Yuming Zhu Archives

Wet Paint has two definite camps of customers, one of learners and one of teachers. There is a regular quest for classes and demos from those who hunger for more knowledge. I believe it is the nature of many artists to be on a continuous path of learning. At the same time there are artists who are so enthusiastic and passionate about their art that they cannot contain themselves from sharing their knowledge and experience. I believe for many, being a teacher is synonymous with being an artist. Wet Paint is a perfect place to introduce these two camps to each other and we are actively experimenting with different formats where these creative individuals intersect.

We are fortunate to bring Ioana Stoian to Wet Paint for two origami workshops. Ioana’s passion is paper and folding. A professional and an active member of the International Association of Hand Papermakers and Paper artists, Stoian has written a book, Origami for All, Elegant Designs from Simple Folds, which contains her own original origami designs. Each workshop has unique seasonal designs which you will learn from a master yet requires no previous experience. We are trying out some new time slots on these classes, one on Tuesday evening, March 25^th and one on Wednesday morning on April 16^th.

Joyce Francis needs no introduction. A master calligrapher in search of new artistic outlets, Joyce found the art of contemplative patterning, Zentangle, to be her new passion. We have had other Zentangle workshops with Joyce and the participants always ask for more. We have two sessions of the same class coming up on Saturday, March 22. No experience required.

These classes at Wet Paint are all hands-on 2 hour workshops. Materials are included and you will have a finished project at the end of the class. There are workshop fees and registration is required. You can sign up online, by phone or in person. If classes don’t meet a minimum enrollment 3 days before the session begins, the class will be cancelled and your class fee will be refunded.

Special offer through March 16

If you sign up for one of these 4 classes over this weekend, you will receive a coupon to be used on a future purchase at Wet Paint. Click here to go to our Events page.

Wet Paint At Large

Over the past few years we have helped bring Sumi-e artist and teacher Yuming Zhu to the Twin Cities. His following is so great we need to partner with other members of our creative community who have more space. This April, Yuming is not only teaching a 2 day Sumi-e Painting workshop at Bloomington Theatre and Art Center (BTAC), he will also lecture to accompany an exhibit of his artwork at the Eagan Community Center.

Plus Yuming is offering a unique class on Mounting Techniques for Sumi-e Art on Monday, April 14^th, at BTAC. Many artists who have studied with Yuming have asked for training on this specific sumi-e technique of traditional wet mounting. This is an intermediate to experienced class, focused on those with a sumi-e and/or framing background. This is a unique opportunity to get hands-on experience at a master’s side.

The programs at BTAC and Eagan require registration through those respective venues.

If you were to ask Darin, General Manager at Wet Paint, what customers ask for the most that we don’t provide, it would be “classes.” Besides not having classroom space, we at Wet Paint also believe the Twin Cities offer many options for further artistic learning. We have come up with some unique partnerships to connect those who manufacture art supplies with a number of organizations to bring new learning experiences to our customers and our community. There are a number of classes and workshops we have helped develop this October featured at existing educational venues with our friends in the art materials industry, our customers and the Twin Cities community.

St Paul Community Education still has space open in “Almost Intermediate Drawing & Color Pencil” with Mary Esch. An internationally recognized artist who has art in the Walker Art Center’s permanent collection, Mary Esch worked at Wet Paint a long, long time ago. This is a hidden gem of an opportunity to work with this talented artist at Community Ed prices. The class is held Monday evenings at Creative Arts High School.

Another Community Ed opportunity is “Open Studio Painting” with Dan Mackerman starting October 9^th at Edgcumbe Rec Center. Professional artist Mackerman will help beginning artists decide which is the best wet media for them. This is a way to experiment with watercolor, acrylic and oil without having to purchase 3 ranges of color.

Brian Buell, president of Logan Graphic Products will teach a ½ day class on DIY mat cutting. The class, held at Macalester College on October 26th, will take you through border calculation, mounting and cutting both single and double mats. Brian comes armed with mat cutters and materials for everyone in class to have hands on training. This workshop is also part of St Paul’s Community Ed. Click here to see the entire Community Education Catalog!

Wet Paint is pleased to bring Susan Rostow, founder of Akua Inks to the Twin Cities. Susan became concerned about health safety issues surrounding printmaking and created soy based printing inks which are highly regarded in college printmaking departments. Besides offering a free talk at Wet Paint the evening of October 11^th, Rostow is teaching a workshop at Highpoint Center for Printmaking on Saturday October 12^th. At this writing, there are still some spots open in this workshop. Read more here!

Yuming Zhu, master of Sumi painting, has come to the Twin Cities for a number of years doing demos at Wet Paint and teaching workshops at some of the art centers in the area. October 29 and 30, Yuming will teach a two-day workshop called Golden Leaves at White Bear Center for the Arts. Yuming is a mesmerizing teacher and quite witty, too. This is a way to experience White Bear Center for the Arts’ new building which I saw last week and it is fantastic. Read more here!

All these classes have fees and registration through the organizations presenting the classes and workshops. Wet Paint is happy that we can pool our resources and bring these opportunities to our community.