Online Sculpture Workshop
Intro to DIY mould making and casting workshop
Pearson BTEC is the proud sponsor of the first Sculpture Town Artist in Residence (STAiR) live art workshop with Harlow Art Trust on Wednesday 24 March from 2pm – 3.15pm. This live demonstration event is open to teachers, tutors and learners aged 16 plus.
The workshop features artist Romane Courdacher who will be doing a live demonstration and the event is open to teachers and tutors who can follow the session and as an art class for their own learners. Learners aged 16+ can also register for the event. A full materials list is available below to enable participants to follow the demonstration.
Workshop format
The workshop will consist of an initiation to DIY mould making, and casting.
The session will be divided in two parts: the first half will focus on how to make a leakproof mould using only plastic packaging and duct tape. The second half will approach the different ways to use plaster filler, both as a painting or sculpting material. Romane will show how to obtain the perfect paste consistency, how to correctly mix pigments and/or paint, and how to apply the plaster in order to get various results.
At the end of the session, you will have made a ‘functioning’ mould and cast your sculpture in it. As the plaster filler will have to dry, you will only see the result a few days later.
There is the opportunity to send questions directly to Romane during the live session or in advance. If you can't make the live session, it will be recorded and made available for future use in schools and colleges.
Here are some examples of Romane's work as Sculpture Town Artist in Residence for Harlow:
What you'll need to take part in the workshop
You will need the following materials and tools to take part in this workshop:
- plaster thistle/plaster filler (can be found in any building/construction shop)
- empty plastic containers/food packaging (yoghurt pots, ice cream tubs, mushroom boxes, pre-cooked meal container, cookies trays, milk bottle/cardboards, etc). Avoid non coated cardboard containers, as you’ll have to cover them with tape in order to make them water proof.
- “waterproof” tape: duct tape, brown or transparent plastic tape
- scissors/ Stanley knife
- pigments (to colour the plaster paste): they can be art pigments, spices from your cupboard (curry, turmeric, paprika, etc), old make powders, charcoal ashes, etc. Be creative (but just make sure the pigment is safe to use)
- acrylic paint (to colour the plaster paster, or paint after it dried)
- spray paint for a surface treatment after the sculpture is dry
- water
Tools:
- plastic gloves (nitrile medical gloves, kitchen glove, etc)
- surgical mask or heavy-duty dust mask
- surface protection: plastic tablecloth, big plastic bags/refuse sacks, newspaper/magazine (may not be ideal with water
- empty bucket, large enough to mix the plaster powder with water (empty paint bucket, ice cream tub, etc)
- spatula (either a construction spatula, or the one from your kitchen)
- spoons (as make as you have pigments)
About Romane Courdacher
Romane Courdacher is the Sculpture Town Artist in Residence in Harlow. She is a UK based multidisciplinary artist, who combines sculpture, physical installations, and virtual spaces. She graduated in 2018 from Ecole Duperré (Paris) with a BA in Textiles and Materials.
About Harlow Art Trust
In 1953 Harlow Art Trust set out with a mission to beautify the post-war new town of Harlow, Essex, by commissioning, purchasing and siting sculpture across its public spaces. The project attracted some of the greatest artists of the 20th century, including Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and Elisabeth Frink.
STAiR
Throughout the 1950s and 60s Harlow Art Trust gave artists just out of art school opportunities to create permanent public artworks for the town. To continue this legacy, we work in partnership with the Royal College of Art (RCA) and Pearson Education to award one graduating RCA sculpture student a 12-month residency. The artist is given flexible support to continue making, exploring and developing after graduation and has the opportunity to run workshops related to their practice in schools, in colleges and online.
