Magnolia Embroidery Workshop with Robert Mahar

Date: Saturday, January 27, 2024

Time: 10am – 12:30pm

Location: County Fair Building, Gallery

Participant Fee: Adult (Ages 18+) – $95.

Workshop Description

Add color, texture and charm to a vintage magnolia illustration when you embellish its botanical imagery with embroidery! Join artist and maker Robert Mahar in learning core embroidery basics, essential stitches and how to apply them to his design custom printed on a 18×27” panel of linen cotton canvas. The end result is a beautifully embroidered textile that can be displayed as a wall hanging or utilized as a tea towel. Instruction will set participants up for success so that they can begin their individual projects in class and complete them at home.

The vintage illustration of the Magnolia campbellii bloom was sourced from an 1855 volume of scientific sketches in the collection of the New York Public Library. It has been digitally restored and paired with a tea cup illustration of the same era along with minimalist typography – creating the perfect canvas for your embroidery embellishment. This workshop is a unique approach to needlework utilizing a nontraditional, free-form sampler that allows you utilize your favorite stitches and determine their placement. This class is well suited for beginners, however, students with more embroidery experience are encouraged to join for a fun refresher course and the opportunity to apply their skills to a large-format botanical graphic.

Materials

All materials are included and will be provided to participants when they arrive for the workshop. Each material kit includes a custom 27×18” linen cotton sampler, a limited palette of 6-strand embroidery floss, wood embroidery hoop, embroidery needle, practice fabric, instructional diagrams and a sharpened pencil. Please note! If you have favorite embroidery tools or prefer specific colors of embroidery floss (6-strand or perle cotton) you are encouraged to bring these items with you to the workshop.

About the instructor:

Robert Mahar is a California-based artist and educator who teaches thoughtfully researched and developed hands-on projects based in historical craft traditions. He’s also a proud contestant alumni, and subsequent associate producer, on NBC’s crafting competition show Making It with Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman. With an education in studio arts and art history, he has worked in a variety of creative fields including 13 years as an appraiser of modern and contemporary art. Learn more about Robert, explore his video tutorial archive and shop his collection of curious embroidery samplers at robert-mahar.com.

Gardens of Golden Gate Park Members: You are entitled to a 20% discount for this event. To secure your discount, please log in to your account before registering or enter the Member Discount Code in the “Promo Code” field when registering. For the Member Discount Code for this offering, please contact membership@gggp.org.

Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable.