The Opportunity
The College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP) at Cornell University is seeking a Sculpture Studio Technician to steward the day-to-day operation and continued development of the Sculpture Studios. You will keep the spaces, equipment, and shared resources organized, safe, functional, and ready for use. Just as importantly, you will identify what needs improvement and follow through on practical solutions.
This is a wide-ranging role supporting the Art Department curriculum in wood, metal, ceramics, mold making, soft sculpture, papermaking, and many other additive, reductive, and mixed-material processes, alongside digital fabrication technologies such as laser cutting and CNC. No one is expected to arrive as an expert in every technique. You will need substantial hands-on skill, sound technical judgment, a strong understanding of safety, and the curiosity to learn as practices and teaching needs evolve.
Renovated less than five years ago, the facility has a strong foundation and real potential still to be realized. You will help bring that potential to life by refining studio layouts and storage, establishing dependable operating routines, maintaining and repairing equipment, and improving how shared spaces and resources are used. You will also help assess equipment needs and carry out approved purchases, installations, and improvements. This is an opportunity to help shape studios that are not only well run, but lively and inspiring places where students and faculty want to make work.
You will work closely with Sculpture faculty to understand their courses and research, prepare the studios to support courses, and provide technical guidance on materials, processes, equipment, and fabrication challenges. You will assist with in-class demonstrations and develop safety instruction suited to the processes students will use. You will also provide training to thesis students, independent users, and others who need access outside a Sculpture course. This work calls for strong technical knowledge, thoughtful problem-solving, and a collaborative approach that respects the different ways faculty teach and artists work. Faculty bring their artistic and educational approaches; you bring deep knowledge of the spaces, tools, and possibilities within them.
You will recruit, train, schedule, and supervise student monitors who help maintain studio operations and support approved evening and weekend access. You will also prepare monitors for appropriate responsibilities involving digital fabrication equipment. Working with the Director of Material Practice, Environmental Health and Safety (EHS), and Material Practice colleagues, you will maintain sound safety practices, oversee chemical and regulated waste management, and help improve training and access across the Sculpture and Rand woodshops.
We’re looking for someone who takes pride in making a complex facility work well: a technician who notices what needs attention, can make and repair things, exercises sound judgment, and follows through. If you enjoy both the daily craft of running a studio and the longer-term challenge of helping it thrive, this is a chance to make a lasting contribution to the work of students and faculty at AAP.
Summary:
The Sculpture Studio Technician oversees the daily operations of the Sculpture Studios, maintaining organized, functional, and equitable spaces for teaching, independent work, and research. Working with faculty and the Director of Material Practice, the technician adapts studio layouts, storage, equipment, and access to evolving needs across traditional and emerging sculpture practices, including laser cutting and CNC.
The technician provides hands-on technical support to faculty and students through consultations, troubleshooting, and assistance with in-class demonstrations. They work with faculty to plan safety instruction suited to course activities and provide training directly to users outside Sculpture courses. The…