• sculpture of reclining nude
  • Sculpture of a figure with bird
  • Sculpture of a woman and ram

Class Description:

Learn the basic-to-advanced skills needed to model the human form, with an improved understanding of gesture, proportions, and anatomy.

Taught by an instructor in the graduate divisions of the NYAA, this class is intended to develop the student’s own creative vision and sense of rhythmic sculptural form while teaching the basic-to-advanced skills needed to manifest it. Assisted by instructor demonstrations, individualized critiques, and anatomical and proportional handouts from classic texts, students will sculpt a full-length figure (usually up to 24 inches high) or a life-size or smaller portrait head. (Exceptions may be made for those wishing to sculpt individualized hands, feet, etc.) Students will train their eyes through observation of the live model, who will be present throughout every class. Although most students in this class choose to sculpt a naturalistic figure or head, each work inevitably develops a distinct sense of form and touch over time. Students will be given the choice of using oil- or water-based clay (the differences will be discussed in the first class) and working with or without an armature.
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Spring Semester Dates:

Scheduled occurrences for the next semester of this class are as follows:

Week
Date
Time
Week 1:
2/1/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 2:
2/08/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 3:
2/15/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 4:
2/22/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 5:
3/1/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 6:
3/08/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 7:
3/15/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 8:
3/22/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 9:
3/29/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 10:
4/12/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 11:
4/19/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET
Week 12:
4/26/2023
6:30 - 9:30 pm ET


  1. Before Class - Welcome & How to Prepare for Class

  2. Week 1 - Getting Started

  3. Week 2 - Developing the Head and Torso

  4. Week 3 - Completing the Blockout for the full or partial figure and further developing the head

  5. Week 4- Continuing to Develop the Full Figure and Head

  6. Week 5 - Legs and Feet

  • $670.00
  • In-Person
  • 12 Weeks
  • Beginner to Advanced

Meet Your Instructor

Cynthia Eardley

Instructor

Cynthia Eardley’s figurative sculptures have been shown in museums and galleries nationwide, including the New Museum of Contemporary Art, Museum of South Texas, Huntsville Museum, and Freddy, Monique Knowlton, Sally Hawkins, Ceres, and Mishkin galleries. Her work has been discussed in The New York Times, Sculpture, The Village Voice, The Nation, Sculpture Review, ARTnews, Art Forum Instagram (editor’s pick), contemporaryartdaily.com, and contemporaryartlibrary.org, among other media. She is the former co-founder and co-director of the architecture/public arts group SITE, Inc. Her trompe-l’oeil design for Best Products (Richmond, VA) titled the “Peeling Project” was the first in a series by SITE that was reviewed and exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art (New York) and worldwide. The 2005 monograph SITE: Identity in Density features several examples of her early architectural work, and her Peeling Project was included in the latest edition of Taschen’s Architecture in the 20th Century. She currently teaches sculpture and anatomy in the MFA, CFA, and CS departments of the New York Academy of Art and has also taught at Pratt Institute, the University of the Arts, and the Newark Museum School. Eardley has participated in numerous lectures and arts conferences nationwide. Her writings on art have been published in Bomb Magazine, Women’s Caucus on Art National Update, and The Brooklyn Rail.

Achieve your artistic potential

Join us to discover traditional skills and contemporary practice

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