3-D Workshops: Sweden (2006)

University of Kalmar, School of Design
Instructor: Linda Celentano
Coordinator/Assistant: Louise Häggberg

“The summer workshop of 2006 in Sweden occurred as a result of my being asked to begin a student exchange program with the Design School of the University of Kalmar. I suggested a workshop as a good precursor, where people could all get to know one another and students interested in the principles of abstraction as a result of the workshop could move naturally into the exchange program once they understood some of the fundamentals.

“They initially requested a Monday through Friday workshop. I assured them that the students and professor needed to reflect on their progress by teaching every other day. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of this type of schedule. This work is fascinating, invigorating, and at times exhausting.

“For the first three classes — the first week — I taught the Rectilinear Volume Problem in clay. We had many crits where the students critiqued their own work. They learned the most in this way as they became well versed in the language. The second week, I introduced the Line Chart and gave them the Wire Problem. The third week they worked on their final Rectilinear Volume Problem in Plaster and their final Wire Problem in 16 gauge copper wire. We had a show on the last day of all the work and invited many guest as well as the press.

“Craftsmanship in Sweden, I might add, has its roots in cultivating youngsters by the second grade in making beautiful objects in a shop environment, where they are already shaping bowls in wood as well as other objects. Their level of craftsmanship was remarkable.”

For more information on 3-D workshops: info@rowenafund.org