Mingdong Sun (Sculpture '20)

Annie Stout, 2022

Chelsea Romeo Allen (Sculpture '22)

Sculpture

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William Lanzillo (MFA Sculpture 2023)

Photo: Ish Ishland

Sculpture Philosophy

Supporting a broad range of methodologies while critically examining the ideas of our time

The Sculpture department engages in a deep investigation of knowledge systems, and the role of the artist as an interpreter of contemporary culture.

We explore the meaning of artistic practice through conversation and shared dialog, within a dynamic environment of committed and diverse individuals. Our shared experiences provide a backdrop for considering the spheres of influence that sculpture engages with, including its histories and potential futures.

Sculpture supports a broad range of methodologies that encapsulate the contemporary world—its values, myths, and symbolic languages—while critically examining how they reflect the dynamic essence of our time. Students are encouraged to look to each other as valuable resources and collaborators while working closely with the Artist-in-Residence and renowned visiting artists, critics, and writers.

Rebecca Ripple. Photo by Eric Perry.

Artist in Residence

Rebecca Ripple

Rebecca Ripple has exhibited throughout the United States and in Italy, at venues including Klowden Mann; the Los Angeles Museum of Art; the Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena; and the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art. She comes to Cranbrook from a robust studio practice in Los Angeles, where she held teaching positions at California State University, Northridge; University of California, Riverside; and California Institute of the Arts. Ripple has received multiple awards including a C.O.L.A. (City of Los Angeles Individual Fellowship) and a Nathan O. Freedman Endowment for Exceptional Creative Accomplishments Award. Her work has been featured in Sculpture Magazine and reviewed in the Huffington Post, ArtScene, Artillery, and American Craft.

Sculpture Program

Preparing students to be translators of their culture by exposing and questioning its values

The Sculpture department is driven by a personalized approach to making and intense studio practice that supports a wide range of approaches and processes. We do not follow a set aesthetic and students create artworks ranging from objects and site-specific installations to videos, performances, and socially driven projects.

Each year the Department discusses strategies to best support the cohort of students, and these conversations help shape the direction of the program, the structure of student-led seminars, and our responsibility to each other in the upcoming year.

Reading and writing are critical parts of the Department with set expectations based on the year of study. First-year students participate in writing around their work, while second-year students focus on contextualizing their practice within broader social, political, and cultural ideas.

The Educational Experience at Cranbrook Academy of Art

Rebecca Ripple

The Cranbrook Experience in Sculpture

Rebecca Ripple

The Cranbrook Experience in Sculpture

Sculpture students with Visiting Artist Harry Dodge, 2022.

Sculpture Visiting Artists/Critics

Visitors based on the direction, concerns, and interests of each cohort

Visiting artists and critics are invited to the Sculpture program based on the direction, concerns, and interests of the current cohort. Visitors meet with students individually and/or in group critiques, lead seminars, and discussions, and take part in informal group dinners in the studio. We bring people from Detroit and the surrounding region to national and international guests. These diverse individuals expand the scope of experiences and points of view while inspiring ongoing conversations within the Department and larger Academy community. Engagements with visiting artists provide a variety of experiences for our students and often lead to professional contacts and ongoing connections.

Learn More About Visiting Artists/Critics at Cranbrook Academy of Art

Select Visiting Artists

Edgar Arceneaux

Artist
American Artist

Artist
Mai-Thu Perret

Artist
Amanda Ross-Ho

Artist
Jonathan González

Artist
Postcommodity

Artist
Kelly Akashi

Artist
Beatriz Cortez

Artist
Sky Hopinka

Artist and Filmmaker
Rachel Mason

Artist
Kori Newkirk

Artist
Ross Rudel

Artist
Kenneth Tam

Artist
Shirley Tse

Artist
Adrian Wong

Artist
Harry Dodge

Artist
Alice Konitz

Artist
Jennifer Doyle

Queer Theorist, Critic, Writer

William Lanzillo (Sculpture 2023) working on installation outside his second floor studio

Sculpture students (Class of 2023) celebrate after their 1st Year reviews

Sculpture department (Classes of 2021 and 2022) on department trip to Mackinaw.

Sculpture students transport a work to Cranbrook Art Museum for Graduate Degree Exhibition 2023.

Sculpture Experience

We are immersive and experimental, bringing forth an active approach to artmaking and activism

The experience of working in the Sculpture department is anchored by a culture where students are committed to rigorous studio work and invested in the trajectory of each other’s practice. Working alongside one another, a true community is quickly established through collaborations, informal conversations, and group meals that bring everyone together.

The Sculpture building has two dedicated communal spaces, known respectively as Tall and Wide Spaces. These become community-driven spaces for installations, exhibitions, and performances for students in sculpture and other departments. These spaces are further supported by Academy-wide resources, extending the possibilities for students to expand their work and test new possibilities.

The department also visits local alumni and travels to other locations to visit artists’ studios, museums, and galleries.

Student Life at Cranbrook Academy of Art