Location: Academy of Fine Arts, University of the Arts Helsinki
Dates: June 5th – 19th, 2017 (students should arrive on 3rd – 4th and leave on the 20th)
Teacher: Christian Benefiel – Associate Professor, Shepherd University, Shepherdstown, WV
Participants: Max 10 KUNO students
ECTS: 3 Cr
How to apply: Apply by sending a short motivational letter and a link to your portfolio to kuva.international@uniarts.fi
Application deadline: May 12th

This workshop will examine the Process of Casting Iron, in the context of a small modern sculpture studio. The process of casting and working iron is deeply rooted in history, industry and culture of Finland and Scandinavia. Through an in-depth look at the foundry method, tooling and techniques associated with molding, melting and finish work, participants will make work that responds to the material, and its context historically and in a world where industry is progressing beyond labor and physical production. The workshop will include a single group iron pour event, open to the public, and demonstrating the spectacle of process. The distribution of labor requires a certain amount of social interaction, collaboration and cooperation working toward mutual goals. Participants will leave with the information needed to construct and operate facility of their own in the interest of continuing this activity in their own respective communities.
Basic materials will be provided by the Academy of Fine Arts, but students should be prepared to cover some additional material costs themselves (max 100 euro).
Additional information about Christian Benefiel:
Christian is Professor and BFA Sculpture Coordinator at Shepherd University. His work is inspired by the systematic structure in which culture, interpersonal relationship and civilization is based. Aesthetically he is rooted in the maritime, contemporary craft and the constructed landscape. Christian is a US Fulbright Scholar an inaugural Hamiltonian Fellow, and has done community projects with the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, The Mariners Museum in Norfolk VA, Jackson County Green Energy Park in Sylva NC, and has had numerous solo and group exhibitions internationally and is based in the Baltimore and Washington DC Area.