flowercity – Flower City Arts Center

Celebrate the Best Parts of Fall

As summer cools down and leaves begin to change, it is a great time to meditate on the beauty and uniqueness that fall brings. These three classes at Flower City are a great way to get out and experience the wonder that is Upstate New York’s autumn!

Landscape Photography: How Did We Get Where We Are?
October 1st-November 11th, Mondays 6:30 pm-8:30 pm

This class is perfect for nature lovers! The class will begin of a survey of the history of landscape photography and its evolution in the past 150 years. Students will also participate in a shooting outing and discuss their results. This is a great chance to get study other artists, get outdoors and improve your photography skills!

Click here to register for this class or to learn more!

Van Dyke Brown Workshop
November 9th, 12-3 pm

This one day workshop utilizes Van Dyke Brown, a process similar to kallitype, to create warm toned prints. These brown toned prints, are perfect for capturing the spirit of fall. Participants bring their own B&W film negative, so subject matter is completely open! Images can range from 120mm to 4×5 film size. Make sure you don’t miss out on this special workshop!

Click here to register for this class or to learn more!

Boo! Photograms
October 26th, 10 am-12 pm

Everyone knows, the best thing about fall is Halloween! This short class is fun for the entire family and perfect way to spend time with kids 8+. Create B&W photogram prints in the darkroom using our creepy crawly toys! These are great mementos to keep as halloween decorations for years to come!

Click here to register for this class or to learn more!

Don’t miss the chance to improve your photography skills and have fun! Click here to see all classes offered at Flower City. Hope to see you there!

First Light Reception

Looking for an enriching and interesting event this weekend? I’d love to draw your attention to First Light, an off-site exhibition focusing on the stories of six women veterans through black and white photography and writing. First Light is the culminating event of a 12-week photography and writing program, Eyes Front, with Flower City Arts Center.

Eyes Front is a 12-week photography and writing program for women combat veterans; an opportunity for them to express, both visually and in writing, their unique experiences and to share their stories with the community. By engaging in an intensive creative experience, participants explore topics of importance to them such as why they joined the military, its significance for them, various issues they have faced, or other personal reflections. Participants were immersed in the entire process of photography – learning how to use a film camera, taking pictures at home and in the community, and printing their own black and white images.

This exhibition is up from currently at Image City Photography Gallery and will be open until September 1st. Join us for the exhibition reception tomorrow, August 17th 5pm-8pm!

Click here get more information about the event our click here to learn more about our Eyes Front program!

“Pumpkin Spice”-Up Your Photography with These Unique Fall Classes!

Fall is quickly approaching! As one is lulled into coziness by the changing leaves, and fall festivities it is easy to forget all the great opportunities happening around you. While apple picking and tractor rides are must, make sure to clear your calendars for these four unique classes you will not want to miss.

Creating Letterpress Plates with Adobe Illustrator
Tuesdays 7-9pm, Sept. 17-Oct. 8

Interested in both printmaking and digital art? This class is right up your alley! Create photopolymer plates for letterpress printing using Adobe Illustrator. After spending two weeks in the digital lab learning some Illustrator basics and how best to design for letterpress, the class will go to the print shop to learn how to print their plates on our Vandercook presses. Your imagination is the limit!

Click here to learn more or to register!

Image Transfers on Wood
Saturday, Sept. 28 10am-1pm

This class is a perfect chance to get creative on a tight schedule! Learn how transfer your images onto wood with this fun and easy process. Materials will be provided. Just bring some pictures that will translate well into black and white. Wood transfers make excellent and personal gifts for your loved ones!

Click here to learn more or to register!

Candid Street Photography
Oct. 10-17

Diversify your portfolio by branching into street photography! Get a crash course on what makes Street Photography such an exciting genre. Learn how to conquer fears of taking photos of strangers and tips on how to best prepare yourself to make candid street photos. Field trip, critiques and assignments will round out the class schedule. Don’t miss this opportunity to try something new!

Click here to learn more or to register!

Photography in Queer Culture
Wednesdays 6:30-8:30pm, Oct. 16-Nov.6

Delve into new topics and get collaborative! This class will explore photographers in the Queer Community, some who lived throughout the AIDS Epidemic, including Robert Mapplethorpe and Félix González-Torres; and some who are still making work today, such as Zanele Muholi. Throughout this month, we will collaborate on a class project that will depict our views and experiences in the Queer Community in the form of images and/or writing.

Click here to learn more or to register!

If non of these classes strike your interest, try taking a look at our full class list. Happy Fall!

My Favorite Things About Risograph Printing!

There are lots of exciting things to try at Flower City Arts Center. As the photography and digital art intern this summer, I got to get a taste of the facilities offered here. One hidden gem of Flower City is the Risograph Printer. I was lucky enough to be able to play around with the printer and create a few designs, and I fell in love!

What is Riso printing?

For those who don’t know, the risograph pringint process is sgjhimilar to screen printing. Your original image is scanned on the Riso and burned onto a “master copy” which is then wrapped around a print drum which pushes ink through the screen and onto paper.

Here is why printing on the Riso is so unique:

Color

The riso printer is a wet ink process that uses bright ink to create delightful color on the page. Because each ink color is printed separately, the overlap of inks creates interesting color layering. Adding colored paper changes how color appears as well. Flower City currently offers 7 ink colors which is more than enough to create bright, beautiful work!

Texture

Part of the charm of the Riso printer is its uniqueness. Because of the printing process, ink coverage can vary to create an interesting speckled-like texture. No two prints are exactly the same and it gives the prints the feeling that there was a human hand creating them. As always, texture of paper can add a new element to the print that is accentuated on the Riso.

Versatility

With the Riso, the sky is the limit! Digital files, drawings and photography can be easily translated and printed through the Riso. That is why it is a favorite among graphic artists, designers and photographers alike!

Ease

I am no technology wiz, so when I was I would be printing on the Riso I was intimidated. But, to my surprise the process was extremely intuitive and easier than I had ever thought. Once you get a sense of how the process is executed, it is easy to get comfortable.

Learn More

Come on down and jam to some Lizzo while printing on the Riso!

If you are interested in learning about this process or getting a chance to use the machine check our upcoming Riso Projects Class and our Intro To Riso Workshops!

Click here to learn more about the photography and digital art facilities!