Faculty

WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

This course brings together a group of leading contemporary artists to help you develop compelling figurative sculpture and while deepening your understanding of form, structure, and surface.

Each session is designed to be both practical and conceptually grounded, giving you tools you can apply directly in your studio, from construction methods and anatomy to narrative, gesture, and surface development.

• Cristina Córdova opens the course with her slab-based approach to building the human figure. You will learn how to use pattern systems to establish proportion, movement, and structure, along with foundational surface strategies using slips and underglaze to support form and atmosphere.
• Beth Cavener will guide you through her process for creating sculptures with strong psychological presence. She will demonstrate how to develop gesture, tension, and dynamic composition, and how to translate references into emotionally charged sculptural forms.
• Malene Hartmann Rasmussen will explore how to build narrative through sculptural form by combining human, animal, and symbolic elements. She will demonstrate her hand-modeling techniques and share how imagination, storytelling, and material responsiveness can be used to create cohesive and expressive figures.
• Assis Fihlo will focus on the anatomy of the human figure, guiding you through key structures such as the head, hands, and other expressive areas of the body. Through clear demonstrations, you will learn how to observe, simplify, and construct anatomy to improve both accuracy and expressive strength in your work.
• Susan Halls will demonstrate her fast slab-building technique, focusing on how to construct dynamic forms with energy and spontaneity. You will learn how to work more intuitively, allowing movement, character, and personality to emerge naturally through the making process.
• Carolein Smit will introduce her approach to creating complex and expressive surfaces that move between refinement and distortion. She will demonstrate techniques for building texture and layering surfaces, showing how these decisions can shape the emotional and psychological impact of a piece.
• Kukuli Velarde brings a critical perspective on identity, history, and personal narrative in clay. Alongside this, she will share practical methods for repairing and resolving ceramic pieces, addressing cracks, breaks, and structural challenges as part of the sculptural process. Her class will be theoretical, not a demonstration.
• Brady Connelly will share how to photograph your sculptures with clarity and intention, using lighting, composition, and simple editing techniques to create professional images that accurately represent your work.

This is a course focused on building skills, expanding your visual language, and giving you concrete tools to grow your sculptural practice.