With the establishment of the Carroll A. Campbell, Jr. Center for American Sculpture, Brookgreen Gardens extended its educational reach to a broader audience with workshops in sculpture and drawing under the tutelage of nationally known sculptors throughout the year. To contact our sculpture department, click here and choose "sculpture" on the contact form.
2024 Wallace Master Sculptor Program Workshops
May 13 - 17: Make Your Own Brookgreen Medal, with Heidi Wastweet, FNSS, $650, plus materials fee.
A single-sided art medal is a bite-size project that can be done in five days. On the first day, Heidi Wastweet will take students around the grounds to take their own reference photos. Then there will be two-and-a-half days of sculpting and a day-and-a-half of mold-making and plaster casting. For an additional fee of $100 to cover the cost of casting, patina, and shipping, she will send your piece to a foundry and ship to you a finished bronze medal. Those who don’t want a bronze can take home a plaster cast.
Heidi Wastweet is a leading American medalist and sculptor specializing in bas-relief bronzes. In conjunction with a wide variety of private mints she has produced over 1,000 coins, medals, tokens, and rare coin replicas since 1987. She was chief engraver for Sunshine Mint for 11 years and lead designer/sculptor for Global Mint for five years. In 2001, she opened her own studio, relocated from Idaho to Seattle in 2003, and then to the San Francisco Bay area in 2013. She serves as president of the American Medallic Sculpture Association and is former president and founder of Seattle Sculpture Guild as well as a member of the Federation Internationale de la Medaille. Her Work has been shown in Coin World and Coinage magazines and she exhibits her non-commissioned work with the National Sculpture Society in New York and the Bellevue Art Museum in Washington. She served two, four year terms on the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee for the U.S. Mint in Washington, D.C. Medal and coin credits include a seven-coin set issued by the Sultanate of Darfur, Asian Hall of Fame Award Medal, the Dean’s Award for Seattle University School of Law, Alumnus Award Medal, the Dean’s Award for Seattle University School of Law, Alumnus Award for Stephen F. Austin University, Mayo Clinic Visiting Physicians Medal, Stanford University Alumni Medal, and Island Records Willie Nelson portrait. In addition to medallic art, she has also created public art including a commission for the University of Washington’s Medal of Honor Monument in Seattle and eight bronze relief panels for 12-foot high church doors at St. Paul’s in Pensacola, Florida.
June 10 – 13: Beginning Portraiture with Bryan Rapp. $325 plus material fees.
This is an introductory course designed for beginners who wish to learn how to build a sculptural bust from photo references of their choice, but is open to anyone. Students will construct a head armature and learn how to proportion eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. We will also look at facial muscles and gestures to capture the uniqueness or spirit of an individual, and the importance of multiple reference materials.
Bryan Rapp is a sculptor and the Director of the Wallace Master Sculptor Program at Brookgreen Gardens. From 2016 to 2019, Rapp was the first Artist-in-residence at Coastal Carolina University, where he taught all processes in the ancient clay to bronze tradition known as “Lost Wax” casting. In 2016 Rapp received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma, studying under the mentorship of sculptors Paul Moore, FNSS, and Sohail Shehada. Prior to graduate school, Rapp attended Muskingum University for Studio Art, and the Art Institute of Pittsburgh for computer animation. From 2004 to 2006, Rapp worked with sculptor Alan Cottrill in his studio and foundry, Coopermill Bronzeworks, in Zanesville, Ohio, as a mold and wax tech, and assisted on numerous large commissions. Rapp has produced work for both private collectors and public commissions and has exhibited his work in several states.
July 8 - 12: Summer Residency, John Belardo, FNSS.
July 15 - 19: Short Pose for Dynamic Gesture in Terra-Cotta, with John Belardo, FNSS. $650 plus material/model fees.
Through a series of short poses, we will explore the human form's potential to express dynamic ideas. Students will be producing, under guidance, many gesture studies in terra-cotta-cotta by observing a live model. Because the poses are short, the model will be able to take more dynamic poses. Specific techniques for using terra-cotta without an armature to be fired in a kiln will be discussed and utilized.
John Belardo was educated as a sculptor at the New York Academy of Art, and the Newington Cropsey Academy of Art and as an apprentice in the studio of Richard McDermott Miller. His work is wide-ranging from monumental public installations to digital prototyping and design as well as large-scale ceramic sculpture. He is currently the Artist in Residence at Chesterwood (historic home of Daniel Chester French). His sculptures and drawings have recently been exhibited at Brookgreen Gardens, Azarian McCullough Gallery, Vytlacil, Lodge Gallery, The Cathedral of St John the Divine, Salmagundi Club, Lyme Art Association and the World Maker Faire at New York Hall of Science. His work is permanently installed at Georgetown University, Cooperstown NY, and Lehman CUNY. Mr. Belardo’s travel notebook drawings were featured in Drawing Magazine, and he has contributed to scholarly journals on developmental perception. He recently presented the talk “Piccirilli Studio” at the NSS Annual Conference. Mr. Belardo won the Gold Medal from the Hudson Valley Art Association. He is a Fellow of the National Sculpture Society and a faculty member at Lehman College CUNY, the New York Academy of Art, Newington Cropsey Foundation Academy of Art, and a visiting scholar for the Institute for American Universities.
September 9 -13: Anything goes Sculpture Workshop with Paul Moore, FNSS. $650, plus material and models fee.
This unique workshop encourages students to bring in existing work, or students may create something new in studio. Students should come prepared with individual composition ideas for whatever they choose to do, be it a portrait, figure, or wildlife. Students will investigate and discuss various representational possibilities, from small-scale to public and monumental works, to create their own unique compositions. Practical considerations, aesthetics, and problem-solving are tailored to each student’s needs.
Paul Moore is a Fellow and previous board member of the National Sculpture Society, and an Emeritus and previous board member of the Cowboy Artists of America. In 2021, Paul became only the 28th artist in 127 years to receive the Special Medal of Honor Award from the National Sculpture Society. For the past twenty-five years, Paul has been the Artist-in-Residence and Professor of the Figurative Sculpture Program at the University of Oklahoma. His work is nationally and internationally recognized, and his national work is included in the U.S. Capitol Collection, the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, Brookgreen Gardens, and the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Paul has won numerous awards throughout his career, including four Anne Marion Best of Show Awards, two Ray Swanson Memorial Awards, the Stetson Award, and four Gold Medal and five Silver Medals for sculpture at the annual Cowboys Artists of America show. In 2018, Paul received an Emmy for a documentary short “Paul Moore: Monument Man” on PBS/OET. Paul and his two sons recently finished a twenty-year project creating 45 life and a half elements in bronze for the Oklahoma Land Run Monument in Oklahoma City, OK. The monument is 365 feet long by 36 feet wide by 16 feet high.
September 23 - 27: Plein Air Figure Sculpture with Kevin Chambers $650 + material and model fees
Students will utilize sculptures from the gardens at Brookgreen to create master studies onsite.. Students will spend the morning of each workshop day outside creating a small-scale study of a sculpture of their choosing. The afternoon will be spent in the studio sculpting from a live model. This allows each student to study how the master sculptors have addressed such challenges as gesture, proportion, and anatomy . Then they will come into the studio and work on a 18-24” sculpture to apply these skills.
Kevin Chambers is an elected member of the National Sculpture Society. He received a BFA in Media Arts and Animation from the Art Institute of Atlanta, a program that allowed him the latitude to develop his own personal style while he apprenticed for talented artists. He studied the figure with contemporary masters such as Glenn Villpu, Brian Booth Craig, David Simon, and anatomical workshops with Andrew Cawrse.
October 7 - 11: The Portrait in Relief Sculpture: A Course in Medallic Design and Process, with Eugene Daub, FNSS. $650 plus materials fee.
Learning the practice of relief sculpture applied to the portrait is the focus of this workshop. Students will learn how to cast their work in plaster and work into the negative mold. The positive effect of this method cannot be overstated. Students will work from a photo reference. The word, “medallic”, does not necessarily mean that the portrait will be cast in metal. It is used here as a term that connotes the format, process, or size. The workshop also covers how the finished plaster can be reduced to a smaller size and cast into different materials such as bronze, resin, and clay. We will discuss alternative ways of making medals. Patination will be covered and, if time allows, there will be a demonstration by the instructor.
Eugene Daub is a Fellow of the National Sculpture Society and of the American Numismatic Society and is vice president of the American Medallic Sculpture Association. Daub studied at the University of Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and Alfred University in New York. His teaching experience is equally extensive, having taught at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Johnson Atelier Technical Institute of Sculpture, and Rutgers University. Eugene Daub has created hundreds of portrait reliefs for public figures, mints, and an 18-foot relief for the Senate Chamber in the Montana Capitol Building. Nationally known for his work in the field of medallic art, he has received the highest national and international awards for excellence in figurative and bas-relief sculpture from the American Numismatic Society and the American Numismatic Association. In 2002, he received the Arthur Ross Award from the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America for achievement in figurative sculpture. His works appear in numerous private and public collections, including the British Museum, the Smithsonian, and Brookgreen Gardens. His sculpture of Rosa Parks was unveiled in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol in 2013.
November 4 - 8: Modelling the Tao of Equus: Structure & Expression, with Stephanie Revennaugh $650 + material fees
We will explore the dance between the structure of equine anatomy and the expression that resonates with the heart. How do we reach beyond the critical building of bones and muscles towards the ineffable that makes a piece of clay or metal seemingly exude life?
Stephanie Revennaugh is an elected member of the National Sculpture Society. Soulful and dynamic describes Stephanie Revennaugh's work. Her sculpture is born from an intimate acquaintance with her equine and canine subjects and executed with delight in form and texture. Revennaugh’s work has been featured in exhibitions, collections and publications globally. The National Sculpture Society awarded her the Marilyn Newmark Memorial Grant for a meritorious body of work in animal sculpture. In 2018 she was elected as a NSS member. Revennaugh is largely self taught through workshops with notable artists in the US and France. Living her early years in Ohio, Central, and South America gave her a taste for adventure and exploration. She currently resides in Montana, where she can be found exploring Big Sky country with her whippet pups or training with her Thoroughbred Eventer. Drawing on experiences around the world, Stephanie continues to evolve, creating ever more evocative work.
Open Studio at the Campbell Center for American Sculpture, located in the Zoo.
Open Studios is a program that is open to the public once a month, from 10 am to Noon, and invites guests to spend time with a sculptor and observe the various processes employed to produce a sculpture from clay to bronze. Guests are encouraged to ask questions.
Open Studio dates - Wednesdays
1/24, 2/21, 3/20, 4/24, 5/22, 6/12, 7/24, 8/21, 9/18, 10/16
WORKSHOP POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
Registration and Payment
Registration is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Students are asked to provide a complete mailing address, telephone number, and e-mail address when pre-registering with Curatorial Associate Kay Filar at (800) 849-1931, x6034, or locally at (843) 235-6034. A registration deposit of $150 for adult workshops is required to complete the registration. Students will receive an emailed invoice indicating that two payments need to be made with credit card (AmEx, Visa, MasterCard, Discover) or check (payable to “Brookgreen Gardens”, sent to Brookgreen Gardens, ATTN: Sculpture Workshops, PO Box 3368, Pawleys Island, SC 29585). The first payment is the $150 registration deposit due upon receipt; the second, a final payment including remaining tuition and materials/models fees due on the last day of the workshop. A place in a class is not reserved until this registration deposit is paid. A waiting list will be established once a class has filled. After attending one workshop, adult students may receive a 10% tuition discount for attendance in subsequent workshops during the same year.
Withdrawals, Cancellations and Refund Policies
Withdrawals from a workshop must be in writing and must be given at least 30 days prior to the beginning of the workshop. We prefer to apply the registration fee to a future workshop but, if this is not possible, it will be refunded. If a student withdraws during a workshop, a pro-rated tuition payment plus any fees for materials or models must be paid. The full registration fee ($150) will be kept if a student does not attend and does not provide written notice of withdrawal by the deadline. Students will receive a full refund if a workshop must be canceled by Brookgreen Gardens.
Levels of Skill
All workshops require students to have basic familiarity with the subject matter of the class, but most are suitable for beginners.
Supplies, Books and Additional Fees
A supply list of required materials will be sent approximately two weeks prior to the start of each workshop. Students may not bring their own clay to the workshop unless the instructor has specified it. If recommended, students are encouraged to obtain books prior to the workshop. Some materials for workshops are provided and some workshops require models, both for additional fees. In the event additional fees are required, they are determined at cost and divided evenly among the students.
Daily Schedule
Although each sculpture workshop begins and ends at the instructor’s discretion, the schedule is generally 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM on the first day, and 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM on the subsequent days, which provides six hours of instruction per day. One hour is allowed for lunch. In order to keep to the schedule, students are encouraged to bring
their own bag lunches or to use Brookgreen food service facilities. A microwave oven, coffee maker, and vending machines are located at the Campbell Center.
Additional Questions?
email: sculptureworkshops@brookgreen.org
Please call Bryan Rapp, Director of the Master Sculptor Program (843) 235-6027, or, Kay Filar, Curatorial Associate, (843) 235-6034, or, Robin R. Salmon, VP of Art and Historical Collections and Curator of Sculpture, (843) 235-6012.
Recommended Places to Stay
Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort (closest)
Airlines that service Myrtle Beach are - Allegiant Air, American, Delta, Porter Air, Spirit, United, US Airways and WestJet.
Airlines that service Charleston are - American Eagle, Delta, Jetblue, Southwest, United, and US Airways.