ABOUT THE WORKSHOP RETREAT
In this hands-on workshop, participants will create a free-standing clay structure inspired by memory, place, and personal narrative. Using handbuilding techniques such as slab, coil, and pinch construction, students will design and build an imagined house or abode that tells a story.
Through guided demonstrations and group discussion, participants will explore how architecture can serve as metaphor. The structure may reflect lived experiences, places visited, or spaces observed in rural or urban landscapes. Students are encouraged to bring photographs or sketches of structures that inspire them, as well as a small ready-made ceramic object to help inform their narrative.
Surface design will be integrated into the building process. Demonstrations will include carving, texturing, and the application of slips, underglazes, and glazes at the leather-hard stage. Participants will learn how clay walls can suggest a range of materials and architectural details, from shingles and brick to softer, more flexible surfaces.
By the end of the workshop, participants will have completed a personalized sculptural structure and developed strategies for translating memory and story into three-dimensional form. Finished pieces will be dried, glaze-fired to cone 5/6 and available for pickup once firing is complete.
ABOUT LYDIA THOMPSON
Lydia C. Thompson is a mixed-media artist known for her ceramic sculptures. She earned her BFA from The Ohio State University and her MFA from the New York College of Ceramics at Alfred University.
Her honors include a 2025 South Arts Fellowship, a Fulbright-Hays grant for research on traditional architecture in Nigeria, a Windgate Distinguished Fellowship for Innovation in Craft, an Artist Support Grant from the Arts & Science Council of Charlotte/Mecklenburg, and a Lighton International Artists Exchange Program award for research in Ghana.
She has participated in residencies at the Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences, Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark, Medalta Ceramic Center in Canada, and Starworks in North Carolina.
Her work has been exhibited nationally at museums, craft centers, and galleries, including the Mint Museum and the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art. In addition to her studio practice in Charlotte, NC, she is a Professor of Art in the Department of Art & Art History at UNC Charlotte and has led workshops and served as a juror and curator for regional and national exhibitions.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
Fees: $675 (covers workshop fees, materials, and meal plan) + $450-$600 for overnight accommodations in our Antinori Village. Follow this link for info on our accommodation options: hambidge.org/room-board
Check-in: is 1-5pm on the first day of your workshop. If this is an impossibility, please confirm any deviation in advance with staff at workshops@hambidge.org. A mandatory group orientation is held at 5pm on the date of your arrival. Departures are by 2pm on the final day of your workshop.