Textiles? With Surrey Sculpture Society?
No! No fabric involved. It was, in fact, the fourth in a series of workshops about moulding and casting run by the incredibly experienced, (and patient!), Carol Orwin.
Carol taught in adult education for years (see Limited Edition No 14 for a potted history of Carol’s career) so she had no trouble keeping the 10 keen SSS students in order as we gathered in Ashford one cold February morning to learn about de-moulding our sculptures and tidying them up before the chemistry of patination takes place. For some, like me, the next course on patination will round off this series of workshops, for others it was the one that started the ball rolling!
Over the last year, I have gone from absolute beginner with no knowledge of these skills, to being able to make my own silicone mould and glass-fibre jacket, cast a sculpture in resin and from the latest lesson, address some of the pitfalls which might arise when peeling away the mould to reveal my all-important masterpiece. (We are talking an odd misaligned seam or two, an inconvenient missing toe or similar….you get the picture.) It turns out, with the power of resin and fillite, all can be redeemed.
These classes have been brilliant. Most of my fellow students were a bit more savvy in the ways of casting than I was at the outset but I think it is safe to say, no matter what our level, we have all come away with a plethora of new skills and tips from these classes.
Carol is super knowledgeable so there is nothing (so far!) that we have asked where she hasn’t been able to offer a solution and she even invited us, for this last session, to bring our problems with us. Our very own onsite helpline, no less.
When the patination course was advertised initially, I didn’t sign up because I didn’t have the skills required to cast the sculpture, let alone patinate and finish it. So I was relieved when someone asked Carol to go from the beginning…. I was first on the sign up sheet. But why did I let someone else do the asking? The SSS tries hard to offer a wide range of educational courses, some practical like these or Michael Joseph’s plinth workshops, others more akin to lectures or talks exploring the work of other sculptors.
But if there is something you are desperate to learn about, then as a Member, ask! We might be able to run a course, invite you to someone’s studio or just point you in the right direction. What we will absolutely do is try and help you gain those additional skills which you think will make a difference to your practice.
Look out for announcements in our ebulletins or check out our Education page to see what courses and lectures might be right for you https://www.surreysculpture.org.uk/meducation