Events at Push/Pull Ballard

This is a paid event that requires registration—sign up here!

Create your own fancy book and learn different binding techniques! You'll get to select your cover and interior papers, create covers and signatures, and create a different design every month with guidance from book enthusiast RJ.

• May: Envelope keepsake book. Create a variety of pockets to put your keepsakes, receipts, or fun trinkets in. Then, stitch them all together!

This event is free, but RSVPs are appreciated. Masks required. Sign up here.

Concerned about the state of... well, everything? Let's join together and use our special weird powers for good!

Be a part of the Riff Raff League, a group of neighbors banding together for mutual aid, community building, and political action. We'll meet weekly for an hour to talk through what's happening locally and nationally and to brainstorm what we can do about it.

Come when you can, provide ideas and solutions, or just listen to what's going on in the neighborhood. This event is free, after-hours at Push/Pull. RSVPs are appreciated, but we will not turn anyone away. You are welcome to bring snacks to share. Recommended for ages 14 and up.

Push/Pull's Director, Maxx FG, will be moderating meetings of the RiffRaff League. Maxx has been passionate about politics from a young age and believes collective action is critical to a functioning democracy.

This is a paid event that requires registration—sign up here!

Learn the art of capturing the natural environment on paper while getting to know one of Ballard's most beautiful spaces.
Maxx Follis-Goodkind will show you how to look at plants in a scientific way to improve your art. You'll also learn cultural and historical information about plants to help you better appreciate their context in the garden. Beyond drawing, you'll get guidance in selecting paint colors and watercolor sketching techniques.
Classes meet Fridays at the entrance of the Ballard Locks at 11am, rain or shine! We will walk together to a location in the garden/park area to draw and learn. Class ends at 12:30pm.
Get the most out of this Botanical Sketching course by signing up for our Botanical Watercolor classes!
Suggested supplies: Small sketchbook, small watercolor pad or sketchbook, round and flat/wash watercolor or mixed media brushes, variety of graphite pencils, variety of charcoal pencils, pencil sharpener (with container to capture waste), variety of erasers, container for water, watercolor paints, a board to clip work to in the field, clips to hold paper. (Show a copy of your ticket confirmation at Push/Pull to receive a 15% discount on class supplies)

This is a paid class that requires registration—sign up here!

Ditch perfection, get out of your head and have fun with this no BS approach to collage making!

Leave the BS at the door, because we are going to burn the rules, embrace experimentation, and have fun with collage games and prompts sure to get the creative juices flowing. This class is perfect for artists feeling stuck in their creative practice, veteran collagers who want to infuse some play into their work, and complete and total art beginners!

CORE PRINCIPLES

• No art school vibes
• No perfection
• No overthinking
• Just cut, glue, rip, layer, play!

All materials are provided. This class is recommended for students 18 and up.

Marty Gordon (he/him) is a Pacific Northwest visual artist whose brand, What Would Jesus Glue, grew out of his past life as a minister and his journey from faith to skepticism. Combining sharp wit with a retro comic-book aesthetic, he has carved out a distinct niche in contemporary collage. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and he is one of 40 artists featured in the book Masters: Collage. Through Microverse Press, the indie publishing venture he co-runs with a friend, Marty has produced collaborative artist books and self-published collections, including Sensitive Monsters, a compilation of his daily monster drawings created during a hiatus from collage. While living in Atlanta, he founded the Atlanta Collage Collective to champion collage as an art form and foster community among its practitioners. In recent years, Marty’s work has expanded into the street art world, with his pieces appearing in sticker festivals across the globe. When not making art, he enjoys reading, improv comedy, and spending time with his wife, family, friends, and godkids.