Pictured: Classical figure sculptor and Imparo Art Studio instructor Stephen Perkins working with one of his students. Photo courtesy of Imparo Art Studio.

Sarasota’s latest addition to the studio/gallery scene is also the latest addition to the growing SPAACES creative community, as Imparo Art Studio celebrates its grand opening this weekend. With a dedication to sculpture and a mission to promote more public art in Sarasota, the studio will not only serve as home base for Imparo’s three working artists, but also as a teaching space for various classes on offer, a gathering space for weekly studio sessions with a live model and an exhibition hall for curated shows. The grand opening celebration will be this Saturday, from 6pm to 8pm, at SPAACES, featuring work in bronze, terracotta and oil on canvas, by the artists and their students.

Founded by sculptor Thomas Satcher and joined by classical figure sculptor Stephen Perkins and fine artist Christine D’Andrea Gahagan, the name comes from the Italian word for ‘to learn,’ more specifically a quote from none other than Michelangelo, who reportedly said at the age of 87, “Ancora imparo,” or, “Yet, I am learning.” It’s a philosophy that permeates the studio, seen in the many classes and workshops available and expected of the artists themselves. “The idea,” Satcher says, “is that there really is no master of this. And the best use of any of the knowledge that you gain in the arts is passing it on.”

In its second month of operation, some classes are already up and running, including sculpture classes where students work from a live model, making armatures and learning anatomy, and some mixed-media classes, which Satcher finds particularly interesting at the moment. “It’s kind of representational of the time,” he says. “Because never before have artists had so much access to so many great materials, all at once.” Other courses are coming soon, like wildlife sculpture classes and poured resin workshops. And every Saturday, artists of every stripe and skill are invited to studio sessions with a live model. “Come in with an easel and paint, set up a sketchpad and draw, or sculpt,” says Satcher. “The goal is basically an art party, all bound together by the love of working with a live model.”

Therein lies the greater goal of Imparo: to build the community. This also explains the studio’s proclaimed emphasis on public art. “It’s how you pull a community together,” Satcher says. “It’s how you inspire people to make sure that they’re keeping beauty close to their heart.” And so he wants to see Imparo lead the charge in producing and placing more sculpture in public spaces, from life-size work to even larger, from the figurative to the abstract, a community statement writ large in bronze and steel and whatever else will hold up to the heat and the salt air. To ask Satcher why is to invite a dissertation on the positive impact that public art can have on a people, from the statistical to the philosophical, but he can also sum it up as bluntly as a bumper sticker.

“Life is better when you have great art around you,” he says.

The Imparo Art Studio grand opening celebration featuring works from the artists and their students begins this Saturday, July 8, at 6pm at SPAACES, 2087 Princeton Street, Sarasota.

Pictured: Classical figure sculptor and Imparo Art Studio instructor Stephen Perkins working with one of his students. Photo courtesy of Imparo Art Studio.

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