Step into the studio for a two-day, in-person sculpture intensive with Jacqui Stockdale and Ara Dolatian—a focused opportunity to immerse yourself in material thinking, form and process, and to strengthen your sculpture instincts through sustained making. Designed as a mid-year reset, this workshop supports you to work with clarity and confidence, while extending your practice in ways that feel both purposeful and energising.
Across the two days you’ll move through a clear studio sequence of artist demonstration, guided making and sustained studio time. You’ll experiment with materials and techniques, develop and refine ideas, and make and respond through discussion and reflection with the artists and other educators. You’ll leave with practical processes and adaptable strategies you can take straight back to the classroom, supporting students to explore visual conventions in 3D, apply skills and knowledge, and communicate ideas and intentions through sculptural forms.
Ara Dolatian
Ara Dolatian will run a one-day handbuilding workshop for teachers, where participants will explore a variety of clay techniques together. He will guide teachers through the basics of handbuilding, giving them the skills to shape and mould clay into their own distinctive pieces. This is a hands-on, relaxed workshop designed to ignite creativity and let participants take home something truly personal.
Ara Dolatian is an interdisciplinary artist working across sculpture and ceramics. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the National Gallery of Victoria, Michael Reid Gallery, Scott Lawrie Gallery and Contemporary Art Space Montevideo, and he is represented by This Is No Fantasy.
Jacqui Stockdale
Jacqui Stockdale will run a one-day found-object puppet workshop for teachers, exploring how everyday materials can be transformed into characters with presence, humour and edge. Using salvaged objects and simple making techniques, you’ll experiment with construction, texture and gesture in a supportive studio environment—guided by Jacqui’s distinctive approach to narrative and theatricality, with plenty of time to play, make and build fresh momentum in your practice.
Jacqui Stockdale is a Naarm/Melbourne-based contemporary artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans photography, painting, drawing, collage and performance, known for its magical, symbolic imagery and carnivalesque theatricality. She is the winner of the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize (2012) and her work has been shown widely in Australia and internationally.
