Register for these programs: by phone (507-664-3700), in person at FiftyNorth, or by clicking on the title of the class
Please pre-register and check-in for all classes no matter your membership levels. It is also important to check-in at the front desk when you arrive for your class. We use attendance data for grant applications, insurance reimbursement, space planning and determining whether or not to cancel a class.
Scholarships are available to help defray the cost of classes for those who find the cost a financial hardship
Friday, August 21
1:00-3:00pm
Instructor: Allison Albright
Capacity: 4 minimum, 12 maximum
Cost: $40 nonmember, $34 member, $10 Platinum
Space: Room 105
Registration deadline: Monday, August 17
Discover the beauty and versatility of watercolor while creating a vibrant autumn landscape. In this hands-on class, you’ll learn and practice a variety of essential watercolor techniques through step-by-step demonstrations, including how to:
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Apply washes
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Paint negatively
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Create expressive brushstrokes
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Lift color
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Splatter paint
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Charge color
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Create texture
Participants will apply these essential foundational techniques while creating a luminous fall landscape painting.
Tuesday, September 15
1:00-3:00pm
Capacity: 4 minimum, 12 maximum
Space: Room 103
Cost: $30 nonmember, $26 member, $10 platinum
Registration deadline: September 8
Curious about the age-old art of paper quilling? Learn how to turn simple looking paper strips into beautiful art. Paper quilling involves paper strips that are rolled, curled, pinched, and manipulated in other ways to create designs. In this class your instructor will introduce you to the techniques and you will go home with one or more small note cards/gift tags.
Instructor: Karla Kuisle
Wednesday, September 23
10:00am-12:00pm
Instructor: Cheryl Ramette
Capacity: 4 minimum, 12 maximum
In the event we do not meet minimum capacity we may have to cancel this class
Space: Room 105
Cost: $40 nonmember, $34 member, $10 Platinum
Registration deadline: September 16
Miniature kites have been around for many centuries, first introduced from China around 750 AD, then becoming more refined during the Edo period in Japan from 1603-1867. The instructor for this class first became aware of them in 2008 when checking out a kite flying festival at Waterfront Park in Portland, OR, where a kite flyer had a small box filled with tiny, beautifully decorated kites that flew! She was bedazzled. Over the past couple of decades she’s occasionally dabbled with making one herself that can fly, most recently with her current favorite medium, tea bags.
Join Cheryl for a morning of miniature kite making using patterns for reliable-flying miniature kites.
You can see a few examples of her tiny kites in the case in the gallery, and accompanying the poem “Cheers!”. The kites will fly indoors just by walking with them, and outdoors if not too much wind.
Materials will be provided.
Wednesday, September 23
1:30-3:30pm
Location: Room 105
During Art Club
Have half-used paint tubes sitting in your closet? Extra canvases gathering dust? Or maybe you’re itching to try a new medium like printmaking or watercolors without breaking the bank?
Bring what you don’t use and leave with inspiration for your next project! Join us for a fun, community-focused Art Supply Swap—a great way to declutter your studio, discover new tools, and connect with fellow creatives.
✂️ What to Bring (Swap Guidelines)
To make sure everyone gets a great selection, please follow these quick guidelines:
Great items to swap:
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Paints (tubes/jars with plenty left and lids sealed tight)
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Brushes in good, usable shape
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Sketchbooks, drawing papers, or unused canvases
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Pastels, markers, colored pencils, and ink
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Sculpting tools, palettes, easels, and craft supplies
Please skip:
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Completely dried-out paints or glue
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Brushes with stiff, ruined bristles
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Broken equipment or tiny scraps of paper too small to reuse
Check out Art Club while you are at the Art Supply Swap. Art Club meets every 2nd and 4th Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3:30.
Thursday, September 24
1:00-2:30pm
Capacity: 4 minimum, 10 maximum
Cost: $35 nonmember, $30 member, $10 Platinum
Space: Room 105
Registration deadline: September 17
The Japanese art of Sumi-e is painting on paper using a brush, ink, and water. It is simple but represents the most complex model. Create a variety of paintings that include animals, flowers, and nature such as bamboo, which symbolizes flexibility, strength, and longevity. Join us to learn techniques of painting and experience capturing the timeless beauty and the source of life and nature.
Instructor: Sayaka Yamazaki
Wednesdays, October 7, 14
10:00-12:00pm
Instructor: Diane Pearsall
Capacity: 4 minimum, 10 maximum
In the event we do not meet minimum capacity we may have to cancel this class
Cost: $70 nonmember, $60 member, $20 Platinum
Space: Room 102
Registration deadline: September 30
Winter is coming sooner than you think. Will you be warm enough? Does your neck ache when it’s cold out? Knit a cozy, soft, snuggly cowl to keep you warm!
This class is for beginners, those wanting to renew their skills, and experienced knitters looking for a quick project. There will be homework!
You’ll knit the cowl in the round with 2 colors of Cielo Yarn, a blend of Alpaca and Merino that is unbelievably soft against your skin. There are 3 pattern variations to choose from according to your skill level. Even though the cowl may look complicated, this class is appropriate for real beginners.
In the 1st class, beginners will learn the knit stitch and how to knit in the round. But you will spend most of the class knitting the actual cowl! More experienced knitters will choose their pattern and get started.
In the 2nd class you’ll finish the cowl, model it, and celebrate.
What do you need for the classes? Just bring a small scissors, some scrap paper and something to write with. The instructor will supply the yarn, needles, and stitch markers. She will even cast on for you to get you started!
(2 sessions)
Tuesdays, October 13, 20, 27
3:30-5:00pm
Instructor: Marlais Brand
Capacity: 15
Cost: This class is free.
I invite folks with the means to donate $35 to FiftyNorth in lieu of a class fee, and in honor of our terrific volunteers.
Space: Room 105
Love to write? Always wanted to start? Never thought about it? This offering is for you– no writing experience necessary!
I’m leading a mini series this fall that uses nature to catalyze your creativity and celebrate abundance. We’ll meet weekly for an interactive workshop to:
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celebrate the season & natural world
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connect with each other & our bodies
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live in the present
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experiment with writing for self-expression
We’ll poke around our FiftyNorth backyard for a few minutes of each session, so dress for success.
About Me
I’m a published author, and in a previous life I taught fiction, poetry, rhetoric and art history at the University of Maryland, and The Field School. My book, The Hungry Coast, won the Midwest Book award, and, as a youngster I was featured in Scribner’s Best of the Fiction Workshops a few times. I hold BA, MA and MFA degrees in Literature and Writing. I’m also a certified trauma-informed coach and a Reiki master, and I love to bring mindfulness and somatic practices into teaching.
Thursday, October 15
1:00-3:00pm
Instructor: Andrea Turini
Capacity: 6 minimum, 12 maximum
Cost: Nonmember $75, Member $60, Platinum $30
Space: Room 102
Registration deadline: October 8
A hands-on jewelry-making experience with artist Andrea Turini.
Following a short presentation on the history and craft of Czech glassmaking, participants enjoy a one-hour hands-on jewelry design session. Each person designs a coordinating set
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either:
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Earrings + Bracelet or
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Earrings + Necklace
*Please specify your choice when registering
Participants select from Andrea’s curated collection of authentic Czech glass beads to create their designs. Andrea demonstrates design concepts and assists with selection, then completes the technical finishing (wrapping, crimping, and assembly) during class.
Tuesdays, November 3, 10, 17, 24
4:00-5:00pm
Instructor: David Miller
Capacity: 5 minimum, 10 maximum
Space: Room 102
Cost: $48 nonmember, $40 member, $0 Platinum
Registration deadline: October 27
Join David Miller in exploring the rhythms of West Africa! You will learn some common drum patterns (and maybe a song!) from the nations of Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Guinea, played on djembes and other West African percussion instruments. Instruments will be provided.
