The South Arkansas Arts Center will host paper artist Kathy Stanley as she teaches a "fun and whimsical" paper flower workshop on Saturday, Nov. 16, from 1 to 4 p.m.
The class costs $60, with all paper and supplies included. Class size is limited; those interested are encouraged to reserve their space early.
Born in El Dorado and raised here until she was 10 years old, Stanley's parents are Larry and Nancy Rae Kinard, well-known artists and SAAC stage veterans. Stanley and her husband currently live in Texas, an hour southeast of Dallas, in their empty nest home on Cedar Creek Lake for part of the year. The other part of the year they live on a sailboat called Nancy Lu (named after their mothers) in the Caribbean.
Stanley holds a Bachelor’s degree from Baylor University and began teaching special education in the public school system after graduation. She also taught ballet for 11 years in a small studio near Dallas and children’s church for 9 years. She retired from her teaching responsibilities when her and her husband started the part-time cruising lifestyle. Yet, even while island hopping in the Caribbean, Stanley occasionally will get together a ballet workshop for local kids. She has even volunteered in local schools teaching children finger knitting and how to knit using a contraption she also teaches the children how to make from recycled toilet paper tubes.
“I’m honored to be coming to El Dorado to give a workshop at the SAAC,” Stanley said. “I will introduce you to the craft of making whimsical, beautiful, giant paper flowers, and you will leave that afternoon with your very own giant peony that you made yourself."
With Christmas just around the corner, Stanley also plans to teach the class how to make giant holly leaves and berries, which she says would be "perfect as a centerpiece or the beginning of a larger-than-life garland."
Stanley said she started learning to make large paper flowers when she and her siblings started planning a celebration for their parents and were looking to decorate.
"We wanted the decorations to be special and bit over-the-top," Stanley said. "Big paper flowers fit the bill perfectly. I found some direction from Pinterest, but I wanted my flowers even bigger than what I could find there, so I figured it."
While she is relatively new to the art of creating large paper flowers, Stanley says she's amassed plenty of experience and has a quite a few flowers under her belt since her initial experiment with the art form. She added that she's looking forward to teaching the class in El Dorado — "I would love to teach you!"
For more information about the paper flower workshop, call 870-862-5474 or visit saac-arts.org.