes.

Act now while supplies last! Really, this could be the last year for this always popular course as Polaroid has closed its doors forever and supplies of the 667 film essential for this course are rapidly dwindling. Polaroid transfer is that fascinating process that changes normal slides into haunting images of altered and muted colours and hues. Project your slides onto Polaroid film (same pack as for the old-style camera) with a special machine provided. Then tear apart, throwing away the positive part, and transferring the negative part onto Japanese papers. Mario has perfected this tricky technique in his own work as an artist, photographer and sculptor using it to make evocative colour and textural changes to his photos. Students bring their own slides. (NOTE: one pack of Polaroid included.) Techniques learned: Use of the machine for projecting the slides onto the Polaroid pack; choosing papers for different effects; preparing the surface; transferring the negative part of the Polaroid film onto Japanese papers.

Think Picasso, not Hallmark! Under Heathers lively, professional and restlessly creative inspiration, the card becomes a medium for works of art : small, but powerful and satisfying expressions of your creative potential. Herself an artist working extensively with washi to produce works sometimes up to 20 feet long, she narrows her focus in this course to explore the limitless possibilities in a limited space. Learn how to balance discretion with spontaneity, precision with freedom, and the logical with the intuitive in Heathers down-to-earth manner, as she explores with you how washis responsiveness, colour, textures and patterns combine with your own creativity to make cards that deserve to be hung on walls rather than put in envelopes.
Techniques learned: Design principles, and concepts of theme, colour, composition, tool use, folding, measuring, cutting and pasting.

Man has always wanted to fly like the birds. And before airplanes got invented, the kite was the closest we ever came. And to this day, the graceful arcs described by these colourful, dancing shapes delight us, give us a sense of freedom. That soaring feeling dominates Robert's life, leading him to attend dozens of international kite festivals all over the world each year. He will teach you the basic, traditional technique of making a kite out of bamboo and washi, then to use its surface as a canvas for making a painting using ink or watercolour, and if the weather's good, go out and hang it in the sky!
Techniques learned: Structural principles, use of bamboo and other woods for the frame, properties of suitable paper, covering procedures; use of kite surface as an artistic medium.

Washi's celebrated translucency—it's unparalleled capacity to transmit light— has long fascinated Margrethe and led her into the creation of luminous works of art. Adapting the techniques she has developed, she adds motion to this year's exploration of the interaction between material and light, using techniques of collage without paste, em-broidery and stitching, to create lightweight, ephemeral hangings that will add beauty, light, colour and movement to your environment. Scale models will be made

Paper is not only a surface to draw on, but with! We are pleased to be able to offer again this year to Western artists and artisans this time-honoured and creatively robust appliqué technique by which you effectively use paper as a drawing instrument, like a brush or pen. Sandra will provide you with a rich variety of Japanese papers, from the multi-patterned chiyogami to fibrous and textured surfaces that can be cut, torn, pasted, sewn and combined to produce landscapes, objects, or abstract motifs

While many people think of using natural dyes on cloth, few people realize that because of its inherent strength and resilience, washi can also be dyed simply and easily. The results are papers that are exactly the colour you want, or papers that vary in tonality and hue “as you wish”surfaces that become a reflection of one's own sensitivities, taste and imagination and can be used afterwards to cover books or boxes, on cards or lampshades, as window coverings or as elements in collage. $55.00
Techniques learned: Dyeing with natural powders, such as tumeric, hibiscus flowers, persimmon, and many others easily obtained, use of certain substances to naturally strengthen paper, exploiting the special characteristics of washi.

We all love the look of the classic, detailed, old woodblock print. Wish you could make one without hundreds of dollars of carving tools and a long apprenticeship with a grumpy master? You can. Produce virtually the same “look” as wood-cuts or lino-cuts, but using a special kind of material that's much easier to carve. You can use it to print on T-shirts, make cards, bookplates, labels, or as elements in collage. Melanie has mastered this technique by using it extensively in her own distinctive work, and you'll be glad to know it hasn' made her in the least bit grumpy!
Techniques learned: use of carving tools, and the “speedy block” material, transferring an image onto the block, carving methods, creating a stamp pad with acrylic paint printing techniques.

There's nothing worse than being left in the dark, except being in the wrong kind of light, such as that loud, glaring kind that makes you feel like you'
e being interrogated by Lenny Brisco on Law and Order. Change light from bombastic to fantastic with the unmatched, gentle glow from lampshades made from Japanese papers. Students mostly come with their own ideas (or chose from Stan's models), then construct a frame from galvanized steel wire, solder the joints and cover it with their choice of the many beautiful papers supplied. Learn lots of helpful “tricks of the trade” along the way, and take home something that will soothe rather than abuse your eyes!
Techniques learned: Straightening galvanized steel wire; choosing strategies for minimizing num-ber of elements; making models; scaling up; assembling into form of one's own design; soldering with a torch; methods for covering wire-frame with paper.

The reputation of this highly popular image-making process is well deserved. All printmakers, whether novice or expert, and artists interested in expanding their experience, will find much new opportunity for creativity in Chine Collé. It involves printing your images onto Japanese paper (chine) and then adhering it (collé) to a more robust surface. Several printmaking techniques will be used: Etching, softground, drypoint or aquatint and students will need to bring a few found objects (dry leaves, feathers, etc.).
Techniques learned: How to use basic printmaking techniques; drypoint, printing with Japanese paper and various techniques of chine collé.

Stepping on someone's foot while dancing is embarrassing, but a misstep with an Exacto knife while cutting a sheet of Kurotani #53 is a much worse loss than of face. Avoid all manner of mistakes working with that incomparable material called washi, and learn how to do things with it that you never imagined in this free lecture with the owners of Au Papier japonais. Learn how to make a deckle in the middle of a sheet, properly use an Exacto knife, determine yield, proportionally size, the secrets of bone folders, make an envelope, etc.and moreover what properties washi has that make it so perfect for so many things. Please call Au Papier japonais to reserve a place. Limited space. Please call to reserve a place

Traditional monotypes require a heavy press such as in our course on April 18th, but leave it to Renée to come up with a way of achieving similar results for about 900 pounds less! Making monotypes on a gelatine plate is a non-mechanical method of printing that also encourages the artist to take a painterly approach to the printing process, exploring many different ways of inking the plate to get a soft image. This printmaking process has few rules and gives you the opportunity to experiment yourself at home with non toxic water-based colours and other easily obtainable materials

Ever wonder why the Japanese always give you something with two hands? Because any kind of exchange between people, from a commonplace business card to a precious present, must be done with dignity and respect. It's for this reason also, that so much attention and care is given to wrapping. Hence the elegant, complex, colourful, eye-pleasing packaging that is as distinctive a feature of Japanese culture as kimonos and Kabuki theatre. Hideko teaches you some of the techniques that have made Japanese gift-wrapping an art form in itself.
Techniques learned: Scoring, folding, cutting, assembling, gluing and pattern-making.

Most of us admire sculptors not only for their beautiful and imposing work, but for their vigour in being able to handle such a variety of weighty materials—and hence think it is beyond us. Not so, says Mathieu who will show you how to make pieces as fully impressive and ingenious out of that limitlessly versatile material: paper. Learn a simple set of steps using only paper, string, a tiny amount of white glue, and a solid object around which to create the form. Explore the magical medium of paper that allows twisting, folding, crumpling, rolling, draping, inserting and tearing. Pieces can be representational or abstract and the final result has an appearance reminiscent of leather, bark, or sand, depending on what handmade paper you use as the finish. The pieces are can be made translucent and become luminous when put in a window and don' need a forklift to move!

New!
Monochromatic isn' synonymous with monotonous as all lovers of old Bogart and Bacall movies in glorious black and white will testify. Their emotional and visual impact are still unmatched, and provide, in texture and tonality, an aesthetic quality that colour simply cannot.

It's this idea that inspired Heather Yamada's new course where you will concentrate on hue, tonality, shading, subtle variations within a specific range of colours in paints and papers deliberately chosen by Heather with certain properties to achieve certain effects. Find out how focussing your concentration in this way leads to previously unexplored possibilities

Oil and water don' mix! And it's a good thing, otherwise the world would never have the rich, colourful, swirling designs we grew up admiring on the inside covers of high quality hard-bound books! This highly useful technique can be used not only in bookbinding, but can be used equally well for collage, cardmaking, wrapping very special gifts, to cover lamps, windows, panels of kitchen cupboards, tabletops, etc. In the past, the technique was as zealously guarded as the Da Vinci Code, but Renée will reveal it to you in this one day, and without encountering a single murderous monk!.
Techniques learned: use of acrylics for marbling, preparing the size, alternatives to carragheean moss, applying alum, colour mixing using ox gall, tool use and making, behavior of colours in water, traditional and original pattern creation.

Shibori—and the beautiful patterns it makes on cloth—is the first thing that comes to mind when we think of wax resist; but the same dramatic effects can be achieved on paper as well. Learn how to apply this timeless technique to washi from Nathalie, a professional textile artist intimately familiar with this process. You will concentrate on using the colour indigo, often called the first colour of humanity as it has been in use for many thousands of years. The resulting blue white patterned sheets can then be used as elements in collage, or for cardmaking, or for covering books or boxes, or even lampshades.
Techniques learned: Exploration of the effects of cold wax on different kinds of Japanese papers ; techniques of application; colouring with indigo.

Stark, high contrast gives black and white images their compelling power. And no black and white images are more striking that those created by Kiri-e, the traditional Japanese method of using positive and negative space on paper. First a conventional image is chosen from say a photograph, then traced, reducing the full range of colours and tonality into either white or black areas. This is then transferred onto the final sheet of black paper, the highlight areas are removed, and the result is set on top of a white sheet, giving the final high contrast effect.
Techniques learned: Judging areas to be included or deleted in the conversion process of the original image into black and white, use of exacto knife and tracing paper, choosing alternate backgrounds other than white.

Cardmaking has been described as a limitless means of self-expression, and it's just gotten more limitless. Sandra brings an added dimension, literally, to this miniature artform by introducing the exciting possibilities of paper folding techniques. Put aside pencil or paintbrush during this course and learn how to create small sculptural forms from classical to experimental designs, which take full advantage of the motifs, textures and colours of Japanese papers, and that can easily be incorporated into greeting cards. And these techniques can be easily adapted to invitations, gift wrapping, decorations and even jewellery

Amazing that two cultures separated by half a world from each other should both independently develop essentially the same beautiful technique! We call it “marbling”, but the Japanese use a similar process for making wonderfully intricate, multi-coloured, patterned papers. They call it “suminagashi”, and the results reflect the refinement and subtlety for which the Japanese are famous. It's done on “washi” which gives a softer quality to the colours. An ideal covering for books, flyleaves, boxes, on cards and invitations, or in collage.
Techniques learned: Differences between “suminagashi” and marbling, use of acrylics and other inks, substances for separating the colour from the water, use and making of tools, mixing colours, and creating designs.

“Eat your vegetables,” your mother always said as you thought about ice cream for dessert. Tina won' make you eat them, but show you how they can be used to make the most delicious patterns. Cucumbers, broccoli, celery, or fruits like bananas, oranges, pineapple in Tina's hands are transformed into printmaking tools. Potatoes or turnips, for example, are hard enough to carve in as you might in linoleum or “Speedy Block”. Step and repeat impressions to create regular, symmetrical patterns, or use your “organic printing blocks” in a more free-form style overprinting many different images to create complex motifs. Warning to carnivores: Course may make vegetarians out of you!

If there were paper “Super Heroes”, this one would be called “The Man of Steel” (and Lois Lane would be in love with it!) It's an amazing thing what this substance called Konnyaku (Devil's Tongue Root) can do to strengthen paper. (It's also amazing that it is one of the side dishes that are served in traditional Japanese cuisine!) Learn how to use it with Sigrid and be able to change ordinarily tough washi into extraordinarily tough washi—actually more like cloth—that can be used in bookbinding and to make wallets, pillows, hats, clothing or other creative applications where you need a “super” strong paper.
Techniques learned: Properties of Konnyaku, achieving maximum penetration into the paper, how to add further strength by crumpling, using Konnyaku as sizing in preparation for dyeing and other wet techniques.

Sew what? Yes, you can really sew paper, and use a needle just like a brush to make the most sophisticated, detailed and surprising artworks.
Join Sigrid in a surprising adventure that begins with creating a vocabulary in the form of small samples: stitch single and multiple layers of washi, both thick and thin; try cotton thread, heavier, less flexible linen or smooth shiny silk; attach coloured paper shapes to a backing; make textures with the thread itself or allow the paper to ripple and pucker by varying thread tension.

Monotypes became popular in the 18th & 19th centuries by artists such as Blake, Pissaro, Gaugin and Bonnard. The monotype, an impression using a painterly approach, offers many creative opportunities and can later be combined with other techniques. Degas is an example of an artist that created monotypes by printing the ghost of his plates which he then reworked using pastels! Using oil-based inks, you will learn how to produce images in a professional printmaking studio on an etching press.
Techniques learned: Additive and subtractive methods, stenciling, trace printing, ghost printing, printing objects, multiple-plate printing and more!

Get ahead of everyone, perhaps even yourself in this last of Heather's always “far out” adventures in creativity. Far outside certainly of any conventional, by-the-book approach to cardmaking. Leave pre-conceived ideas in the past along with such things as bell bottoms, the Deloreon and donkey kong. Move into a brave new world of spontaneity and self-expression tapping into the matchless responsiveness and receptivity of Japanese paper. Mix lightness and transparency, multi-layer patterns, experiment with interposing colours and motifs—and find out why the past is in the right place. $85.00
Techniques learned: Personalizing your designs, basic design concepts of theme, colour, composition, tool use, folding, measuring, cutting and pasting

Is there a hotter technique today to fire the imagination of artists working in mixed media than image transfer? We are happy to add to our courses featuring other methods, this further, perhaps more direct way, to incorporate into your work the endless possibilities this process offers. Renée will show you how to use readily available products such as natural oils as well as gesso and acrylic medium, and also how to transfer on beeswax or with heat, using paper, canvas and "mousseline" for support. Bring along color or black and white photocopies or computer prints.

Rubbings are an oft-ignored means of producing fascinating textural images, and of interacting with our surrounding whose incredible range of relief surfaces present us with innumerable creative possibilities. But not to Lorraine who can often be found with a sheet of washi and pencil rubbing away on a chain-link fence, hubcaps, ashphalt, license plates, flaking paint on doors, air-conditioner grilles, woven baskets, or garage door handles. You'll explore layering of textures, juxtaposition and overlapping of textures, using the matchless strength and responsiveness of washi. A course that will definitely rub you the right way!

Only Alice and the Mad Hatter may know more about Garden parties than John MacLeod, but theirs only existed in Lewis Caroll's imagination, while John's are real. This is our annual romp through the eclectic, synchronistic and multi-faceted mind of a dear friend and Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Montreal (and national promoter of “Peace Parks). He casts his perceptive eye once again on the important role that gardens play in our well-being, making hitherto for unsuspected connections between these oases of natural charm and our collective social life, richly illustrating his views with slides from around the world, which along with his cultivated charm and wit will leave you smiling like the Cheshire Cat! Limited space. Please call to reserve a place.