Gage Academy of Art

Adult Lectures

These unique offerings reflect expanded opportunities to engage with contemporary artists and scholars on the subject of art and the artistic practice.

Seminar Series: Can We Talk About Art? with Artistic Director Mike Magrath

This monthly hybrid seminar will introduce and unpack core concepts and practices in critical thinking as they relate to artistic practice, production, and appreciation.

Course material will be in the form of links to reasonably short and accessible readings, videos, or recordings. The instructor will give a rough overview of key concepts at the outset of each session, however, it is up to each student to become familiar with the material and come to class with questions and thoughts for discussion.

This class is included and encouraged for all Atelier students and welcome to anyone in the larger Gage community who are interested in diving deeper into what makes great artwork tick.

Location: Gage SLU Media room and zoom

Time: 6:30pm – 8:00pm, (Kicks off 9/15, then occurs 2nd Tuesday of each month)

Both the full series and individual sessions, per topic, are accessible below. 

Full: https://gageacademy.my.site.com/learn/s/checkout?c__ContextId=a0oUf00000AzVHF

Lecture Topics for 2026-27: 

A man sketches ideas on a blackboard using chalk, focused and deep in thought as he creates his masterpiece
A man sketches ideas on a blackboard using chalk, focused and deep in thought as he creates his masterpiece

Constructive Anatomy:
Lecture Series with Atelier Instuctor Geoff Flack

This 6-lecture series will focus on the structural concepts that make up the figure’s complex construction and that are essential to understanding the figure’s unique form and design. This series is a crucial starting point for all artists studying the figure and its anatomy. Emphasis will be placed on the geometry of each structural concept and how each fit within the body’s proportion system, along with the key landmarks that help you create sophisticated figures from observation and memory.

Series offered Fall Quarter, see 2026 dates below.

Time: 6-8pm

Registration Link: https://gageacademy.my.site.com/learn/s/checkout?c__ContextId=a0oUf00000Aw4By

Lecture Topics:

  • 10/14 - Landmarks, Line of Gravity, Spine, Gesture and Rhythm
  • Structural Concepts, Propotions and Landmarks of:
    • 10/21 - Pelivis
    • 10/28 - Ribcage
    • 11/4 - Skull
    • 11/11 - Lower Limbs
    • 11/18 - Upper Limbs

Artistic Anatomy: 
​​​​​​​Lecture Series with Artistic Director Mike Magrath

This is a 10-part asychronous, recorded lecture sereis exploring the aesthetics and biomechanical structore of the human form. The actual lectures and PowerPoints are available asychronously online. Weekly meeting times via zoom allow for discussions and follow-up sessions with Mike Magrath, Director of the Magrath Sculpture Atelier.

Series offered in Winter Quarter. See 2027 dates below, check back for registration.

Time: 6:30-7:30pm

Lecture Topics:

  • 1/14 - Bio-Mechanics and the Canons of Proportion 
  • 1/21 - Pelivis and Trunk
  • 1/28 - Ribs and Spine
  • 2/4 - Reach 1 : Should Girdle
  • 2/11 - Reach 2: Forelimbs
  • 2/18- Locomotion: Buttocks and Lower Limbs
  • 2/25 - Support and Manipluation: Feet and Hands
  • 3/4 - Neck and Skull
  • 3/11 - Facial Features and Musculature
  • 3/13 - Surface Features, Reproduction and Aging


A man sketches ideas on a blackboard using chalk, focused and deep in thought as he creates his masterpiece
×
❮ ❯