For the past month, I have been steadily working on my inspiration piece from Barbra Hepworth. The original idea came from her particular piece "Wave" 1943-1944.
The way that her "Wave" was circular, and it was enclosed was what really inspired my sketch. Of course, I had to make it my own, and make it relatable to the original Peru Mouse and Bottle piece. So I really wanted to recreate the circular "Wave" but have it sort of double barreled.
Now this has all been easier said than done. Unfortunately for me, I like to make things harder on my self than necessary. What can I say, I like a challenge. First off, I tried making the piece by creating a hump mold, and then draping the clay over it, allowing the clay to dry in the sort of curved angles. Well it did not work, but that is a common theme with this piece. Then I tried doing it opposite of the hump mold and created a slump mold, allowing the clay to sink into the piece, still curving.
My Sketches of the piece
This was more successful so I began to put together each of my pieces. However, the particular kind of clay that I have got from a clay distributor is not as malleable or plastic as the previous kind I had worked with. It began drying quickly and not wanting to really stay in shape of the piece. I then had to realize that I had to work with these pieces lying down horizontally, not vertically as I had intended. As they were lying down on their side, I had to put in slabs of clay as an inner support for the structure.
As I am nearing completion of this piece, my professor, tells me he doesn’t think it is going to work so well and that I needed to finish this one and then start making another one by using the extruder. The extruder is like a big play dough press. You put the template in, followed by the clay then mash it down with the handle and WaaLaa! You have out the other end the shape of clay you need!
So I go ahead and finish up this piece, and it is massive. It is about 50 pounds of clay and twenty-five inches tall (once it is set up right) and about a foot in depth. I am way to weak to lift the thing by myself! Luckily I was able to save this project! I don’t know how I did it, but I was able to manipulate the clay in a way that it worked out! It took so much stress off of me! It makes me so incredibly happy that I don’t have to make it again!
This piece will not be able to stand up vertically on it’s own until after we fire it in the kiln. The reason is because clay has different states that it goes through. As you are working with it, it is plastic or malleable. Then as it begins to dry it reaches this leather hard state where it is tough, and still workable to an extent. This is the state my piece is in right now. But once it reaches the bone dry state, the piece is very fragile. I don’t think the weight of my piece sitting up vertically will be able to withstand the pressures of the gravity while it is in this bone dry stage. So I will fire it lying on its side, and then sit it up. I will have pictures of it up later, after I can sit it up.
The way that her "Wave" was circular, and it was enclosed was what really inspired my sketch. Of course, I had to make it my own, and make it relatable to the original Peru Mouse and Bottle piece. So I really wanted to recreate the circular "Wave" but have it sort of double barreled.
Now this has all been easier said than done. Unfortunately for me, I like to make things harder on my self than necessary. What can I say, I like a challenge. First off, I tried making the piece by creating a hump mold, and then draping the clay over it, allowing the clay to dry in the sort of curved angles. Well it did not work, but that is a common theme with this piece. Then I tried doing it opposite of the hump mold and created a slump mold, allowing the clay to sink into the piece, still curving.
My Sketches of the pieceThis was more successful so I began to put together each of my pieces. However, the particular kind of clay that I have got from a clay distributor is not as malleable or plastic as the previous kind I had worked with. It began drying quickly and not wanting to really stay in shape of the piece. I then had to realize that I had to work with these pieces lying down horizontally, not vertically as I had intended. As they were lying down on their side, I had to put in slabs of clay as an inner support for the structure.
As I am nearing completion of this piece, my professor, tells me he doesn’t think it is going to work so well and that I needed to finish this one and then start making another one by using the extruder. The extruder is like a big play dough press. You put the template in, followed by the clay then mash it down with the handle and WaaLaa! You have out the other end the shape of clay you need!
So I go ahead and finish up this piece, and it is massive. It is about 50 pounds of clay and twenty-five inches tall (once it is set up right) and about a foot in depth. I am way to weak to lift the thing by myself! Luckily I was able to save this project! I don’t know how I did it, but I was able to manipulate the clay in a way that it worked out! It took so much stress off of me! It makes me so incredibly happy that I don’t have to make it again!
This piece will not be able to stand up vertically on it’s own until after we fire it in the kiln. The reason is because clay has different states that it goes through. As you are working with it, it is plastic or malleable. Then as it begins to dry it reaches this leather hard state where it is tough, and still workable to an extent. This is the state my piece is in right now. But once it reaches the bone dry state, the piece is very fragile. I don’t think the weight of my piece sitting up vertically will be able to withstand the pressures of the gravity while it is in this bone dry stage. So I will fire it lying on its side, and then sit it up. I will have pictures of it up later, after I can sit it up.
