October 3 update: One spot has become available for a full retreat participant.
In this weekend long retreat, we’ll slow down and practice listening, being in conversation with our materials, the moment, and meaning as it emerges. Designed around the theme of vessels, each class offers students the opportunity to explore what it means to hold space for that which wants to be known and come into being. We’ll consider 4 distinct forms (bowl, book, amulet, and quilt) and explore ways that each can act as container to hold meaning.
Though workshops can be taken as single classes, sessions complement and build on each other, as we deepen our practice of tuning in, listening, and allowing what we make to lead the way. No previous experience needed. Registration info is below, including signup links.
Katherine Ferrier is a poet, dancer, maker, teacher, curator, and community organizer, and has been the Director of the Medomak Fiberarts Retreat since 2018. Her research grows out of a deep practice of paying poetic attention to the world, and lives in the intersecting communities of movers, makers, writers and activists. She regularly teaches and performs throughout the US and abroad, and believes in patchwork as a radical practice of being patient, saying yes, and making space for everyone at the table.
Katherine Ferrier
Making, Being, and Being Made: Contemplative Writing for Makers
2 hours: 5-7 pm
Thursday, October 13
If making is a practice of paying attention, what can we learn about ourselves, and the world, by tuning in to the layers of meaning and metaphor embedded in every thread of our lives as makers? How is making its own kind of making sense? How does what we make in turn make us? This workshop is one part making, one part meditation, and one part contemplative/ creative writing. We’ll begin with some quiet, meditative handwork, (sewing, stitching, spinning knitting, drawing, etc) each tending to our own work. From this place of deep listening and connection, we’ll work with a variety of writing prompts that will act as invitations into memory, metaphor, and meaning. There will be space for sharing our writing with each other so that we might deepen our appreciation of how our personal stories are interwoven with and connected to the world around us. No formal writing experience is required.
Please bring some handwork and a journal. It’s best to bring something you can work on without concentrating too much, so that your hands can be steadily working, leaving your thoughts to drift into the rich realms of memory and meaning.
Simple stitching/embroidery materials can be provided for those in between or without projects for a materials fee of $5.
Friction & Transformation: Felted Bowls & Freewriting
6 hours + 1 hour for lunch (included)
Friday, October 14
In this class we’ll learn the basics of wet felting and make a simple, seamless small bowl or vessel by transforming wispy wool roving into a durable structure using water, soap, and a bit of agitation. Along the way, we’ll marvel at the many metaphors of how things come into being, how friction helps new forms emerge, and how patience is a practice where transformation is concerned. Throughout the day, we’ll take a few breaks from felting and bring our attention to the page, exploring some guided prompts and meditations. By the end of the day, you’ll have a finished bowl, and perhaps a bit of writing that just might surprise you. No previous experience with felting or free writing necessary.
Please bring 2 large, old towels, an apron and/or wear clothes you don’t mind getting a bit wet, journal and pen for writing
Materials fee: Kits will be provided for a fee of $15
Embracing the Mystery: Making a Quilt with Cyanotype Prints
6 hours + 1 hour for lunch (included)
Saturday, October 15
In this workshop we’ll work with themes of light and dark, shadows and ghosts, and collaborations with the unknown, as we learn how to make prints on fabric using the magic of cyanotypes. We’ll take inspiration from the land, collecting shapes that call to us in the form of leaves, sticks, flowers, or feathers, and practice deep listening with some guided journal prompts. Once we make our prints, we’ll use the fabric to make a small quilt, adding stitches as another layer of meaning. Along the way we’ll explore elements of composition, design, embracing mistakes, and the basics of quilt making.
Materials fee: Kits will be provided for a fee of $15, and include treated fabric for prints, batting, and backing fabric.
Pages & Pockets: Making a hand-stitched book & amulet
6 hours + 1 hour for lunch (Included)
Sunday, Oct. 16
Books hold our personal stories, each page a space for meaning to emerge. For centuries, people have made and worn amulets, as protection, as celebration, as a way to hold what’s most important and keep it close. Leaning into the spirit of play and exploration, students will learn several basic stitches and forms to make both a simple hand stitched book and an amulet, imbued with memory and meaning. We’ll slow down, and let our stitches lead the way. We’ll take inspiration from the land, and practice deep listening with some guided journal prompts and meditations.
Bring a small collection of special fabrics, your favorite threads, and sharp scissors. There will be an ample supply of fabrics, ribbons and threads on hand to work with, and we’ll play with incorporating treasures we find from our walk as well.
Registration information
Secure your retreat registration with a $400 deposit and lodging request. Lodging assignments will be made in early September. Balance of registration fee will be due September 15.
Full retreat registration is for Thursday evening through end of class on Sunday, including all instruction, gift bag, and fun activities as well as meals: refreshments Thursday night, breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Friday and Saturday. Breakfast and lunch on Sunday.
If you are unable to join us for the full retreat, you may register for individual classes. Thursday’s writing class registration fee includes refreshments; Other classes include lunch, and you may join us for dinner on Saturday or Sunday for an additional fee.
The classes will be held at a bucolic Rockbridge County location, and space is available for about seven of you to stay in a beautiful hand-crafted home on-site. Meals are homemade, delicious and inspired, and will accommodate most dietary needs. We are planning some evening activities but expect ample opportunity for stargazing and chatting around the fire with new friends.
Accommodation options—fees include all instruction and meals
Shared bedroom, shared bath $825
Private bedroom, double bed, shared bath $875
1st floor bedroom, queen bed, private bath, $900
Single session registration
Thursday, 2 hours instruction and ice cream social $65
Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, 6 hours instruction and lunch $175
Add dinner on Friday or Saturday, $25
Retreat registration links
Full retreat deposit due now, balance due September 15 One space remaining, shared room.
Individual class signup links
Making, Being, Being Made: Thursday, October 13, 5-7 p.m. followed by homemade ice cream
Friction & Transformation: Felted Bowls & Freewriting—Friday, October 14, 10 am-5 pm
Embracing the Mystery: Making a Quilt with Cyanotype Prints—Saturday, October 13, 10 am-5 pm
Pages & Pockets: Making a hand-stitched book & amulet—Sunday, October 14, 10 am-5 pm