High relief Chasing: An exploration of metal relief sculpture.
If you are new to chasing it is a style of relief work in sheet metal that can be applied to almost anything. From teapots to battle armour it has been used to create sculptural narrative in metal throughout human history.
For me, the art of chasing is a beautiful fusion between illustration and sculpture. The ability to transform any drawing into a three-dimensional form is one of the most exciting and challenging aspects of relief work.
What you can expect from this course: We'll be focusing on building a knowledge base of different chasing techniques, material control, pitch management, and how to use illustration and design to compliment low to high relief work in sheet metal.
Participants can expect to work on up to two projects in 18ga (approx 1mm) copper. The first project is usually a structured follow along design matched to the individual's skill level. If there is time the following projects will be assigned on an individual basis to best complement their growth and interests. If participants have already taken one of my workshops or completed one of my warm up projects before and are comfortable with tackling something more challenging then they may start a more complicated project immediately.
You may be expected to draw: It is not a prerequisite as there are many projects that can be traced but drawing is highly encouraged. As sheet metal is shaped it distorts and changes in volume requiring the maker to redraw elements of the design by hand. Certain intermediate to advanced designs can only be made this way, but not to worry if drawing is a newer skill set as we have many available projects that only require tracing.
Bringing a sketchbook or notebook is encouraged.
You may be expected to sculpt in clay: If your interest is to accomplish your own design in class my prerequisite for that is you must be able to draw your design. You can have this done in advance if you’d like. In class we will discuss and plan a depth guide for your design with more drawings and a proof sculpture to act as a guide. This method of planning I’ll be teaching is a great practice and an important skill for deeper relief work. Plus it’s a lot of fun to do which is always ideal.
As mentioned, tooling and materials will be provided for the duration of the course. If you have some of your own tooling you are of course welcome to bring what you are comfortable with.
You are most welcome to bring your own safety gear such as ear and eye protection to make yourself more comfortable as well.
This style of work can happen at any scale so bringing an optivisor or other optical magnification could also be a good idea but is not a must. Though if you think you may struggle with working small the magnification is very helpful.
Class will run from 9am to 5:30pm with a one hour lunch break at 12:30pm. Participants can be expected to swing a hammer for 7-8 hours a day, the hammers are not very heavy but it should be kept in mind that it is very physical work.
