Tina Curry Empowers Students to Tell Stories in Clay

Tina Curry is known for her expressive animal sculptures, and her work and workshops are both highly coveted. During Penland’s first summer session, we had the opportunity to learn from Tina, and at the end of four mind-expanding days, students of all levels (including beginners) found that they had sculpted a bevy of delightful creatures beyond their imagining.

Coveted Experience
The folks who attended Tina’s “Creative Animal Sculpture” workshop filled her roster in the first few minutes of enrollment back in January.

Students Donna and Penny have been exploring clay together for fifteen years. Donna had been trying to take a workshop with Tina for over two years after meeting her through Tierra Madre, a women’s pottery group in the Knoxville, Tennessee area. Penny had never tried making sculpture and was eager to learn anything that Tina had to share. “She was so patient,” said Penny. “What was lovely was that she spent so much time with each person. She showed me how to do the ears six times!”

Work by students Penny and Donna

Telling Stories in Clay
When asking why she loves sculpting animals, Tina had this to say,

I always work with animals. I grew up with horses. When I look at animals, I see their personalities. I don’t just see a rabbit. I see that’s a rabbit who’s looking for his friends and who’s out playing. When I sit and sculpt, I think about stories. Of course, I like the technicality of being able to know the anatomy, but I always like that little tweak of personality that makes them fun.

Tina working on a rabbit

The Process
For this workshop, Tina brought a book full of reference pictures: different animals in different poses. Her goal was to challenge students to go beyond their comfort zone. She also encouraged each student to name their animal and create a story for them.

Ruby the rabbit

Tina had this to say about the arc of her workshop:

It’s intimidating at first, but once they get into the process, they become a part of the piece and their imaginations go and that’s the best part. They all start off with the same structure, but then as they work, they start to see things they didn’t see before. I know when people see the class description they think it’s very structured and it is in the beginning. But when students realize that they can go all out, it blooms. There’s so much talent here. It’s a beginning class, and the beginners have done exceptionally well.

Meet Some Animal Friends
We are excited to share some of the charming work created during Tina’s workshop.