Sculpture / 4D

Program Head: Katie Grinnan

The Sculpture Program at CSULB features a state-of-the-art 3D digital printing and CNC lab, a full woodshop, an expansive welding and metal working area and dedicated metal casting and mold making facilities. Sculpture was also the first program in the School of Art to introduce both video art and 3D digital curriculum, and the Sculpture Program also continues to maintain one of the few remaining active art foundries to be found at universities in Southern California. This range of capabilities within the Sculpture Program - from among the oldest and, in instances, most traditional of practices, to among the newest of media - defines the nature of this program.

The Sculpture program is focused on the expanded field and is not just a program defined by a singular material or craft tradition. Students are encouraged to explore a wide range of approaches to making, pushing the boundaries of 3D and 4D. Sculpture offers a breadth of opportunities to explore technical, experimental and conceptual approaches to sculpture including courses dedicated to mold making, casting, welding and wood working methods; video, and sound; installation and kinetics and electronics, performance, participatory, and relational practices. In recent years, we have made significant expansions to our digital lab and course offerings, encompassing classes in digital fabrication, kinetics and electronics. Through these activities, students develop their knowledge and a rigorous practice embedded within the field of contemporary sculpture and related practices, delving into multiple contexts.

Faculty within the Sculpture Program are creatively and professionally active, representing a variety of practices, backgrounds, and points-of-view, facilitating sophisticated dialogues. Faculty cover contemporary topics surrounding the technical, formal, conceptual, critical, social, historical and philosophical aspects of art.

Known for our facilities, classrooms within the Sculpture Program are adjacent to the department’s wood and metal shops; an outdoor metal fabrication and foundry area; video and computer lab and digital lab. This close proximity facilitates easy access and hands on teaching, resulting in experimentation across various mediums. Our digital lab encompasses multiple cnc machines, laser cutting and water-jet equipment, digital scanners and a suite of 3D printers as well as a large format photo printer.

The Sculpture program regularly holds group critiques with faculty, critiques revolve around project spaces as well as a student gallery space dedicated to the Sculpture Program, which is in addition to the School of Art Galleries commonly used by sculpture students. The communal studio space for Sculpture BFA students and individual studio spaces for MFA students are the hubs of the sculpture community. The program brings in many guest artists and students often take field trips to museums and galleries in Los Angeles, enjoying the proximity to world class contemporary art.
Faculty in the sculpture program champion a cross-disciplinary approach where students are encouraged to develop their own practice.

The Sculpture Program at CSULB prepares students for professional careers in art and competitive Graduate programs. Below are some recent CSULB Sculpture BFA’s accepted to MFA Program:

Nicholas O’Connell - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA NYU Steinhardt School and VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University) 
Andy Phillips - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of California, Irvine 2025
Joshua Thomen - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of California, Irvine 2024
Scarlet Sidwell - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MA Psychology The New School
Christopher Velez - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA UCLA New Genres 2022
Dulce Soledad-Ibarra - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA USC Roski School of Art, 2020
Juliet Johnson - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA Goldsmiths, University of London, 2021
Diego Palacios - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA Yale University, School of Art 2019
Nicholas Gaby - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA Yale University, School of Art 2018 
Colette Brown - CSULB BA, Doctoral Student at University of California, Irvine
Karina Cunningham - BA CSULB, Rutgers University 2019
Matthew Williams - BFA Sculpture, MFA University of California, San Diego 2022
Dorian Diaz - BFA Sculpture, MFA Vermont College of Fine Arts  
Jason Gomez - BFA Sculpture CSULB; UCLA Sculpture Program 2017;  Reichsacademie Residency, Banff residency 
Colin Lindsay - BFA Sculpture CSULB , Royal Academy of Art, London 2017
Matthew Warner - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of California, Irvine 2015
Kim Zumphfe - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of California, Irvine 2015
Mathew Segotta - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of Pennsylvania Fine Art
Patrick Ballard - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA CalArts in 2014
Satoe Fukishima - BFA Sculpture CSULB MFA Integrated Media from CalArts in 2013
Benjamin Tippin - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MA Fine Art, Goldsmiths, University of London 
Nathan Bockelman - BFA Sculpture CSULB, MFA University of California, Riverside