Athena Steen, 3rd Generation Clay Culture Artist and Plaster Master holds a lifetime of expertise in the natural building arts, well-known in her role as Teacher of Natural Plasters.  Athena brings her talent and passion to Lake County, California in September 2025!!

 

Athena is one of the pioneers of the straw bale revival, building her first straw bale home at the age of 19.

In 1989, with her husband Bill, she founded The Canelo Project, a center for natural building and cultural revival in southern Arizona.  Together they have developed many innovations in straw and clay construction…including high fiber “light adobes” and poured earthen floors. They emphasize everyone’s capacity to house themselves beautifully and inexpensively, using local natural materials and innate wisdom.  They have worked extensively on low-income housing projects in Mexico, have taught all over the world, and are accomplished authors of many published Natural Building books, including The Straw Bale House, and Small Straw Bale.

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Famous for her artistry, Athena has collaborated on art museum installations at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C., and several other museums.  Learn more at http://www.caneloproject.com.

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Tickets at Golden Rocks Farm   (707) 987-8719

 

Cole Fergurson, Licensed Contractor and Carpenter, teams up with Golden Rocks Permaculture Farm to bring his experience and wide range of talents to Lake County!  Cole's focused his life work as a Natural Builder has led him to learn, assist, and teach with well-known institutions and individuals, such as Cob Cottage (Oregon), Earthship Village (Taos NM), Michael G. Smith (Author, The Hand-Sculpted House), Athena Steen (author of Straw Bale House), and others.  Cole has been lead builder on MANY completed earthen homes, and has led and contributed to more than 40 builds and workshops, including timber-framing, straw bale houses and Earthships!

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GET TICKETS HERE:  www.goldenrocksfarm.com   

 

GROUPS 2+ AND WORK-TRADE PRICING AVAILABLE (707) 987-8719​​

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Special Guest Michael G. Smith, Author of The Hand-Sculpted House (and many others), will join us for a day of lessons not to be missed!  With literally a lifetime of natural building expertise, Michael truly excels in the art of TEACHING audiences of all sorts.  Whether you’ve been to many workshops, are engaged in natural building as a hobby or business, or if you are a complete novice or have no experience whatsoever, Michael is a master at delivering in a way folks can understand, and simplifying information so that it is comprehensible.  In addition to discussion and Q & A time with Michael, he will lead us in a fun-filled Plasters Lab ~ a huge highlight in ANY plaster workshop, and in the evening, share his stellar slide show with our audience, exhibiting natural building art forms from around the world.  Michael's work can be  found on his website at www.strawclaywood.com.

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 CLICK FOR TICKETS HERE         Info at www.goldenrocksfarm.com   (707) 987-8719

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