I went to some wonderful workshops at Eastfield Village . As described in previous blog entry “Eastfield Village: Total Immersion Into The Past”, Eastfield Village is a long journey from Portland, Oregon, but it is an educational opportunity like none other. Classes are held in various buildings throughout the village, but many take place in the 1836 Universalist Greek Revival church Don Saved. He has restored it to include it’s original gallery, so students can sit both upstairs and down.
This year, I participated in two workshops. The fist on Historic Paints and was taught by Christian Goodwillie & Erika Sanchez Goodwillie, we learned how to grind and mix oil paint, milk paint, and distemper paint using recipes from the early 1800’s. On the middle row on the left is a picture showing the samples of the colors we created in class. In the picture to the right is an early paint sample advertisement showing colors available as ready mixed paint became more available. Using a reproduction muller and grinding stone, I and others created paint in the same way it was done before the Industrial Revolution.
The Second Workshop I participated in was the “Modern America A decade of Remarkable Change 1840-1850. During this workshop, the technological and cultural changes that occurred with the Industrial Revolution were examined. Much was covered in this workshop. One of the instructors was Rabbit Goody from Thistle Weavers, who brought with her samples of period and reproduction fabrics reflective of the period. She explained how the changes in technology impacted the patterns and weave of fabric, and also discussed how fabrics were incorporated into home textile creation, such as these appliqued quilts.
Lighting was another area covered in the second workshop. Dan Mattausch was the instructor for this part. He brought with him many different types of lighting devices that were being created during this period, explained how the lighting fuels were changing, and demonstrated the lighting devises so we could see how they looked when illuminated. The most dramatic light he brought was the “Burning Bush” lamp. It was used as a marketing tool at the time it was created, and was thought to have been used in a store display lamp to attract customers.
The workshops at Eastfield offered an unparalleled opportunity to learn in a setting transports one to an earlier time. It is total immersion into the past. Right down to the basics. Here we see the little outhouse just behind the William Briggs Tavern, complete with three holes for big butts, and a kid size hole for small butts. Even the outhouse has it’s own special charm….
To learn more about Eastfield Village go to…
http://www.hvpcorp.com/whatsnew/eastfield.php
http://www.greatamericancraftsmen.org/eastfield/eastfield.htm
