Penland School of Crafts

April 7, 2018 10:34 PM

I am considering a two week intensive workshop at the Penland School of Crafts on letterpress and broadsides. What is Penland like?

I'm curious about what the summer intensive is like: what's a typical day? How many students per class? Can I bring a kettle and make oatmeal every morning or do I need to get the full meal plan? Is the experience worth the cost? What do you wish you had known before you went? I'm interested in your experience.

I'm not an artist but I have some letterpress and bookbinding experience. I recently participated in a retreat with visual artists and I need more.

posted by sockermom to Media & Arts (5 answers total)

I haven't attended Penland but several (>10) years ago I did interview for a job there. I can't answer most of your specific questions because classes were not in session when I visited, and the only artists I saw actually working were the glass blowers.

As to what it's like more generally, I was struck by the combination of beautiful natural surroundings and social isolation. The area is (or was) very rural, with nothing I'd recognize as even a small town within walking distance. Along the road leading up to the campus entrance I remember the quirky residences of several working artists, but outside that little enclave it was largely poor and fire-and-brimstone Bible belt in a way that gave the impression that there's just nowhere to escape to without a long drive. The school's staff seemed to socialize almost exclusively with each other, and probably the main reason the job seemed like a bad fit for me was that I couldn't see myself tolerating a 24/7 lack of anonymity over the long term. However I can imagine how these same conditions, which would drive me bonkers in a permanent living situation, might make for a wonderful temporary retreat.
posted by jon1270 at 3:32 AM on April 8, 2018

Best answer: A friend attended one of Penland's week-long ironwork seminars about a year ago and came back very enthused and eager to go again. IIRC he got the full meal plan, which sounded like a good way to take breaks since the classes were physically and mentally demanding. He remarked that area around the school is, like jon1270 said, very conservative and isolated, and this leaks into the school community so you will occasionally hear remarks about politics or society that would be out-of-place in a more cosmopolitan area. But he also said that the workshop itself is pretty intense and you're working all-in so you can make yourself too busy to be distracted much by it.
posted by ardgedee at 5:33 AM on April 8, 2018

Best answer: My partner took a two week class on woodbending/barrel making. She was tremendously disappointed. The teacher admitted he had never actually made a barrel. He had a only pretty basic knowledge of wood bending. She stayed the whole two weeks hoping each day it would get better but it did not. The cost for the class, travel and losing two weeks of work was a lot. The school has a great reputation but I would do as much as you can to research the particular teacher you will have.
posted by InkaLomax at 8:14 AM on April 8, 2018

Response by poster: Yes, I should note that I lived in the state for many years and know a bit about that area of NC. This is very helpful feedback so far!
posted by sockermom at 4:23 PM on April 8, 2018

I can't speak to Penland specifically, but I have a friend who has been going down to the John C. Campbell Folk School like once a year for the past few years to learn bookbinding and (now) letterpress and she LOVES it. I get the impression that having the week or two week intensive is a good way to learn a lot about the process and work on a bunch of cool projects.
posted by helloimjennsco at 6:58 AM on April 9, 2018