The Hybrid Studio: 2026 Workshops at Anderson Ranch

March 30, 2026

Posted In: Workshops

Tags: 2026 Summer Workshop Guide

Experiment in the Hybrid Studio: A 2026 Guide

Welcome to the 60th anniversary of workshops at Anderson Ranch Arts Center. Over the past six decades, we have grown from a small gathering of visionary artists into a thriving hub for creative exploration. While honoring the rich traditions of art-making, we continue to embrace cutting-edge tools and innovation. As we celebrate this incredible milestone in 2026, we are thrilled to help you discover our extensive catalog of over 150 workshops designed to inspire and transform your artistic practice.

This guide focuses on the Hybrid Studio: an exciting collection of workshops that mix traditional studio methods with innovative digital tools. Think laser cutters, UV printers, and mechanical motors paired seamlessly with hands-on techniques like screen printing, painting, and sculpture. It is all about experimenting with tools you might not normally use to see exactly where they can take your work. Best of all, every workshop featured in this guide includes dedicated time in Anderson Ranch’s state-of-the-art Digital Fabrication studio—affectionately known as the Fab Lab—giving you direct access to the technology you need to bring your most ambitious ideas to life.

Here is a closer look at our 2026 Hybrid Studio offerings:

• Hybrid Horizons: Collage Across Digital and Traditional Forms
• Between the Mesh: The Hybrid Screen Print
• Sculpture in Motion: Basic Motors and Kinetics
• Experimental Monoprint with Laser Cutters
• Light, Playful Prototyping
• Beyond the Canvas: Digital Fabrication and Sculptural Painting

PHOTOGRAPHY & NEW MEDIA

Hybrid Horizons: Collage Across Digital and Traditional Forms
July 6 – 10

Faculty: K Rhynus Cesark

Through material exploration of water-based media, this workshop moves students from initial narrative concept to execution with the help of in-class discussion and the implementation of techniques pre-existing and newly formed. Participants learn the processes and methods for effective use of water-based media to create vibrant imagery in the studio, and to work swiftly and spontaneously on-site wherever our painting journeys may take us. The workshop is guided through demonstrations, lectures, and in-class painting time, as we work with feedback from the instructor and classmates to develop a rich and dynamic painting practice.

Why you’ll love it: If you are passionate about collage and eager to push its boundaries, this is your workshop. You will merge the tactile joy of painting and drawing with advanced technology like laser cutters and UV printers. This environment empowers you to create deeply layered, experimental pieces, offering you the ultimate freedom to test new techniques and watch your ideas materialize in unexpected ways.

Learn more and register for Hybrid Horizons: Collage Across Digital and Traditional Forms

K Rhynus Cesark, Ascend, digitally altered monoprint, transfers, and encaustic on panel

PRINTMAKING

Between the Mesh: The Hybrid Screen Print
July 6 -10

Faculty: Tyanna J. Buie

Students explore a wide range of traditional and experimental screen printing techniques, examining the expressive potential of digital and mechanical mark-making, richly layered color, and dynamic variable editions. Processes covered include drawing fluid and screen-filler stencils, photo-chemical stencils created from both hand-drawn and digital imagery, monoprints/monotypes, and the integration of found collage materials — all paired with hybrid approaches that merge analog and digitally produced images.

Why you’ll love it: Learn directly from Tyanna J. Buie, an acclaimed artist chosen by the Obamas for her incredible screen-printed installations. She will guide you through combining hand-drawn elements with digital imagery in completely fresh ways. Her approach focuses heavily on layering and experimentation, resulting in prints that feel alive and full of possibility. If you want to elevate your screen printing practice, you belong in this studio.

Learn more and register for Between the Mesh: The Hybrid Screen Print

Tyanna J. Buie, Guinan

SCULPTURE

Sculpture in Motion: Basic Motors and Kinetics
July 20 – 24

Faculty: Ivana Dama

This hands-on workshop invites students to explore kinetic sculpture by experimenting with motion while learning the techniques needed to make sculptures move. The workshop simplifies and demystifies the process, breaking down different types of motors and their potential applications. Participants engage in guided experiments and creative problem solving, working with timers and controllers that require no coding experience. Students gain foundational knowledge of motor types, control systems, and kinetic mechanisms, and have time to apply these skills to develop their own projects.

Why you’ll love it:  Ivana Dama possesses a unique talent for making intimidating mechanical components feel approachable and fun. She breaks down the complexities of motors so you can focus entirely on your creative vision. You will leave the studio not only knowing how to animate your sculptures but also feeling incredibly confident in your ability to harness kinetic energy in future projects.

Learn more and register for Sculpture in Motion: Basic Motors and Kinetics

Ivana Dama, Audible Silence, 2023, Installation

PRINTMAKING

Experimental Monoprint with Laser Cutters
August 24 – 28

Faculty: Lari Gibbons

Explore a playful approach to making layered, hand-pulled monoprints through this fun, experimental workshop. We learn various ways to bring technology into our art-making practice, using the laser cutter as a flexible tool throughout the process. We discover how to turn drawings into laser-cut paper stencils, which we then use both in the printing process and as collage elements. We conclude by cutting our plexi plates into jigsaw-style pieces for more printing options. Our goals are to increase skills, exchange ideas, and expand our creative practices.

Why you’ll love it: Experience the perfect collision of the messy, hands-on joy of monoprinting with the exact precision of modern laser cutting. You will transform your sketches into complex stencils, layer striking textures, and cut plexi plates into puzzle-like pieces that offer endless creative configurations. It provides a playful, low-pressure space to stretch your printmaking capabilities.

Learn more and register for Experimental Monoprint with Laser Cutters

Lari Gibbons, AFM variation 3

FURNITURE DESIGN & WOODWORKING

Light, Playful Prototyping
August 31 – September 4

Faculty: Elish Warlop and Lane Preston

Light, playful prototyping is a key element for developing new ideas in the studio. This exploratory workshop delves into rapid, fast-paced prototyping to help generate ideas focused on light, form, and material. Students begin by iterating with paper to achieve form, explore luminosity, translucence, and shadow. Through the organic lens of bent wood, we tie it all together with contemporary lighting design. Students design and prototype their own light fixture, blending basic wiring and digital fabrication tools like laser cutting with wood bending methods such as hot pipe bending and bent lamination.

Why you’ll love it: This class completely reimagines what light can achieve as an artistic medium. You will experiment rapidly with paper, wood, laser cutting, and CNC tools to build forms that do more than illuminate a room—they transform its atmosphere. The fast-paced, iterative process will permanently change how you think about light, mood, and material interaction.

Learn more and register for Light, Playful Prototyping

Elish Warlop, Shades, Cerrused Ash and Steel.

PAINTING & DRAWING

Beyond the Canvas: Digital Fabrication and Sculptural Painting
September 7 – 11

Faculty: Damien Davis

In this hands-on workshop, students use the Fab Lab’s laser cutter and CNC router to translate personal imagery and visual ideas into hybrid works that combine digital precision with analog expression. Pushing two-dimensional painting onto three-3 dimensional surfaces creates a dynamic sense of wall power, and lets us explore painting as an object through individual experimentation. Incorporating physical elements, and painting on a variety of substrates and collage develops a sense of physicality, space, and texture. Painters and sculptors alike are invited to step outside of the rectangular picture plane, developing a deeper understanding of material relationships and the sculptural potential of the painted surface.

Why you’ll love it: If you ever feel confined by the standard rectangular canvas, this is your opportunity to break out. You will leverage the power of the Fab Lab alongside traditional painting techniques to craft bold, dimensional works that leap off the wall. It is the perfect environment for painters and sculptors alike to rethink color, shape, and texture.

Learn more and register for Beyond the Canvas: Digital Fabrication and Sculptural Painting

Damien Davis, Force of Will

A Place Built for Transformation

Ready to start your creative journey? Explore these workshops and the rest of our 60th-anniversary catalog to secure your spot in the studio this summer!

Explore all summer workshops.

Not sure where to begin? Our friendly artistic staff are here to help guide your creative path. Email us at [email protected], and we’ll match you with the perfect workshop.