Sculpture Workshop with Susan Wakeen
I spent time at Susan's studio in Litchfield, CT learning how to use water-based clay, sculpture tools, foil and wire to construct a bust of a live model. Attending this workshop taught me a lot about the process of sculpting, especially pieces I was ignoring when starting my first sculptures. Creating the armature was our first assignment, and something I'd never done. I struggled placing limbs on my clay figures in the past, lacking the support they needed to stand without cracking or falling off. After creating the armature it became clear that utilizing materials such as foil, newspaper, and wire would assist me with structural issues in future work.
I also used tools for the first time. I used calipers to ensure correct measurements and proportion--something I estimated or fabricated in past works. I used wooden tools and scraping wire tools, rubber-tipped tools and tulle to smooth, indent, soften, and carve. I realized how the materials interacted with the clay at different stages of drying, and felt a more intuitive handle on what to use when by the end of the workshop.
Most importantly, I learned how to see better. I learned how my mind was enlarging things or exaggerating them to try to capture character in a way that was more illustrative than realistic. Over time, I calmed my exaggeration to something more true to Sarah, our model.
Here are images from the workshop, in order from beginning to end.
Figure Sketching with Clay
On Tuesdays, I attended a figure drawing long pose session that allowed me an hour to render a figure. I became much faster at rendering the parts of the figure after the first session, which felt very incomplete. The model on the wooden table is from the second session, whereas the white podium indicates my first attempt.
Paintings
Here are a few paintings I worked on in response to my animal head fixation/the idea of masking. One is a version of my first sculpture, the other is from my want to capture the invisible/masked nature of mountain lions (had lots of strange dreams featuring them at the time, and needed to explore them).
Reflection
Now that summer has come to a close and I've started working more, I've had trouble finding time to practice and explore what I find striking and enjoyable. I'm grateful to have attended the sculpture workshop presented by Susan Wakeen because it reminded me of what it felt like to be in a creative space with other individuals and to have planned working time for a project of my own. I appreciated the direction and the structure surrounding the workshop. In the future I think I will have to structure my days around production and research as it ensured a more focused effort not easily swayed or lost in competition with other obligations.
I'm having a hard time building a concept that I feel really motivated by. I'm starting to think that, as enjoyable as it is to push and pull an object into existence, I still prefer painting over sculpture. Painting feels like more of a home space. Granted, my paintings lack the depth of someone who has learned proper technique. I believe my next stop would be to take courses with Susan focusing on oil painting technique. Though I understand how to accomplish certain techniques such as washes and dry brushing, I'm missing a lot of information about medium and design that would greatly improve what I make.
Thanks,
Cait