Over the years many people have asked me if I teach classes. The answer has always been no, not really. (But sometimes I’ve taught people one-on-one, here in my studio.)

This year I’m trying an experiment. I am offering Workshops, here in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The workshops - ranging from 1 to 4 days - would be a one-on-one experience - though I would be open to two people who know each other - friends, spouses, partners. (As long as they both wanted to learn the same thing.)

 

The workshops will be geared (no pun) to you and your level of knowledge. This means I will customize the focus - from Beginner to Intermediate to Advanced, and anywhere in between – specifically to you, and what you want to learn. It can be the fundamentals, or it can cover more advanced techniques. The idea is to broaden your scope of knowledge.

Another option is for me to help you with a specific issue or problem you are trying to solve. Maybe you are working on – or wanting to start – a piece of automata, and you need to get over that hurdle, or hurdles. I can help.

So, I can cover a wide range of issues and cater to exactly what you’d like to learn/focus on.

 

Suggested areas of focus – (taken singly, or they can be combined in any way)

Mechanical devices (probably the number one subject most people are interested in)

Sculpting heads/faces – working with polymer clay

Hand carving basswood – bodies, hands, arms, legs, etc.

Tools used for making automata

Materials used in making automata – and where to get them

Painting and aging techniques

Using found objects, and found materials

Working with fabric – hand sewing – machine sewing

Or really anything else you want to learn – it’s completely up to you.

 

And it doesn’t have to be strictly automata-related. We can delve into anything art-related, or anything kinetic-related. I’m open.

 

All this can and will be discussed beforehand. Email me --->  here.

 

Specifics

 

Cost - $400. a day, per person. The days will run from 9am to 6pm, with  lunch, on me, at one of Black Mountain’s great restaurants.

 

Lodging – there are many hotels and AirBnBs in Black Mountain. I have a friend who has a place right in town, I could give you her info. Or if you really want the full-on Tom Haney experience, we have an extra bedroom. (My studio is in our backyard.) And you can be right here – helpful if you don’t have a car. You can have your own private space – bedroom and full bathroom – and keep to yourself, or engage with Paula (my wife) and I if you want. Again, it’s up to you. Cost for an overnight stay is $95. a night. This includes breakfast.

Note - we have a cat, so if you're allergic, you might want to stay somewhere else. And I can't guarantee you'll see a bear, but it is a possibility. 

 

We are about 15 minutes east of downtown Asheville, on I-40.

Black Mountain has many excellent restaurants, and we can give you recommendations.

Closest airport is Asheville. It’s about 35 minutes away.

 

Notification

I need at least a month heads-up before the date you’d like to come; to make sure we’re not out of town, or otherwise occupied.

Also, I’m open to weekdays or weekends. I usually work every day, so it doesn’t matter to me.

 

You can bring your own tools if you’d like, though I have a good many tools.

And bring your project with you if you want to go that route.

 

Feel free to ask me any questions beforehand. Again, this is an experiment – I’ve never done anything like this before. But you’re sure to learn many things from my 30 years’ experience working with kinetic artwork.

 

Thanks,

 

tom