-Lisa Klakulak-
-Lisa Klakulak-
SCULPTING HOLLOW FORMS + PARTIAL FELT DENSITY
From June 16 to 19, 2026
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About the teacher
About the teacher
Lisa Klakulak’s creativity was nurtured at a young age by her mother’s arts, good public-school art programs in the suburbs of Detroit, and classes at the local art association. With these foundational experiences as well as self-directed exploration in fabric dyeing, sewing, and off-loom bead weaving, Klakulak began her BFA studies in 1993 at the University of Colorado. During her college years, she exhibited sculptural beaded jewelry at local art cooperatives and independently pursued the study of natural dyes, graduating in 1997 from Colorado State with a BFA in Fiber Arts.
Klakulak relocated to Taos, NM in 1997 to work as the chief natural dyer for a fiber supplier and began selling her work at Fine Art and Craft Shows. International travels over the millenium intensified Klakulak’s textile focus, motivating her move to the southeast to study at Penland School of Craft and to accept an Artist-in-Residence position at The Appalachian Center for Craft, in Smithville, TN. While at ACC from 2002-2005, Klakulak extensively explored the medium of felt, educated children in middle Tennessee public schools through ACC’s Outreach Programs, began instructing adult workshops and acquired a K-12 Visual Arts certification.
Asheville, NC became the base of operations from 2006-2018 for Klakulak’s business, STRONGFELT, inc, encompassing the making of body adornment, vessels for holding and figurative sculpture as well as K-12 artist residencies and the instruction of workshops worldwide. An inspirational cycle had developed: traveling to teach, gaining new perspectives though travel, making new work that inspired others and being invited again to teach. In 2012, exhausted by such a pace, Klakulak added a studio to her house to allow for small group instruction without the need for travel.
An adventurer at heart, within four years Klakulak was hiking along Patagonian Glaciers, after teaching in Santiago, Chile. Klakulak recognized the glacial concept of porosity (the relation of space and mass) as familiar to the compaction of wool in the wet felting process and focused in on geologic changes as metaphors for ‘what is felt.” Additionally, research into the vast tidal changes (exposure and the cover up) experienced at this southern outpost resulted in learning that the Bay of Fundy located between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in Canada has the most extreme swing of water on the planet. Inspired by big ideas and designated time to explore them while acquiring the paper needed to teach in postsecondary schools, Klakulak decided to pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture at the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design from 2018-2020.
Klakulak is currently making in Asheville, NC having added 10-week Online Courses to her creative activities.
The Training
To develop a hollow form, wool fiber is layered around a flat resist made from a material impenetrable by the fibers and once the fibers have entangled the resist is removed and the form fulled.
In addition to the shape of the resist, understand how varying the density of wool in a given area (differential shrinkage) and directional fulling can provide more control to sculpt desired forms and forms previously unimaginable.
Participants will make partially felted sheets of fiber in varying thicknesses and states of structural integrity to apply as distinct shapes in their fiber layout.
Proper fulling and the thickness of the vessel’s wall in relationship to its volume will determine the forms integrity.
Hand stitched structural ribbing, steam blocking and shellac stiffening can then be applied to refine the forms posture and presence.
Objective of the Training
Knowing how to develop a hollow shape using a reservoir
Understanding the techniques of differential shrinkage and directional fulling and adapting them to a project
Applying the use of gum arabic and steam curing to the finishes of a felt piece
Detailed program
June 16:
9am-1pm and 2:30pm-5:30pm:
How wool fibers should be layered around a flat reservoir made of a material to which they cannot clump: Knowing how to develop a hollow shape using a reservoir
June 17:
9am-1pm and 2:30pm-5:30pm:
Understanding the techniques of differential shrinkage and directional fulling and adapting them to a project: Once the fibers are entangled, the reserve is removed and the shape is filled. In addition to the shape of the reserve, it will be necessary to understand how to vary the density of the wool in a given area (differential shrinkage factor) and how directional fulling can provide greater control for sculpting expected shapes or shapes that would have previously been unimaginable.
June 18:
9am-1pm and 2:30pm-5:30pm:
Participants will prepare partially felted pre-felts with layers of fibers of varying thicknesses and structural properties, to be applied to different fiber layers. You will see that the final appearance of the resulting shapes will depend on proper filling and the ratio between the thickness of the project's walls and its volume.
June 19:
9am-1pm and 2:30pm-5:30pm:
Applying the use of gum arabic and steam curing to the finishing of a felt piece: You will give presence, structure and hardening to the desired shape by sewing structural ribs, by using gum arabic and by steam curing techniques.
The teacher will bring:
Syllabus
Samples
Carpet mats to be used for traction between tray and table and between agitation mat and tray,
An agitation mat & wetting cloth per student
To be used during class but not kept STRONGFELT work
Material available for students
Each participant will have their own individual workstation, with an adjustable-height table.
Wool and textiles can be purchased on-site if needed, depending on availability.
The workshop features a spacious, bright, and airy studio, as well as an extensive library specializing in textile art and color.
The cost of the training may be covered by your professional training organization (OPCO) (Vivea, Afdas, FAFCEA, Pole Emploi, etc.) depending on your status and eligibility.
Level of prior knowledge and prerequisites
Familiarity with basic hand felt-making techniques is a plus, but this training may be suitable for beginner felt makers.
Personal financing rate
4-day training course (28 hours). The training fee is €170 per day: €680 total.
Instruction will be in English with simultaneous translation into French.
If your tax residence is in France:
Tuition fees may be covered by training organizations (OPCO, Vivea, Afdas, FAFCEA, France Travail, etc.) depending on your status and eligibility. Contact us for personalized advice and a quote at atelierdubocage31@gmail.com
Maximum number of participants: 10
Accomodation
Total immersion is beneficial for maximum impact; much of the interaction takes place outside of class time, during breaks, and through informal conversations over meals.
Our residence is the ideal place to stay on-site throughout your training. For more information, please contact us at atelierdubocage31@gmail.com
Individual equipment to be brought by the trainee
your choice of soap (olive oil is suggested and the teacher can bring small blocks for those who don’t have their own)
approximately 6oz (170 g) 21 micron Merino top in a variety of colors including black and white and primary red, yellow and blue as we will be doing some colour theory/blending
2 pieces of small bubbled wrap 24” x 30” (61 x 76 cm), please no pool covering
1/3 of a foam pool noodle (approx 20”or 51 cm) or PVC pipe 1”-2” diameter (2.2cm – 4.4cm )
a pair of waist high nylons
a plastic grocery bag (the type used for placing produce in ; most have many at home!)
a hand & bath towel
regular sized and small sharp scissors
a 12” or 30 cm long wooden shish kebab skewer
a 20” x 20” piece of foam/plastic underlayment for resist per participant
a small wire brush 1.5” x .5” (4 x 1.25 cm) used to remove paint or grease from a grill
a disposable shaving razor (preferably with two blades and no moisture strip available in the men’s razor section)
a note pad and writing utensils
a calculator
a measuring tape
The following are items not mandatory to have or to bring, but encouraged and extremely helpful to a joyful experience:
hand carders for blending colors or small blenders the size of animal brushes for color theory/
optical blending
a small 18mm rotary cutter
a small self-heal mat or a couple available for use at a communal table
a digital pocket scale measuring .00 grams (these can be found on line for 18-25 Euro & most will want to buy one after the class anyhow, so if they can before there will be less waiting in line to weigh their wool)
Equipment provided by the training center
Containers for holding water
Tables 1.80m long for each participant, covered with protective plastic and equipped with gutters (the tables are height-adjustable for participants' comfort)
Access to hot and cold water
Electric kettles available for boiling water on request
Dry-erase chalkboard, markers, and flip chart
Adhesive tape (plastic gaffer/waterproof tape)
A 25cc glass jar with a tight-fitting lid
A box of plastic/latex gloves
A few 2.5cm wide natural bristle brushes
Plastic protectors to protect the surface where we will apply the gum arabic
For the use of gum arabic: (this will be done outdoors: ventilation is needed for fumes)
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