Sculpture

The sculpture is offered in Florence. Our program provides a strong foundation in sculpture by focusing on the development of primary craft skills. In order to understand the complexities of form in space, the program emphasizes the use of observation and structural knowledge to develop a capacity for visual judgment and visual accuracy. Students are taught not to stray towards mannerism. Also central to the program is teaching students to be self-critical.

The program is broken down into lessons in sculpture and lessons in drawing. Drawing is considered a fundamental skill for sculptors; when students are able to achieve an accurate rendering in 2 dimensions they can apply this knowledge to the more complex task of observing and rendering a sculpture with its multiple viewpoints. Students therefore will spend three hours five days a week drawing the live figure in charcoal. They will also have two hours two evenings a week when they will draw the live figure in pencil. Students learn to draw on a light background to concentrate on lines and emphasize the total silhouette. The precision of this outline is crucial for accuracy, as comprehending the figure’s geometry by locating and connecting the bony points will help the sculptor find and explain specific forms in clay.

The last week of every semester is reserved for casting projects with the techniques of waste molding and rubber mold. Advanced students may choose to use the services of local foundries to cast their work in bronze.

An optional course offered to all students who have completed successfully the one-year Anatomy course is Ecorché Sculpture in which students use armatures and clay to create a replica of the body’s skeleton and muscles.