Thursday, October 3, 2024 | 6-8pm
Minnesota Center For Book Arts
1011 Washington Ave S #100, Minneapolis, MN 55415
Join a workshop at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts in Minneapolis, MN, with #1 New York Times Bestselling artist Nikkolas Smith—an Artivist, picture book creator, and Hollywood film illustrator—for an in-person workshop featuring Nikkolas’ concept of Artivism and digital-painting techniques. As an illustrator of color, Nikkolas creates art that can spark important conversations around social justice in today’s world and inspire meaningful change.
In this workshop, Nikkolas will share his Artivism journey, then help participants identify a topic on the theme of Artivism to address in their own artwork. Nikkolas will guide participants in creating a work of art while demonstrating his process, working alongside participants.
Nikkolas will sketch on Photoshop using a Wacom tablet during the workshop. Participants are invited to participate in whatever medium is most comfortable and accessible to them. MCBA will provide paper and pencils (graphite and colored pencils) and participants are encouraged to bring any image-making tools they enjoy working with including watercolor, collage, oil pastels, etc. Participants are welcome to bring their own computer with Photoshop and a tablet (or an iPad with Procreate), but devices are not required. Participants will have a chance to download and install Nikkolas’ digital brushes (for Photoshop) a few days before the workshop.
This workshop is offered in partnership with Minnesota Marine Art Museum (MMAM) as part of Across a Wide Ocean: Remarkable Stories about the Origins, which delves into the books The 1619 Project: Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson and illustrated by Nikkolas Smith (Penguin Random House, 2021); and The Most Beautiful Thing by Kao Kalia Yang, illustrated by Khoa Le (Lerner Publishing, Carolrhoda Books, 2020). The exhibition runs through January 5, 2025, at MMAM in Winona, Minnesota.
All skill levels welcome
Certificate: 2 hours, Category C or D
$45/participant (10% discount for MCBA members) + $5 materials fee
$23 for BIPOC/Financial scholarship participants (10% discount for MCBA members) + $5 materials fee
MCBA offers two scholarship types for workshops—Financial Hardship Scholarships and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) Scholarships—to honor equity and increase access and artistic opportunities for those who have historically been underrepresented in the book arts. For individuals to whom these scholarships do not apply, register at the Adult rate and, if you are able, consider making a donation when registering to support MCBA’s efforts to make scholarships available.
About Nikkolas Smith
After designing theme parks at Walt Disney Imagineering for 11 years, Nikkolas Smith (b. 1985) is now an artivist, concept artist, children’s book author, film Illustrator, and movie poster designer. In addition to illustrating numerous works by other authors, he is the author/illustrator of the picture books The Golden Girls of Rio (Sky Pony, 2016), which was nominated for an NAACP Image Award); My Hair is Poofy & That’s Okay (VJS Productions, 2017), and World Cup Women (Sky Pony, 2019). Smith describes himself as an artivist, marrying art with social activism. As an illustrator of color, he creates art that can spark important conversations around social justice in today’s world and inspire meaningful change. His 2023 picture book The Artivist (Kokila) shows how children can combine art and activism in their daily lives.