20, 27 October & 3 November 2024, Scratch an Eastern bettong, Online Workshop with Joan McKay

Bring an Eastern bettong to life! Use tools to learn scratchboard techniques and create a realistic image of a bettong.  

• Date/Time : 20, 27 October & 3 November 2024, 10am-11:30am AEST
• Location: Online via Zoom
• Please note, a materials kit valued at $40 including postage is payable directly to the tutor; please check your email after booking for details

About the workshop:
Become familiar with using tools such as craft blades and tattoo needles to scrape away the black Indian ink on Ampersand scratchboards to expose the white clay layer beneath and the greys in between. Become confident in rendering objects with a range of mark making techniques.

Create a wallaby with layering and shading to show form, and techniques to depict eyes, skin and fur. Fine tune your image with highlights, contrasts and consider composition and backgrounds to aim “to bring your marsupial to life”. 

Examine the anatomy of a wallaby and a range of furred animals created by scratchboard artists. Image preparation, spraying and framing will be discussed.

This workshop will be delivered via the ZOOM application.  Once you have registered, you will be sent a kit including the scratchboards, tools and reference photos, and a short materials list to complete the project.  A few days before the first workshop you will receive an invitation by email to join the Zoom session by your tutor.

Learning Outcomes 

By the end of the workshop the student will be able to:

• Use scratchboard tools, a craft knife, tattoo needles and other tools, to demonstrate techniques including creating textures, form and contrasts on Ampersand Scratchboards. 
• Render small objects using these techniques. 
• Be familiar with the anatomy of a wallaby and analyse the design and techniques used to create exemplary scratchboard examples of wallabies and other animals.
• Create a wallaby on a 5“ x 7” Ampersand scratchboard from a photo image by tracing it and working in layers of scratching. Develop the image further using ink and highlighting, considering the form and composition.
• Understand how to select and process an image ready to use on a scratchboard and to complete a scratchboard with spraying and framing.

Level of experience: Suitable for students from beginners through to intermediate who wish to develop their scratchboard skills. Intermediate students will have the opportunity to add colour to their work.

About the tutor:
Joan McKay is a Canberra-based award-winning artist and wildlife carer. When Joan saw how images could be realistically represented on a scratchboard, she enthusiastically attended workshops by Rikki Fisher to learn scratchboard techniques and since then has been honing her skills. She has found scratchboard to be a fantastic medium for realistically portraying macropods and birds she has cared for. Joan is a Signature member of The International Society of Scratchboard Artists (ISSA). She is represented by Traffic Jam Galleries, was a finalist in 2021 National Capital Art Prize, was awarded first prize in the Strathnairn Arts Squares 2019 competition and has been exhibiting in several exhibitions, including Tucson, Arizona. Joan holds science, education and library studies degrees and has studied and practised art throughout her life, including drawing (Vanderbilt University) and watercolour media (ANU). Many of her scratchboards are displayed on her website and Instagram  accounts: https://joanmck.weebly.com and @joanmck31 

Image credits: Scratchboard artwork featuring bettongs by Joan McKay