COMMUNAL COLLAGE
Led by Dana McClure
Saturday, Oct 3rd | 3–6pm
Limited to 12 Participants
Beverages & Light Fare Served

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Overview:

Join us for an afternoon of collaborative painting and collage, where the group builds a series of shared pieces by responding to one another's marks and choices. This is a workshop about letting go — leading with intuition over intention, and curiosity over control. All levels of experience are welcome.

Details:

We'll begin by loosening up — assembling a collection of collage elements that draw your attention – an activity designed to quiet the inner critic and get everyone working from instinct rather than plan. From there, the group will begin working on separte pieces with the same basic compositional structure.

Each piece will move around the table. You'll add a mark, a cut shape, a color decision — then pass it along and receive someone else's in return. The goal isn't to control the outcome, but to notice what happens when you respond to what's already there: a color that suggests a shape, a line that asks to be extended, a gap that wants to be filled.

As the pieces evolve, we'll introduce collage elements — cut paper, painted textures, photographic scraps — layering and combining materials as a group to build depth and surprise into each composition.

We'll end with a relaxed group conversation, looking at the finished pieces together and reflecting on what it felt like to make something collectively — where control had to be released, and where intuition took over.

This workshop is an invitation to right-brain, non-linear thinking: an antidote to anxiety, and a return to playfulness and joy through making. Open to all levels — artists, designers, and curious beginners alike. All materials are provided.

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DANA MCCLURE is a NY–based visual artist working across mixed-media collage, photography and painting. Living and creating in Upstate New York, Dana’s practice is rooted in a rhythmic dialogue between abstraction and natural forms, especially florals harvested from her small farm at Ravenwood.

After earning a BFA from Syracuse University in Communication Design and an MFA from Parsons The New School for Design, Dana spent over a decade teaching 2D Design and Time-Based Media at Parsons and New York University. During her academic career, she honed a process-driven studio practice that balances structure and spontaneity, using printed, painted, and photographic materials to explore visual language through collage and layered abstraction.

Dana also brings a cinematic vision to her work—she directed and co-produced the feature-length documentary Odd Ones Out, exploring the lives of 3 transgender teens, which won a Telly Award in 2008 and continues to be distributed internationally.

At Ravenwood, the creative barn space she co-founded with chef-husband Chris Lanier, Dana integrates her love of florals and curation with art and design. Here her mixed-media collages blend images of blooms—with everything from pressed petals to photographs—creating abstracted, deeply textured compositions that reflect both nature’s nuances and her intuitive artistic process.

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MEAL AT RAVENWOOD

Of course it wouldn't be a Ravenwood event without the addition of a delicious meal. Guests will break for lunch selections from our cafe menu including:

- Coffee & Tea
- Iced Beverages
- Farm Stand Salad
- Savory Pastry
- Sweet Treat

We’re so looking forward to this afternoon of communal making and creativity. Whether you're local or visiting from out of town, we hope you’ll join us—and feel free to spread the word!

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Workshop Policies

Students can receive a full refund if cancellation takes place within 1 week of the workshop date. After this time, there can be no refunds but students are welcome to sell their tickets privately or pass along to a friend. Please notify us via info@ravenwoodny.com regarding new name on the reservation.