New Workshop, Artist Residencies, and Art Philosophy
- Alexis Robinson
- Jun 23
- 10 min read
Updated: Jul 30
June 23, 2025
Workshops
It is time for some shameless self promotion. My next upcoming art workshop will by held on July 14th, 2025 at Slip Gallery in Seattle 6 pm-9 pm, and I will be teaching basic perspective geared toward adults. The course will be an intensive for beginners and intermediate artists to learn the foundations of 1 point, 2 point and 3 point perspective. Just as before, registration is hosted on my website and you can reserve your spot under my shop tab!
Why Learn Perspective?
Perspective is vital when breaking down complex subject matter and creating powerful compositions. If you have ever picked up a pencil and tried to recreate 3D objects on a 2D plane, you know how challenging it can be to craft a convincing and harmonious scene- most of this issue can be attributed to perspective.
Have you ever wondered why some people describe artists as master geometricians? It is because of our understanding of perspective. And yes, it does feel spectacular to be called a master geometrician, but you don’t need to be a master to use perspective. Anyone can learn perspective with a pencil, paper, and straight edge.
If I haven’t convinced you to attend my workshop, I hope my next point will. I know perspective feels complex and intimidating, and reading well meaning reassurances will accomplishes little without action. What I can offer you in writing is my understanding of arts education and why perspective seems scary. In basic classroom curriculum perspective is not taught in depth, it is integrated into work without explanation or definition. In easier words, perspective is traditionally taught organically over years of practice and individual adjustment- it is taught as an observational technique rather than a method that has basic rules and application. So I offer you this, out of all artistic techniques perspective has hard and fast rules, which means it is very teachable and you will leave class knowing those basic rules and how to use them.
I will not be throwing you to the wolves telling you to look with your eyes at the workshop. I will take you along a methodical journey to understand the foundations of perspective and how to apply them to your compositions. The class is three hours, focused on 1-point, 2-point, and 3-point perspective consecutively in practical drawing- connecting the bridge between theory and application. Subjects will be limited to still-life but by the end of class you can expect to feel more confident and capable to apply perspective to other forms of expression like landscape and figure drawing.
I Hope To See You There!
This will be my second hosted workshop at Slip, as many of you know I have been teaching k-12 students for four years. Venturing into adult classes has been an exciting journey and I value your support. Not only are you learning from these classes but I am too; with each workshop I learn and improve my teaching and community building skills. Which only serves to enrich our community and help me craft better future workshops and classes. Your support means the world and allows me to continue with one of my biggest life passions, providing accessible arts education to our city.
The Studio
I hope that Seattle workshops can become more integrated into my weekly schedule. Connecting with you all and helping to support the flourishing art community in Seattle brightens my week and helps break up my work in the studio, which can be lonely. Much of my work is solitary and taking any opportunity to work with creative people is refreshing.
I don’t know if introvert is an accurate label, but it is what I identify with when the conversation arrives. I would venture that most artists identify as introverts too. At my core I know that I am not a true introvert, but deeply aware that I have precisely three intense passions, fine art, music, and literature all with extreme degrees of eccentricity. I find it challenging to assess whether or not I am in a safe space to openly share my niche interests and it can take me 1-2 visits to get comfortable with people. I often find myself opting to stay in my studio, but hosting these workshops has been great opportunity for me to craft a space where eccentricity is safe and welcomed and hopefully one day I will have the ability to open my studio up to visitors and can host people in my own space!
On the topic of the studio, there has there been a lot of work brewing. I’m exploring fiber arts which led to some strange interesting sculptures and new additions to a collection of work I am tentatively calling Cherubs. The idea sprouted while writing a recent artist statement for Stitched Spaces. I initially thought that Cherubs would be part of Stitched Spaces, but it is growing into its own collection undefined by the constraints of Stitched Spaces . I presently have 3 distinct collections of work, Stitched Spaces, Mind-Scapes, and Cherubs. All three converse with each other and are thematically connected, but explore different avenues within my interest in human perception.
I am unsure if other artists categorize their work, but I do. It isn’t new concept in my practice, but something I haven’t addressed in my career until now. As my portfolio continues to expand, I realize that I need to address the distinct collections with my viewers and rethink the way I display them on my website. Right now all my work is categorized by medium but it doesn't show the narrative in each collection. On top of all my unfinished projects,I am planning a major portfolio overhaul and need to think of clever online display methods that won’t rely on click curiosity alone.
On Cherubs
My hyper-focus last week was Cherubs. The newest and in my opinion most unique of the three collections. I established the groundwork for the first fiber based sculpture in the series- an abstracted manifestation of personhood, a soft, delicate, complex structure symbolizing visceral combinations of sensation- hoping to exemplify our multifarious nature as individuals.
What started as a simple construction of textile combined with an elaborate after-image painting, quickly proved to be my largest artistic challenge of the year. I made many mistakes along the construction process. Forgive me, I am going to shed my humbleness for a moment. I rarely make grievous mistakes while learning or practicing new skills and not because I don’t experiment. I have a special knack for quick problem solving, patience, and unmatched audacity. So when a project takes an unexpected turn and I make mistakes, it is thrilling. Every part of the first Cherub challenged me, the sculpture combines a multitude of mediums I am well practiced with and have used in tandem, but the form changed a lot about the anticipated process in ways I was not expecting. Here is a comprehensive list of my challenges
I misevaluated my yarn so it was smaller than anticipated
I realized that I needed different knitting needles after a few hours of work
I had to teach myself increase stitches
I forgot to block the fabric before sewing in the paintings
Blocking: the process of shaping and setting a finished piece of knitting using moisture and sometimes heat
I made the grievous error of blocking with the painting panels and ruined my beautiful linen because I didn't want to admit that all the hand sewing I did was a waste, in my defense I use to have pants that I painted with acrylics that regularly held up beautifully in the wash (no fabric medium added).
I over blocked the knitted fabric and ended up shrinking the structure and couldn’t use an important painted panel on the final piece, but reflecting I am happy wasn’t ruined in my blocking nightmare
With linen panels ruined, I switched to canvas (for record I did not want to use canvas), realized that I did not have enough hot glue to attach the new panels and ended up stitching the last panel which waged war on my fingers and left blood on the battle field
I had to use acrylic paint and it was a sticky mess, not really a mistake but unfortunate iykyk
The inner skeleton I made was too big and I needed to shorten it last minute to fit the actual sculpture
Needless to say, I learned a lot and realized that the construction order was the main culprit for my mistakes. Going forward, before I do other steps I will be knitting and blocking the fabric structure to preserve what is left of my fingers.
With all the challenges, the first Cherub came out better than expected. I am still adding beaded elements but it accomplishes what I want- an artwork that sparks a sense of preciousness, complexity, and delicacy. Stay tuned for the next edition to the Cherub series and completion of this one too.
Something Really Big Happened
I probably should have led with this update, but I feel a deep need to promote my workshop above all else. In my last post I announced my candidacy for the Seattle Restored Residency. I am happy to report that I was placed in their January 2026 Residency.
This is my first residency and I am buzzing with anticipation, waiting until January will be hard. The program runs between January and June, a generous six months of studio time dedicated to making and improving my work. In the residency I will be building on my three curated collections and expanding their breadth while bolstering the connection between the three thematically. Congruently, I will use my assigned studio to facilitate community events and workshops, stitching together our community one creative mark at a time.
January is many months away and will continue to update you on any changes and announce residency related events!
On Creative Purpose
While painting last week I contemplated the on-going process of art making. I specifically reflected on my work as a child, teen, and art student, and the way my interests evolved and built throughout those years pointing toward my future, very specifically, as a fine artist.
I say this confidently, I have been an artist my entire life. I like to think that I was so lost in my own world growing up I never realized when others stopped being artists. As children, we are all artists but only some of us continue on past that time of wonder, and it took a long time to realize that I was one of those people. But there were signs, and I am shocked when I reflect on the specificity of those signs- how my most successful or impactful works as a child laid the ground-work for my artistic practice today.
Looking at my pre-adulthood art, I see why both my high-school art teachers (shout out Ms. Forsythe and Ms. Stevie) were adamant that my pathway was specifically fine arts. And it wasn't because of my skill level, my high-school art is on par with most of my current middle schoolers. Granted they all have a level of economic privilege that would drive my younger self to tears. The best work that came out of their classrooms showed that I had skill potential, but was importantly weird, really weird, it was un-inhibited and heavy. Even when I attempted more commercial mediums, like graphic design or illustration it wasn’t impactful and objectively still “fine arts weird.” The foundations for my work today was laid by my young self. I couldn’t, for the life of me, stop making odd shit and that is why I am a fine artist. I have a compulsion to make odd shit, and it is what I was good at then, and what I am even better at now.
I don’t have many pictures of my art from early on, but what I can say I have been making and drawing my little marks and stitches for as long as I can recall. There is a direct line drawn from my little doodles as an eight year old to my paintings today, and it reminds me that some of us are just made to do what we do. With this start of a new week, I am feeling grateful for my passion and reminded that being an artist isn't a silly little choice I made. Artistry is the foundation on which I stand and I am exactly where I have to be, even if others think it's crazy.
Anyways! Philosophical studio thoughts are now over, thank you for reading this week and keep checking in for any new class and residency updates. And don't forget to register for my class on July 14th 6-9pm at Slip Gallery in Belltown, I look forward to seeing you there!
Thank you for reading and I hope your week is filled with exploration and excitement!
Warmly,
Alexis
Painter on the Page
Music in the Studio This Week
On repeat this week has been all of Machine Gun Kelly's 12 albums on Spotify. I am anxiously awaiting the release of "lost americana" on August 8th and can't wait to see the absolute genius this album is going to unleash. His latest single, "cliché", has been garnering attention both positive and negative enduring criticism of yet another genre change by fans and critics across the music scene.
I am here to share my opinions now so it is on record before this album inevitably blows up, because it will. Cliché is a masterpiece of joyful satire, love, and consideration and it's just the precipice of what is to come in the next few weeks. As stated in interviews, the simplicity of the song is what makes it strong. Colson's nuanced careful craftsmanship of this single calls back the nostalgia of 2000's MTV and Tiger Beat Magazine- ushering fourth a revival of teen-pop sounds thoughtfully curated to speak to a generation that recalls and yearns for the magic of early y2k pop, delivered by an artist that we identify with and in many ways grown up along side. I have no doubts that "lost americana" is going to completely re-direct the pop music genre in the coming years much like "Tickets to My Downfall" saved my favorite genre, emo pop-punk. So if it wasn't clear, I am not a hater for this fresh genre flip. As an artist too, I am here for the genre hopping and have always admired mgk's ability to harness his multifaceted talents, it is the reason his music transcends trends and still affects me years after release.
So while I wait, I will continue to replay mgk's genius and I would encourage you to join me! Also take a listen to "Hotel Diablo" while you're at it, it's a completely underrated album.
Even if we can't share a studio space in person, we can still share art through music, it transcends space and time.
Affiliate Links
If you are interested in supporting me as an artist I am a Blick affiliate; which means if you use any of my links to purchase art supplies at Blick Online I will receive a 10% commission at no cost to you, which helps me continue to afford to create art and run this blog!
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