Through the soft and serious teachings of Lorna, I found freedom in creating; for the first time in my life, I can show my work with confidence,
I even feel like I did not make it, I found it!
– Ingela Edkvist
Meet Lorna Crane
Hi, I’m Lorna, and if I weren’t an artist, I would be a teacher.
I love sharing and am excited to share with you what I have learnt during my 40 years as a professional artist in my first online course.
It hasn’t always been easy; in fact, there are times in my life when I really doubted myself. After all these years of working and exhibiting, I now realise that it wouldn’t be healthy if I didn’t have those doubts and fears. I love sharing those moments with people because I know what that’s like.
This course is about finding your artistic voice, your own visual language. I’ll guide you through every step of the way by making your brushes, exploring your mark making and a series of projects to create objects of desire to record this time and this place.
If you’re a textile artist, you’ll probably do lots of stitching; if you’re a mixed media artist, you’ll probably use a lot of different mediums. It’ll be quite different from being in a class, but there’s a special quality about having this time of isolation of just being you and doing it at your own pace.
Perfectly imperfect is just the best compliment anybody could give me. I can’t wait to see what you create and hear your stories within our online community.
It’s going to be a time of deep discovery. Lorna.
Meet your Tutor
“Lorna’s class literally changed my life! The impact is ongoing.
The best course I ever took!
– Maggie Bergman
Take the course if you can; it sets you FREE
– Rhonda Campbell
It’s time to be brave and push the
boundaries as Lorna guides you every step of
the way. Let go of any expectations and
simply allow the magic to happen.
Here’s how your journey unfolds…
Module 1
Inspiration From Nature
Take a walk with Lorna and discover some of her favourite places where she draws inspiration from her landscape. Learn to select the best wood for brush making and forage for found objects to incorporate into your artwork. You’ll be inspired to get out in nature, find inspiration and create a deeper connection with your favourite place.
Module 2
Brushmaking
Lorna welcomes you into her studio and shares her very first collection of handmade brushes and how they have influenced her work over the years. Lorna will instruct you step by step in making your own set of 5 brushes that are the most robust and versatile for when it comes to your own mark making. Lorna even includes two bonus brushes for you to try!
Module 3
The First Marks
Dipping your brushes into ink for the first time is something to be celebrated and recorded. Lorna takes you through not only the practical steps from the best workstation practices, paper selection and demonstrating how to create your own record book of marks but also takes you deeper into the stillness and poetry of these precious first marks.
Module 4
Overdrawing & Underdrawing
Moving beyond the brush, you’ll start to free yourself of the rules during the overdrawing and underdrawing experience. Using a variety of mark making mediums and tools, you’ll experiment on various found and recycled papers, discovering each mark’s unique properties that allow your unique visual language to emerge.
Module 5
Deconstruct Reconstruct
This module is an enlightening experience. Through a series of exercises in letting go including collage, asemic journal writing and bookmaking, Lorna shares with you her first mark making work and personal journal writing. Lorna often sees a spark in her students’ eyes during this stage in the discovery process as you learn to further let go of set expectations.
Module 6
Hand Painting Fabric
With a limited pallet, you’ll create a series of hand-painted cloth. Using a mixture of fabric and techniques, including backwashing and monoprinting. In the end, you’ll have a collection of unique fabrics which can be used in future modules and projects. You’ll be surprised by the variety of layers that can be created, adding sophistication and depth to your future work.
Module 7
Extending Your Visual Language
Experiment with collage using paper and cloth; make a scroll and three beautiful cloth sampler books that are perfectly imperfect objects of desire. Here Lorna will challenge you to look deeper into your work and embellish your creations with a subversive stitch discovering how it has a unique way of allowing you to dig deeper into your inner self.
Module 8
Discovering Your Artistic Voice
Through shared stories and a detailed look into Lorna’s past and latest body of work, she opens up a world of possibilities for you to start your own story. Under Lorna’s expert guidance, she will prepare you to make your own hand-stitched journal or vessel that truly reflects your voice as an artist – a keeper of your memories to record this time and place in your life.
View Past Students Work Here
Click the image below to flip through the online exhibitions by 2021 and 2022 Perfectly Imperfect Alumni.
Are you ready to discover who you are as an artist and create artwork that truly reflects your unique voice?
- Currency - USD
- Payment plans available at checkout
Lorna Crane’s workshops offer an unparalleled artistic experience.
She is one of the most dedicated, talented, and gifted artists I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. I count Lorna among the most important artists working today. Her students will gain a wealth of information about materials and techniques, but will also greatly appreciate Lorna’s abilities to bring the spirit of play and experimentation into making compelling artwork.
– Allison B Cooke
Get Inspired
All you need to find your visual language and set
yourself free as an artist awaits!
- Currency - USD
- Payment plans available at checkout
Frequently Asked Questions
The recommended minimum requirements for this course are:
PVA
Glue Stick
Brush handles – sticks from local environment or recycled paint brushes
Brush head – plant fibres, feather
Crochet Cotton
Cloth Remnants – Pick your favourite cloth scraps and colours and even strip them down to 3cm wide strips ready for use.
Soft Brush (approx. 4cm wide) hake is good but not essential
I/2 metre assorted cloth lengths – cotton, linen or recycled offcuts no more than 1.5m in length
Sewing needle that fits the crochet cotton with a sharp end
Scissors
Black Ink
Apron
Ruler
A3 sketch book 150gsm
Cotton tips
Drawing materials – including pencils, markers, any type of wax crayons (limited palette)
Scraper – cardboard scraps or old credit card
Acrylic paint tubes – your choice of three colours (limited palette)
4 Butterfly clips or plastic clothes pegs
Assorted paper approx. A4 eg: old book pages, old drawing, ephemeral found papers, maps etc – again with a focus on recycle/reuse
Rags for clean up
A downloadable version can be found here.
Immediately after you enrol, you’ll receive an email with all your login details to access 8 hours of professionally filmed footage and a gamut of resources. The course begins as soon as you are ready!
The only time-sensitive part of this course is the live engagement you’ll receive from Lorna within the student community group, which begins now and until the 25th of August, 2023.
Not at all. This course was created with you in mind – the creative who wants to watch in your own time, hit pause, re-watch, take a break, and then return for more! While you will receive live support during the first eight weeks of enrolment to cheer you on and help you through the art you make, know that there is no set schedule to complete this course – plus, you’ll have all the material for life!
Enrolment will close for the Perfectly Imperfect online course on the 30th of June 2023 if not sold out prior. Unfortunately, once the enrolments are closed, that’s it for at least another year.
The good news is you can enrol now, keep the course in your Fibre Arts Take Two library, and get started any time. Remember, everything is recorded, and you have access for a lifetime.
YES, YOU DO! Not only will you receive Lorna’s personal feedback and support as you work through the class during the first 8 weeks after your enrolment within a private Facebook group. You will also get two live, virtual Q&A sessions where Lorna can offer more personal feedback. You can ask questions in advance; everything will be recorded and yours to keep for future access.
We recognise that there are many community platforms and technology available.
Fibre Arts Take Two chooses to host our students’ community groups on Facebook as an accessible platform that allows ease of communication for both students and tutors.
All members can post images, videos, create albums of work and keep track of popular topics within the group. We can also stream our live Q&As directly into the group avoiding external links and distracting Zoom calls.
We have multiple moderators within the group for encouragement and guidance, ensuring our communities are safe learning environments.
This free platform helps keep the cost of administration and course fees down for everyone.
It is important to note that we offer a closed Facebook group for enrolled students only to connect and share their journey for a lifetime.
To ensure an inclusive experience, we live stream our Q&A session through YouTube and send regular updates via email for those unable to create a Facebook account.
This group is not compulsory but is highly recommended!
“FATT have put together this fabulous format that nurtures the interactions among us. I didn’t even do Facebook before!” – Chris Carlson.
Good question! You can post your questions about the course in our private Facebook group; either someone from the community, Fibre Arts Take Two or Lorna herself can help you.
If you have more technical questions or can not join the student group, please don’t hesitate to contact support@fibreartstaketwo.com.
A FINAL NOTE FROM LORNA
Belief in oneself comes in many forms. For me it has been an ongoing journey of discovery on so many levels as I searched to understand my own visual language and more importantly by acknowledging the forks in my road along the way.
As a storyteller my approach is to share my own personal experiences, drawing from my 40 plus years of exhibiting as a professional artist and tutor by sharing how the good, the bad and the sometimes ugly impacted on my work. Along the way I found my artistic voice and I am so eager to help you find yours. To trust your instincts is the beginning to connect with your unique qualities.
My desire in this course is for you to let go of the pre-conceived ideas of the concept of ‘that perfect way of working’, by embracing the unknown as we push through some boundaries and expectations of ourselves as artists. There is a real sense of richness in the freedom of sharing these skills that come in many forms as we learn from each other.
With some gentle guidance I will take you through many processes with respect, encouragement and support. We will be brave and break some rules along the way and add value to each others’ individual journeys in this supportive group.
Most importantly I want you to take your time and try not to compare yourself to others. We all work differently and there will be times when you connect so strongly to a process and I will work with you to continue to follow that flow.
It starts with such excitement by making your own set of hand made brushes with that perfectly imperfect approach and a desire to play. Add a bit of a zen with a ‘what if and why not” attitude to grow and become the artist that you strive to be.
Enrolment for this online experience with Lorna Crane is limited and will close soon.
‘Lorna Crane belongs to a group of artists who feel a reverential connection to the earth (the elements, wind, rain, heat, dust, growth and decay) and immerse themselves in it: their body, gestures, and choice of materials. Their work is a kind of choreography of the bush, a down-and-dirty embracing of it, utilising methods that often mimic how nature itself behaves, how it evolves, forms and dissolves. As such, the works rely less on what is before the eye and more on what the senses tell us; the resulting imagery is an experience rather than a depiction of something.’
– Robert Hollingworth