Starting from the themes of Phantom Armour, participants follow a path that leads from thought to matter, all the way to casting in metal using the lost-wax technique.

The workshop begins as a group, inside the exhibition and in dialogue with the works. Rather than giving lectures, the facilitators offer prompts and questions, letting the themes emerge from each participant’s own associations and experiences. From there, references drawn from mythology, iconology, anthropology and philosophy come into play, weaving together the symbolic and the personal.

In the second phase, each participant chooses one of the ideas that has emerged and translates it into a symbolic object: a small sculpture, an icon, or something to be worn, such as an amulet or a piece of jewellery. Pen and paper become the tools for bringing the idea into focus before moving on to the material.

Finally, it is time to model. Using wax and specialised tools, and guided by the facilitators, participants bring their projects to life. At the end of the workshop, the models are collected and cast using the lost-wax process, and each participant will receive their own piece in metal, a tangible trace of the journey they have taken.