Like seeing art of Roman chapels in technicolor for first time - Harvard Gazette

"As an art historian, sometimes our discipline can become a little removed or abstracted from the actual materiality or the physical object itself. It's always a valuable experience when you have that tactile understanding of what the artist was doing. Our aim in this workshop is to challenge our knowledge with the practical experience of art-making - what changes for the art historian when she knows how to make."

"Students followed recipes of stucco mixes, materials, and techniques used centuries ago by artists Alejandro Casella, Pietro da Cortona, and Giacomo Serpotta as they molded relief sculptures from the armature, the framework supporting a sculpture, to the final layer of marmorino, a mix of lime and marble dust."

Harvard Art Museums' Materials Lab hosted a graduate seminar workshop where 11 students created relief sculptures in stucco, a compound of lime, sand, and marble dust used during the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Led by assistant professor Shawon Kinew, the workshop bridged art history theory with practical sculpture-making, using historical recipes and techniques from artists like Giacomo Serpotta and Pietro da Cortona. Students worked through the complete process from armature to final marmorino layer, creating fruit and leaf designs. The hands-on experience provided art historians with tactile understanding of artistic decision-making, demonstrating how practical knowledge transforms scholarly perspective and deepens appreciation for historical artistic techniques.

Read at Harvard Gazette