Creative Reuse

The embodiment of human expression and mimicry, marionettes have historically captivated the imagination through their theatrical and allegorical power. This workshop guides participants through the process of designing, constructing, and presenting a marionette doll using personal stories and a variety of materials and processes such as wood, metal, 3D printing, and found objects.

In the early 1990s "Bricolage" was heavily referenced as a method of discourse, based on ideas found in the works of French theorists Claude Levi-Straus and Jacque Derrida. Thirty years later the term has become ubiquitous, naming entrepreneurial theory, restaurants, and architecture firms. Lifting small quotes from original texts, Sheila leads a master class in her favorite studio methods of accumulation, construction, and "taking apart and putting- back together," all the while subjecting outcomes to tests of complexity, legibility, and aesthetic resolve. Open to all media from metal to found materials to fabric, this class encourages participants to come with their own set of studio practices and concerns, but to be looking for an opportunity to grow and expand their work.

Sculpture encompasses a wide range of media that can be light, hurried, heavy, or immobile. Performance can embody a scope of experiences and can be thoughtful, improvisational, and ritualistic. Throughout the week, participants create connections between object, self, and location to explore the possibilities of different combinations of interactions. Participants produce work in varying scales using various materials, including found objects and plaster casts. Connections and experiments between the object and maker are then explored through performance and/or site-specific installation. Finding the balance between object, movement, documentation, and presentation is central to the workshop.