2025 Enrich: Beth Benzenberg

One of our 2025 Enrich recipients, Beth Benzenberg, shares her insights on the courses she attended.

The Enrich Fund provided support that enabled my participation in two fine arts courses at the McConnell Arts Center. I studied watercolor techniques over the course of a few months and participated in a two-day shibori dye workshop. My goals for these courses were to reengage with the foundations of fine arts as well as expand my creative practice. 

In the watercolor course, I initially anticipated focusing on technical skills such as brushwork, the use of wet versus dry applications, and how to apply pigment to paper. However, what stood out the most was the discernment for color. For example, in watercolor, there are no premixed neutrals. Every neutral must be created from the colorful pigments in your palette. This requires a trained eye, careful observation, and continual experimentation to develop the desired color.

The shibori workshop introduced a range of resist-dying techniques and objects. We used typical and non-traditional materials such as wooden blocks and objects, PVC pipe, bunching and folding techniques, and various binding methods to generate diverse patterning effects. The results demonstrated that a solid grasp of the basics of the medium can open possibilities for creative exploration in technique and material. 

Together, these courses strengthened my ability to observe with intention, to be confident about foundational skills, and to push beyond initial expectations.

Beth Benzenberg