Workshops
Improvisation is more than a technique. It is a way of seeing, thinking, and making. Each of my workshops explores a different dimension of creative practice, encouraging artists to question assumptions, embrace uncertainty, and discover their own possibilities.
Each workshop stands alone. No previous workshop with me is required.
The Improv Paradox
How the rules you make set you free
What if the greatest creative freedom comes from having fewer choices? In this five-day workshop, we'll explore how constraints spark unexpected possibilities and turn uncertainty into opportunity. Through playful exercises, experimentation, and the construction of your own quilt composition, you'll discover how intentional decisions can lead to surprising results—and how making your own rules can set you free.
The Improv Mindset
Developing the habits that support improvisation
What does it take to become a more confident, adventurous improvisational artist? It's not simply a matter of learning new techniques. It's learning to see differently, question assumptions, embrace uncertainty, and persist when the answers aren't obvious. Through a series of engaging exercises and hands-on experimentation, we'll explore the habits of mind that make improvisation possible—and discover how curiosity, observation, and reflection can transform the way you create.
The Improv Catalyst
Moving beyond the familiar
What happens when the very things that define your artistic work begin to limit its possibilities? Designed for experienced artists, this five-day workshop challenges you to look closely at your own work, question familiar approaches, and venture into unexplored territory. Through independent experimentation, thoughtful observation, and creative challenges, you'll discover new directions without abandoning what makes your work uniquely yours. The goal isn't to change your artistic voice, but to discover how much more it can become.
Improv Storytelling
Finding meaning beyond the literal
How do you tell a story without illustrating it? Every story carries something beyond its literal details—an emotion, a memory, a relationship, or an idea. In this five-day workshop, we'll explore how improvisational composition can communicate meaning without relying on recognizable imagery. Through experimentation with shape, color, proportion, and visual relationships, you'll discover ways to move beyond what a story looks like to express what it feels like. The goal isn't simply to tell a story, but to create work that invites others to feel something of their own.
Working With What You've Got
Finding possibilities in the materials at hand
What if everything you need to make something wonderful is already within reach? In this five-day workshop, we'll explore the creative possibilities hidden in unfamiliar fabrics, discarded fragments, unexpected materials, and the things we might otherwise overlook. Through playful exercises and improvisational experimentation, you'll discover how limitations can become opportunities, how unlikely combinations can spark new ideas, and how working with what you have can take your art somewhere you never expected.
Booking Info:
Duration: 5-day immersive workshop (classroom hours typically 9am-5pm)
Format: In-person, residential art retreat experience
Location: Hosted at retreat centers (venue arranged by host organization)
Accommodations & Meals: Provided on-site for participants at additional cost; facilitator accommodations included
Fee: $4,000
Travel additional at standard government per diem rates
Occasional lectures and artist presentations may be arranged by special invitation. Please contact me to discuss possibilities.
Contact Info
susan@susanjlapham.com | www.susanjlapham.net