Integrating Mind, Body, and Art, a Color Woodblock Printmaking Retreat
June 20 - 22, 2025
at the Rowe Center, Rowe, MA
Are you Seeking a time apart, a fresh approach to making art that includes an exposure to Buddhist and Taoist thought alongside a hands-on interaction with the mechanics of making woodblock prints using the Japanese hanga method?
Join Matt Brown and co-leaders Todd Binzen, painter and Tai-Chi instructor, and Matthew Daniel, Buddhist monk, teacher, and founder of the Newburyport Insight Meditation Center, for a camp-style retreat at a beautiful location in western MA. Structured around a group art-making project, this weekend explores the spiritual implications of making art as part of a team, investigating relationships to color and form.
Participants will work together to develop a color woodblock print using the Japanese hanga method, a technique that Matt Brown has taught for decades. Hanga is printmaking using a hand-held baren instead of a press, water instead of oil; it is relief printing from multiple carved blocks.
The focus of our work will emulate the creation of the ukiyo-e prints of Japan (art-making that is collaborative, the work of a team). Matthew Daniell gets us started by kindling the spirit helping to guide the collaborative work. Todd Binzen plays the role of artist, supplying vision in the colors and imagery, while participants learn the mechanics of the process - how to get imagery onto the various blocks, how to carve, and how to print with brushes and baren. Matt Brown plays the role of the publisher helping to keep the work on track and bring the project to completion. Together, we will complete a beautiful piece of original art.
Each art-making session will begin with demonstrations of the steps of the hanga process:
- introduction to getting imagery onto your block(s)
- carving and sharpening
- introduction to printing (with a focus on making paste, using the pigments, handling the paper)
- more about printing (with a focus on the brushes and the baren)
During the weekend, there will be discussions of art theory, edition printing (how to wrap up your project), time management, and the function of making art. Matt will share insight into the science of visual thinking and how we see color, a viewpoint informed by his work with Prof. Ming Meng on The Energy Theory of Color. His emphasis will be on the integration of parts: how to make a print using multiple blocks, how to be a part of an art-making team experiencing something entirely new, how to work with our minds and their complex natures in new social situations, and how to enjoy it all!
The concrete goal of the workshop?
All participants take home a finished print they helped create, mounted in an acid-free mat suitable for framing.
The subtler goals of the workshop?
The exploration of relationships of body and mind in relation to others, and to a wonderful art-making tradition.
Class schedule:
Friday evening, we gather at the Sibley farmhouse for hors d'oeuvres at 5pm. Dinner will be served at 6pm. At 7, Matthew Daniell shares a guided meditation and talk.
Saturday morning, breakfast is served at 8am. Our program starts at 9:30 with a Qui-Jong movement class led by Todd Binzen. The art-making work begins at 10:30 in the Rec Hall. We break for lunch in the farmhouse at 12:30 pm, returning to our art-making at 1:30. We finish for the day at 4:30, leaving some time for relaxing, hiking, or using the sauna before gathering again for dinner at 6pm.
Saturday Evening we will gather for song and celebration. (You are welcome to bring acoustic instruments, songs or poems to share, and an open curious heart.)
Sunday, after breakfast, we finish our project, and take time to reflect on its result - what we learned and how to keep working with the spirit of the weekend. We close with lunch at 12:30 and a leisurely departure.
The Location:
The Rowe Center is located at 22 Kings Highway in the town of Rowe, MA. Situated at the foot of Adams Mtn., it is surrounded by beautiful forest, access to over 50 miles of hiking trails, and is only a short walk to beautiful Pelham Lake. A variety of lodging is available, and Chef Dan will provide delicious meals, accommodating most dietary restrictions.
If you wish to participate, or to know more, feel free to call me at 603-306-6547, or send a note to Jane Kaufman, co-ordinator for the weekend.
If you feel confident you want to do the class, hold a spot by sending a deposit of $400 (include a note saying "Rowe2025"). Class is first come, first serve. Please contact Jane to be placed on the waiting list.
If something comes up and you need to cancel, expect full refund of deposit up to 2 weeks before the start of the class.
Matt
Terms:
Tuition for the three days is $350. This includes all tools and materials to participate. Meals, lodging, and purchases of tools or materials you might wish to keep working after the class (printing jigs, carving sets, barens) are additional $.
Depending on your housing, the total cost will be between $550 and $930.
Class Tuition:
- $350 includes tools and materials for our project
Onsite Housing:
- $305 includes meals and basic lodging in a dorm room or heated cabin
Room upgrades :
- Add $ 75 for a single twin in a semi private room
- Add $ 80 for a single twin in a private room
- Add $100 for a private room, double bed
Off-site housing at 15 Kings Hwy or 16 Hazelton Rd:
- $580 for a private room, double bed, at one of two nearby houses
Off-site housing, on your own:
- $200 commuter fee
Please contact Jane Kaufman - tojanek@yahoo.com - with any questions.
Photos from class of 2024 at Rowe:
