With students filling up their summer plans, the Craft Center has made it convenient to keep enjoying their services, with their second bi-annual day-long “retreat.”
The retreat began last year, in an effort to provide summer students with an opportunity to participate in a relaxing, creative activity. Rather than having to sign up for a regular six-week long class, students with a full schedule are encouraged to attend a retreat from 9 a.m . to 5 p.m . On this crafting adventure, beginning students can learn an art of their choice from the ground up, complete with learning to use advanced tools.
“Students can choose from attending an intensive course on pottery, stained glass, woodturning or metal jewelry,” Jo Ellen Westmoreland, assistant director of the Crafts Center, said.
Once the day is complete, students will automatically receive a studio pass, allowing them free access to a studio and all its tools for both summer sessions. Not to mention, the Craft Center is providing a cookout lunch in the middle of the day. The price for the retreat totals to only $25, almost half of the usual studio pass rate.
“Passes usually range from $45 to the $60 range because you’re paying for a full class. This is a really good deal and can fit into anyone’s schedule,” Westmoreland said.
While every student may not be interested in the four classes offered, the Craft Center paid careful attention to the options they planned for retreat.
“We picked the most popular classes, and took into account that some of them, like fibers, are too intensive to instruct in just one day,” Westmoreland said.
Once a student receives a studio pass, all they’ll need to buy are materials for their craft, and the rest is free as long as the Craft Center is open. Passes can also be renewed at the end of the summer for a fee.
The professors for these courses were chosen based mainly on experience. Rachel Allen will be teaching the woodturning studio. Though she is not a regular professor at the Craft Center, she was a former student and showed extreme skill in the craft.
Other professors, like Gaines Bailey, clay studio manager, work in the Craft Center already and are coming for the retreat to share their experience with others.
For Bailey, one of the more interesting parts of the experience is trying to fit a lot of material into a small amount of time for students.
“It’s a really fun experience. It presents a bit of a challenge to a teacher to try and fit everything in one day,” Bailey said.
Whether you’re a lover of the Craft Center already, or you’re looking for the opportunity to blow off some steam during a busy summer, you are encouraged to register for the retreat.
Students can find registration information at www.ncsu.edu /crafts. Anyone can register until the class becomes full, or until the day of the retreat, whichever comes first.
