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Where did all the good sculptors go?

2026-05-20 · 08:15 UTC ·Works in Progress ·0 min read

Brief

Where did all the good sculptors go? is a 2026-05-20 Works in Progress interview-style episode in which hosts Sam and Samuel speak with Art Director Atalanta (a sculptor by training). They argue the Trump administration’s plan for hundreds of bronze or marble statues is impractical given shortages of foundries, trained sculptors, and skilled labor.

Why it matters

The Trump administration proposed a mass statue-building program to produce “hundreds” of bronze or marble sculptures, but the episode argues the U.S. lacks the sculptors, foundries, and skilled workers to execute it.

Key details

  • Art Director Atalanta, a sculptor by training, joined hosts Sam and Samuel to assert that art education has been de-skilled, shrinking the pipeline of traditional sculpture skills and apprenticeships.
  • The conversation emphasizes that sculpture has historically been the most scalable art form for mass production and claims countries with state-run programs—cited example: North Korea—now have stronger sculptural infrastructure.
Source evidence

The Trump administration wants to bolster traditional art. Their attempt to revive sculpture, a mass statue-building program, is doomed. America doesn’t have the sculptors, foundries, and workers to make hundreds of bronze or marble sculptures. North Korea would be in a much better position.

Sam and Samuel sit down with our Art Director, Atalanta, a sculptor by training, and talk all things sculpture. They discuss how art education has become de-skilled, how sculpture has always been the best art form for mass production and the surprising places the tradition has been kept alive.

Channel: Works in Progress
Published: 2026-05-20
Video URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQGgJvinpuE