***EXACT DATES OF WORKSHOP TO BE CONFIRMED
This introductory intensive workshop explores the art of traditional sgraffito murals using all-natural lime plasters. Participants will gain hands-on experience in the preparation and application of lime-based plasters, the use of natural pigments, tool handling, design development, layering, carving, and finishing techniques.
Sgraffito is an artistic technique in which multiple layers of contrasting coloured plaster are applied and then carefully carved to reveal textured, multidimensional surfaces beneath. Historically used on plastered walls and other surfaces, it has long served as a powerful technique for mural and architectural expression.
Participants will work collectively to create an in-situ sgraffito piece. This is a fully hands-on, creative workshop, with an emphasis on shared process, collaboration, and the collective development of the design.
The workshop is led by Kimberly Barcenas, a highly regarded international artist and craftswoman.

Kimberly Barcenas is a Mexican artist-craftswoman specialising in murals and sgraffito. Her practice fuses traditional mural coating techniques with contemporary artistic expression, blurring the boundaries between craft and art applied to walls. Her work is deeply influenced by the legacy of Mexican muralism.
She has taught and co-taught mural and fresco workshops in Mexico, Spain, Portugal, France, and Hungary.
This module offers intensive, specialised training in traditional sgraffito, developed over three days of practical, on-site work on a wall. The course focuses on historical Italian sgraffito traditions, the preparation of lime-based materials, and the technical execution of sgraffito through chromatic layering and carving.

Participants will:
Acquire technical skills in preparing lime mortars and chromatic layers for sgraffito
Understand the relationship between substrate, layers, and execution timing
Develop practical skills in the manual execution of traditional sgraffito
Build operational autonomy within an artistic workshop environment

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
Prepare wall surfaces and lime-based plaster layers correctly
Plan and execute a traditional sgraffito composition in line with technical requirements
Develop designs suited specifically to the sgraffito technique
Identify the technical and material characteristics of historical sgraffito work

Historical introduction to Italian sgraffito
Traditional materials: lime, sand, pigments
Preparation of the wall surface
Application of the first colour layer
Application of the second colour layer
Techniques for transferring the design
Organising work according to drying times
Incision and removal of the surface layer
Technical control and refinement of results
Final finishes and collective analysis of the work