Starting this year off right with various courses to choose from! This list of courses will all be at the Many Years Farm. Sign up below!
Gesso making for icon boards with Colette Kalvesmaki
Every gilding project is dependent on good gesso. Colette will be teaching in this course how to make gesso from an ancient recipe handed down to her through her Master icon teacher, “It’s one of the best gesso recipes, so I’m told from other artisans as well as iconographers from all over the world”.
This course will be part demonstration and part hands on. Each student will take home a flat wood board 9 x 12″ and gesso to finish gessoing at home (You can bring your own board instead, just let me know). We will all make the rabbit skin glue and soak our linen and apply that linen to the board during the class. After this step it is demonstration.
Board, linen, putty knife and other materials included.
Feb 1st, 2025, Saturday. 10-3
Cost $150
Gilding Course by Colette Kalvesmaki
This class will show how to oil gild an icon. We will start the process Friday night, continue Saturday morning and finish the following Saturday. These will be shorter classes. The student can bring any icon they want to gild (and for those wanting to take the upcoming icon class during Lent–Extreme Humility. I will have the cartoon ready at the gesso class for students to take home or I can mail it to those who can’t make it . The cartoon needs to be transferred on the board before the the class).
Friday, Feb 28, 2025, 5-7pm Saturday, March 1, 2025, 11am-12pm Saturday, March 8, 2025, 10-1
or May 20 -22 starting at 10 am.
Cost: $145 for gilding course.
Students will bring to class a gessoed board with a drawing completed on board.
Each student will receive 4 sheets of gold for their icon for the class, any extra gold sheets the student will need to buy–$4 a sheet (This is for people bringing their own drawings and larger boards).
If you have any questions please contact Colette at paraskeve@gmail.com. You can call, but texting is advised- 240 6761350.
Stone Carving with Bethany Lee
Saturday, April 26, 2025, 9:30 AM-1PM. Lunch included! Cost, $225. Includes the stone. More information to come!
This moving and ancient icon, called Extreme Humility, is brought out in the church during the Bridegroom Matins service during Lent. During this Lent we will prayerfully work on this as our next icon for the Saint Annas Orthodox Church Iconography retreat.
When: March 28, 29 (Friday 10-4, Saturday 10-6) and April 5 (Saturday 10-4, or whenever we finish).
This course will be done in egg tempera on a panel unless you took the gilding class in Feb/March at Many Years Farm-see Courses for more info. All supplies provided.
Cost: $375 ($100 non-refundable deposit to hold your spot. Please pay remainder in check or cash first day of class.)
Pigments, boards, brushes, rulers, pencils, erasers, lights, palettes, wash jars, etc. . . will be supplied for students to use, but you are welcome to bring whatever supplies you prefer from home. Its suggested you wear clothes to get paint on or an apron. If you have icons you wish to varnish-bring them and we will varnish them while we conduct the class.
Saturday Vespers is open to all after the Saturday classes, right next door. All are welcome.
$100 deposit:
$350 full payment:
Contact Colette with questions at paraskeve@gmail.com. We have limited seating, so sign up soon.
For those who are interested in private lessons, I usually teach 1 hour a week or every other week at my home. All supplies are included accept the board which is $12 (Students will slowly buy their own supplies).
After a few icons the student will learn to make their own boards and can bring in a piece of 9 x 12” wood tat that time. All the other supplies I will supply. Lessons are $40 an hour.
There will be both drawing and painting in the lessons for the first year as well as homework. Everyone is asked to buy a 11 x 14” mixed medium sketchbook to bring to class and take home.
After the student can paint longer on their own they can have longer lessons, most ask for 2 hour lessons. Usually takes about a year.
I’ll start to offer ‘Open Saturdays’ now and again as I build up more students. That is where anyone who can paint on their own, but would like to paint for a stretch of time with me there, can come from 11 to 2pm. That is $ 10 an hour.
