Mixed Media Artist Liz Constable talks about her Handmade Books and Ink Stamping Practice

Meet the teachers behind Fodder School 4 Blog Series graphic for Liz Constable

Hello! I’m Wendy Solganik, aka @willa.wanders on Instagram. If this is your first time here on my blog, welcome! I’m pretty excited that you found me and my little corner of the art world.

I’ve done a bazillion kinds of art in my life, and the thing that intrigues me the most today is Mixed Media Collage Art.

I’m such a passionate student of this form of art and I’m obsessed with making and using collage fodder (what the heck is collage fodder?).

I really want to learn everything I can about it. I created an entire online art school called Fodder School where anyone with an interest in Mixed Media Art collage art, handmade books and journaling can come and learn this craft from a variety of incredible instructors, even if you have never made any mixed media art before! At this point, Fodder School is about to enter its fourth year with no intention of slowing down.

If you are looking for a great place to start your mixed media art journey from scratch, can I recommend this $19 course?

Artist Liz Constable shows three projects including a Handmade Book, DIY stamps, and DIY Collage Scrap Paper

In this blog series, I’m going to be introducing you to the instructors that will be joining us in Fodder School as Fodder School 4 instructors. If you want to know all about what Fodder School is, go here.

A beloved familiar face, Liz Constable, returns for Fodder School 4!

Self taught Book Artist and Published Author Liz Constable, from Book Art Studios, brings her passion for handmade books to Fodder School 4. Author of five books including Dyed & Gone to Heaven, this New Zealand based creator is highly experimental and loves to explore, “What happens if...”. Liz makes learning fun and invites students to explore creative paths with her, simply to see where they lead.

Liz loves working with burnt oranges and dirty greens. She tends to look to her garden for inspiration: "I’m reminded that colours never clash in the world of flowers. I use this analogy when teaching to remind students to experiment and not be afraid to put colours together that they might have previously been told don’t go together." If you would like to have fun experimenting with these colors to make a richly dimensional book, or you are interested in pushing the boundaries of using a rubber stamp in your toolbox (Liz's #1 resource for mixed media art!), keep reading to learn what Liz can teach you in Fodder School!

Liz is an artist who delights in exploring and experimenting, often pushing her own personal boundaries to see ‘what happens if’. "I love to take students with me on these wonderful creative adventures and watch them blossom as they find their own unique art spark. I’m an encouraging and playful teacher with my own personal Mancunian sense of humour! (Mancunian = a person born in Manchester)." Even after 20 years of creating handmade books, Liz is still just as passionate about exploring this wonderful art form as she was when she began.

In the Fodder Challenge, you will learn to use the rubber stamps you already have in your collection in a few ways you may not have considered before! Liz will walk you through her methods of choosing where to place a stamp on existing fodder and how to make new fodder centered around the stamp's mark. Additionally, she will share some tips and tricks for photocopying your stamps to extend the range of what they're capable of. All of your stamp experiments can be documented in an A6 notebook that Liz will show you how to create and bind. Keep reading for more information about this year's Fodder Challenge and to find out how you can sign up today!

Liz learned in her first career as an early childhood teacher that when you provide a playful and encouraging environment, students relax and it allows learning to take place. "I have received countless emails over the years from people who have attended my classes who tell me how much they’ve opened up and had the courage to delve more deeply into their own well of creativity. I do believe I’ve found my place in this world by inspiring people to be themselves, entertaining along the way and offering light to those who are looking for it." You can learn more about Liz's practice on her website bookartstudios.co.nz or see more of her art on her Instagram @bookartsstudios.

In her Fodder School Class, Liz encourages you to go big or go home! You will follow along her signature markmaking techniques to create large sheets of fodder. Over time, you will continue layering different media and using tools to alter the texture of the surface to achieve a truly unique and organic foundation for further fodder play! Like the Fodder Challenge, Liz will walk you through how she makes a soft cover journal that will both document and showcase the many experiments you discover in her course. Liz would love to introduce you to this wide world of texture-making and bookbinding, so keep reading to learn how you can sign up for Fodder School 4 today!

Liz Constable's mixed media assemblage handmade book made with DIY Collage Papers

If you think that you aren't capable of creating incredible mixed media art like what you see here, you haven't been to Fodder School yet! We make it accessible. We make it effortless. We make it incredibly FUN!

check out fodder school 4