Next Workshop on May 15, 2016 the Elements, Part 1 Fire and Clouds

Our next workshop with Dara Juels will take place on Sunday, May 15, 10:00-2:00 PM. Part one will focus on drawing flames and clouds-- among the two most well known Tibetan motifs of the elements used in traditional Thangka painting. We hope to refine these motifs in order to carve them into wood blocks followed by printing on our etching press or to apply embossing the images into our handmade papers. The workshop is offered by donation to the instructor. 

Please join us for a fun day. 

A variety of Tibetan flames

Daria Juels became interested in Buddhism as a teenager and after taking a college course in Buddhism began to study Zen meditation. She lived in a Zen Buddhist community for a few years while attending art school. She met her Teacher, a Tibetan Nyingma Lama, ten years ago and became interested in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition as well as the Tibetan language. Studying scriptural Tibetan with Heidi Nevin, a well-known translator, she developed her knowledge of the written language. Wishing to become fluent in the spoken language Dara travelled to Nepal five years ago where she lived for almost two and a half years studying both language and meditation practices with various teachers in the Nyingma Lineage. When she returned to the United States she furthered her studies at a translator program at Rangjung Yeshe Gomde in Northern California. Dara began doing both written translation of dharma practices and teachings for buddhist teachers as well as oral translation for her husband. She has a passion for both Tibetan language and translating the vast wealth of wisdom within the spiritual tradition into English. Her wish is participate in assuring that the blessings of the path are carried into the Western languages.

There will be no open studios until May 14/15 due to being on retreat. Once the weather warms up we will begin making larger sheets of paper outdoors using our Nepalese floating moulds and 4 x 7 foot screen (see below). We will also be cooking a variety of plant fibers in preparation to our summer papermaking courses.  So stay in touch if you are interested in these activities.