Father’s Day is coming up and if your Dad is anything like mine, he’s extremely hard to buy for. But what is one of his life passions? You betcha, it’s beer. Instead of getting him a lame tie this year, why not woodturn your own beer/mead/beverage-of-choice goblet (fit for a BBQ king) with him on June 24 at the Florida School of Woodwork with
Rudy Lopez?
“They are just fun things to do, so that’s why we’ve been calling them our Sunday Fundays, which get people introduced to the fun hobby of turning on a lathe. There a lot of things you can do, like plates and cups, and of course, beer goblets. It’s an easy hobby to get into because it doesn’t take up a whole lot of space or use a lot of tools. This is something you could do on your balcony or a little corner in your garage, so we wanted to give people the opportunity to do it in a really fun way,” says Kate Swann, executive director of the
Florida School of Woodwork.
To make a goblet, what’s called a “blank” is put on the lathe. You start out making the cup part of it, using gouges to hollow out the middle of it before working on the outside of it. The goblets are about 4-5 inches by the end of the class, and they all come out uniquely yours. While they aren’t dishwasher safe, there are a few ways to seal the inside of them from torching the surface to adding a sealer.
Probably one of the best parts is you get to test it out next door at Garagiste Meadery right after. It’s clearly a win-win situation, but if alcoholic beverages aren’t your thing, there are plenty of other upcoming beginner classes to check out too.
“One of the things I’m doing now is working on the calendar for the rest of the year, so we will be including more Sunday Funday things like a beer mug or carving a spoon. These will be really fun classes were people can just come and play,” Swann says.
“Generally speaking, the demographics of the school are 40 percent female, 60 percent male. The age is between 23-65 for women, and older for the men -- 28-70 years old. We have all different professions: brain surgeons, teachers, and firemen. The bottom line is, people realize are longing to have something to do with their head and hands together. My belief is that evolution has given us a 3-pound brain, opposable thumbs, and heart -- and those things love moving together. This is why making anything is a really fun thing to do, and is so satisfying. With these classes, there isn’t a big barrier to woodworking.”
Other upcoming art events:
• Flaccid-barreled rifles and tasseled, bulbous American flags. … Who knew soft, plush sculptures could become weapons for political and social criticism? Open through June 16, “Power Play” at
Cunsthaus features the soft sculptures of Natalie Baxter, a Brooklyn-based artist.
• Get ready for some summer jam sessions: on June 7, the
Rock the Park free concert series at Curtis Hixon Park starts at 6:30 p.m. with bands including The Porch Sessions, Nathanael Hyer & The Rail Car Choir, and Danielle Mohr.
• With the Dali Museum over in St. Pete, we tend to like our art a little weird in this town. Relish in the beautiful, surreal, but a bit bizarre films of Suzan Pitt on June 8 with the screening of three of her animated shorts -- “Asparagus,” “Joy Street,” and “El Doctor” -- hosted by
Cinematheque Ybor at The Bunker from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
• Didn’t get enough of your inner weirdo out at during the screenings of Suzan Pitt (see event above) at The Bunker? You’re in luck because on June 13, the
Second Screen Cult Cinema will be showing “Fantastic Planet” (1973) from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Never heard of it? Here’s
a little sampling.
• When you think about art collections of major institutions, it can be a little sad to think about all the beautiful artworks that are nestled away safely, but out of view of the public. In a huge effort to address that, USF CAM’s new exhibition “Restricted – Hidden Gems from the USF Collection” will be bringing artwork -- from the likes of Claes Oldenburg, John Cage, Lynda Benglis, Mernet Larsen, and many more -- out of the darkness. I know I have some burning questions to ask (like, who makes decisions on what pieces to collect? Is there a theme to their collection?), which is why the best time to visit the CAM will be on June 14th during their
curator tour from 6-8 p.m.
• If you’re a musician looking to network and learn more about the music business from other professionals, then the
Tampa Music Conference on June 16 might be worth putting on your iCalendar. Not only will there be panel discussions, there will also be performances in the evening but registration is required.
• I know, school’s finally out so why would you want to go to another class? Nixing the ole’ grading system, this one will keep your attention more than Chem. 101: On June 16, learn the art of Shibori Japanese Indigo fabric dying at
The Paper Seahorse. Registration required beforehand.
• Summer is the time where you have all this free time to do the things you want to do, then you find yourself bored once you have it. Why not check out Mergeculture’s
linoleum block printing workshop on June 21 and also on June 24? Hack away at a block for a few hours, then leave with a printmaking masterpiece.
• Creatives Exchange is a collective of local women artists -- ranging from photographers, painters, ceramicists, filmmakers, and sculptors -- who will be exhibiting at HCC Ybor City Campus Art Gallery on June 28. Featuring the works of Paula Brett, Jenny Carey, Suzanne Camp Crosby, Kimberli Cummings, Melissa Fair, Eileen Goldenberg, Brenda Gregory, Cynthia Hennessy, Victoria Jorgensen, Candace Knapp, Kim Radatz, Debra Radke, Rose Rosen, and Suzanne Williamson,
“Seeing Now” is an exhibition gathering insight on a contemporary woman’s perspective. The show will be up through July 31.
• With the 4th of July coming up, freshen up your history of America with “Pop Goes America: An American History Musical Revue!” by the
Carrollwood Players Theatre. In a silly take on the pilgrims to the Civil War, this is a play the whole family can enjoy. Performances will be going on from June 29 to July 1.