Unit 1 Projects
01
Face Sculpture un-glazed
For this Sculpture we had to make a face. I started off by wedging my clay them forming it into a ball. After that I then dropped the ball of clay on the table to see if I could find a shape for my head. Once I found a shape, I then pushed both of my thumbs in to make the dents for my eyes and eyebrows. This then started to form my nose as well and it was starting to look more like a face. I started to outline the nose and add more detail like a mouth and nostrils, with specific tools. I didn't have that much of a though process with this sculpture I just went along as I saw what it could become. Once my face was finished and ready to glaze I got started. I wasn't sure at first what color to do, so I decided to play it safe and go with a neutral color, like a face would be in real life. I got all my materials and started to paint my face with the glaze. I did three coats of paint and decided I was just going to leave my face like that, so it was simple.
02
Pendant
This project we had to make a pendant. I had no idea what to make so I looked on Pinterest for some inspiration. I then came across a star which I think looked pretty. I then also thought about how I could use it as well, such as a necklace or broach. Once I decided on the inspiration I got some clay, wedged it and tried to trace out a star, first using a sculpting tool lightly for the shape. I found this difficult as I found a star hard to make because of all the sides. After a few tries I got it looking how I wanted it. I then took a knife tool and carved out my tracing. After that I used water to smooth the sides and to make it appear as even as I could. Once all the sides were smooth and even I decided to add a little swirl in the center for some more detail, using a small carving tool. Once my pendant was dry and out of the kiln, I started thinking about the color I wanted to paint it. I chose blue colors because I wanted it to represent the ocean and the blues of the water. I had to use very small paintbrushes and very little hand movement. I put a darker blue in the swirl because I thought it would add more color and be less boring. Then I chose a lighter blue for the outside around it so it wasn't just all one color. Overall I am happy with how this turned out and I am glad that I chose blue for the color. Next time I would try and figure out a better way to add the dark blue in the swirl without getting it mixed with the lighter blue, maybe using a smaller paint brush would help.
03
Stamp
This project we were instructed to make a stamp. We could carve our initials into it or a pattern. We had to make sure we carved hard into the clay so when we pressed it on something else it would leave a print. I decided at the start that I wanted to do my initials. I chose to do this so I could use it to mark my other projects with my name, so I wouldn't have to carve my name into my clay all the time. I started to pinch and mold some clay with my hands into the stamp shape I wanted it. After I was happy with the shape and size of my stamp I got a sculpting tool and started to carve out my initials. I then put it in the kiln to get fired. Once it was fired I tried it out and realized that when I carved in my initials that they would be backwards. My initials are SS and I forgot that they would be backwards when I press it into clay. When realizing this there was nothing that could do but I will know for next time.