Expressive Portraits in Clay

Students will first learn how to utilize an armature, take and record measurements, and about clay management. They will then be taught a sculptural “block-in” technique, investigating how to accurately establish the large relationships of the portrait, before moving onto modeling and finishing techniques for clay. During the workshop, discussions will include the exploration of different expressive components of classical portraiture, such as gesture, hair, eye direction, and facial expression. By the end of the course, students will have completed a life-size clay portrait from observation and have learned how to effectively organize a strategy for improving their sense of volume, likeness, anatomical realism, and composition. 

This class will include sculpting demonstrations, constructive critiques, and lectures.
No experience is necessary. Teaching will be tailored to individuals.

Day 1: Sculpture Orientation

• Materials overview (armature, stands, tools)
• Clay management
• Basics of working observationally (perspective, movement, working globally, working general-to-specific, symmetry)

Block-In Basics

• How to arrange your armature
• Building symmetrically with a centerline
• Clay handling

Setting scale/proportions with measurements

• What/how to measure from the model
• How to record measurements
• Finishing with block-in at scale with basic skull shape

Day 2:  Expanding the Block-In

• Begin to refine skull shape with consideration to planar structure
• Taking more specific measurements (tragal triangulation)
• Identifying important anatomical landmarks 
• Block-in of the neck, nose, and ears

Day 3: Achieving Likeness through Structure, Proportions, and Depth

• Developing the eye sockets, brow, and cheekbones
• Placement of the features, such as eyes and mouth
• Continued refinement of the skull shape
• Blocking in the hair and other individual elements

Day 4: Form and Features as Volume

• Considering the abstract volumes of the features
• How the elements of a portrait function together
• How to use the rake tool to unify volume and explore form resolution
• Utilizing hair, clothing, expression, and gesture of the model as emotive or narrative descriptors 

Day 5: Final Resolution

• Final form modeling and compositional arrangement 
• Group review of all work

• (1) lifesize portrait armature
• 50 lbs box of WED Clay
• One large wire-wrapped rake tool, such as 10 ½” Wire-Wrapped Tool #204 (ribbon tools meant for pottery will not work)
• Any slender “knife-like” wooden tool (not metal or plastic), such as Wooden Knife #402
• 10-12” Steel or Aluminum Calipers
• Spray Bottle

You may bring any other sculpting tools of your choice.

Art Store (de Gerenday’s Fine Art Materials & Curiosities)

  – Hours: Mon–Fri: 9 AM–5 PM | Sat–Sun: 10 AM–4 PM

  – Phone: 860-434-8725

 Heather Personett is a figurative sculptor living in Lyme, CT. She attended State University of New York at Fredonia where she received her BFA in Illustration and Animation. Following graduation, she continued studying ceramics and sculpture and went on to receive her MFA in Sculpture at the New York Academy of Art. She was a recipient of several Merit Awards as well as the Carrara Stone Carving Residency, and continued to serve as a stone apprentice for several years. Personett then worked as a sculptor, moldmaker, and freelance artist at Studio EIS, a figurative monumental sculpture studio in New York City. She continued her development of form under the tutelage of head sculptor Jiwoong Cheh. She has twice received first place in the Richard McDermott Miller Portrait Sculpting Competition, in 2022 and 2024, and was commissioned to sculpt a portrait bust for the Salmagundi Club Library as part of their 150-year anniversary competition. She is the sculptor of several large-scale figurative private commissions and bas-relief installations across New York City. In addition to her freelance work as a sculptor, Personett  is a committed sculpture educator. She is an Adjunct Professor at several universities, including the New York Academy of Art and Fashion Institute of Technology. From 2019 to 2025, Personett was the Director of Sculpture at Grand Central Atelier, where she built their ongoing full-time sculpture curriculum. She is currently a key member of the Core Sculpture Faculty at Lyme Academy of Fine Art in Old Lyme, CT.

Instagram: @heather.personett

Registration and Enrollment Information

Registration and enrollment for workshops operate on a first-come, first-served basis.

• Full Payment Required:
  Registration must be paid in full at enrollment to secure a spot in the workshop. Registrants without payment or payment arrangements will not be on the roster.
• Payment Plan Option:
  If you would like to arrange a payment plan, please email caitlin@lymeacademy.edu for more information and assistance in setting one up.

Workshop Refund Policy

Please review the following refund policy for workshops.

1. 72-Hour Grace Period:
   Students may request a full refund for workshop registrations within 72 hours of signing up, provided that the workshop has not yet started. The refund request must be made within this 72-hour period for consideration.
2. Non-Refundable Credit Card Fee:
   A 3.5% processing fee will be added to credit card payments. This processing fee is non-refundable.
3. After the Grace Period:
   After the 72-hour grace period, no refunds will be issued for workshop registrations under any circumstances.

We appreciate your understanding and encourage you to contact us promptly if you have any questions or concerns regarding your registration.

Questions? 860-434-5232 ext. 202

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