CAD for Creatives

CAD for Creatives

September 29th at 6:30pm

WADA’s Education Committee brings you CAD for Creatives with Alex Kaufman

Always free for WADA members 

$25 for non-members; join 
 

You may have heard of computer-aided design, but don’t know exactly what it is or how it could possibly help you as an artist. In this month’s WADA education series, local artist and lead CAD designer at MGA Sculpture Studio Alex Kaufman will walk you through this deep topic and discuss how you could benefit from it in your practice.

Kaufman will touch on the various ways that artists and creatives can benefit from CAD, from quick 2D renderings and material estimates to taking a look at what went into designing MGA’s First Flight Monument at the St. Pete Pier. However, you don’t need to be designing a 16,000 pound stainless steel replica of an airplane to benefit from these tools! 

CAD can be learned by anyone with the desire to work hard, and the best way to add CAD to your repertoire is by using it in projects. If you know Photoshop, you’re halfway to being a CAD professional!

Kaufman will touch on some of the following topics during his presentation:

• CAD renderings and how they are instrumental in helping you win work and look professional
• How CAD can help you estimate materials and even be used efficiently for quick graphic design
• Taking a look at some of MGA Sculpture’s local projects, including the First Flight Monument at the St. Petersburg Pier and how CAD was instrumental to the project's planning and success
• Going from CAD to real world---from cricut cutters to 3d printing to robot arms

So please feel free to bring any questions you may have about CAD to the seminar. Otherwise, buckle up and get ready to dive into the exciting world of designing digitally in 3D!

Alex Kaufman is a designer/artist based out of St Petersburg, Florida. Kaufman has been the lead designer at MGA Sculpture Studio the past 5 years, working on large-scale public art for Mark Aeling's studio in the Warehouse Arts District. The most notable CAD designs completed in that time include the 2020 First Flight Monument, located at the St. Pete Pier, and the 2019 sculpture Gladiolus Blossom at the St. Pete Police Station.