8-Week Workshop

Date: Thursdays, June 12th – August 7th 2025

Time: 6pm-9pm

Description: This workshop will introduce students to wax carving and casting techniques. Objects that may be made throughout the class include a pair of earrings, ring, pendant/charms, or chain links. Topics covered include wax carving, sprueing, casting, and finishing techniques. Basic soldering techniques will also be covered, with emphasis on resolving project designs. Students will be shown primarily bronze casting. Sterling silver casting will be demonstrated but will be optional. The instructor will talk about the possibility of casting with sterling silver and how to purchase materials if you wish to do so.  Please reach out to the instructor with any questions regarding materials. Soldering and casting experience is welcomed but not required.

Tuition: $265 + $60 materials fee

Materials: All materials will be provided

Location: Contemporary Craft – Raphael Building (5645 Butler St., Pittsburgh, PA 15201)

Cancellations and Refunds: Workshop cancellations are decided three business days before the start date. If workshops must be cancelled due to insufficient enrollment, the entire class fee will be refunded through Eventbrite, or you may leave your workshop fee in your Contemporary Craft account for future workshops.

ANY WORKSHOP OR INDIVIDUAL SESSION CANCELLATIONS WILL BE COMMUNICATED VIA EMAIL.

Refund Policy: Student refund requests must be made at least three business days before a class begins. There will be a $25 cancellation fee. No refunds will be given without three-business days notice. Processing of refunds takes approximately three weeks.

If you require accessibility accommodations, please let us know by calling 412.261.7003 and we are happy to assist you.

About the Artist

Maria Camera-Smith is a metalsmith, enamelist, and jeweler whose work focuses on nostalgia, identity, and body adornment. Her works are made with contemporary metalsmithing techniques, precious materials and enamel. Camera-Smith teaches at Pittsburgh-based art centers such as Contemporary Craft and Pittsburgh Center for Arts & Media. She is currently a bench jeweler for Skelton Jewelry Design. Camera-Smith is a winner of the Preziosa Young 2023-2024 International Jewellery Design Competition in Florence, Italy. She has completed residencies at Contemporary Craft (Regional AIR in Metals, 2024) and at the Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach, FL (AIR in Jewelry & Metalsmithing, 2021-2023). Camera-Smith earned her MFA in Jewelry, Metals, and Enameling from Kent State University, OH in 2021 and a BFA in Metalsmithing from Slippery Rock University, PA in 2015. Her work has been exhibited internationally and is in private and public collections. Camera-Smith is a member of the Allegheny Metals Collective (AMC), The Enamelist Society (TES), and Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG).