This month, join M’kina Tapscott, local artist and HCCC employee, who will teach you how to create a beautiful brooch using the traditional metalworking techniques of repoussé and chasing.  Repoussé involves hammering a design on the reverse side of a metal sheet to form a raised surface on the front.  Chasing, the reverse technique, involves pushing the negative spaces of the design back, to add depth and make the raised surface stand out.  Participants will use soft metal and safe tools, so the entire family can become familiar with this technique. You will add color and a pin on the back to transform your art piece into a metallic brooch to wear and take home.

For design inspiration, we encourage you to visit our new exhibitions opening the same day.  The large gallery exhibition, Interstitial Spaces, features a collaborative installation by Julia Barello and Beverly Penn, two artists with a background in metalsmithing who explore negative space in their work.

HANDS-ON HOUSTON is a free craft-activity open house on the first Saturday of every month.  Each month, a teaching artist demonstrates a craft related to the current exhibitions. We provide the materials and you provide the creativity! Families and children of all ages are welcome, and materials are provided.  This program supports HCCC’s mission to advance education about the process, product and history of craft.

Above: Photo courtesy HCCC.