S culpture T echnique CONSTRUCT
A Unique Introduction to the World of Sculpting
Brenda Ellis
Featuring Contemporary Art by Working Sculptors
Are there times when you get the urge to make something with your hands? You want to be free of the assignments that tell you exactly what to do and how to get the right answer. You want to create something that will last and is uniquely yours. This is the time to construct a sculpture. Using the construction method while making a sculpture gives you unique opportunities to react intuitively. Construction is an additive process where materials like wood, plastics, and metals are joined together using any number of devises such as nails, adhesives, and staples. This book explains the processes involved in using many different materials including paper, cardboard, discarded plastics, newspaper, and wire. These materials will be constructed to make sculptures. You will select subjects to create using the methods shown. As the work progresses you evaluate what you like or don’t like about what you see and make changes to get it closer to your original idea. There aren’t any rules for what the sculpture should look like. The sculpture can be conveyed through extreme realism or abstraction. You are the master as you work with your hands. In this book you are the creator. You are a sculptor!
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contents
Page Project 4
How to Use This Book
Unit 1 : Creating Form in Papermaking
5 7 8
Materials, Properties of Paper Low-relief Handmade Paper Form Methods of Forming Handmade Paper
1 2 3 4
13 17 21 25 26 28 29 32 37 41 42 44 45 54 58 59 61 62 65 69 72 73 75 77 78 82
Wet Paper Construction Wet Wrap Construction
Unit 1 Evaluation
Unit 2 : Creating Planes in Cardboard Materials, Properties of Board Construction
5 6 7
Explore Relationships of Planes
From Planes to Forms
Construct an Architectural Model
Unit 2 Evaluation
Unit 3: Creating Motion with Papier - mâché
Materials, Properties of Papier - mâché
8 9
Assembling a Papier - mâché Creature with Motion
Papier - mâché Construction and Balance
Unit 3 Evaluation
Unit 4: Creating Volume with Wire
Materials, Properties of Wire
10 11 12
Contour
Expanded Contour Frame and Section Unit 4 Evaluation
The Intersection of Art and Craft
Evaluation Answer Sheets
Course Description
Templates
art supplies
Classroom Schedule
Unit 1 1-papermaking dip handmold kit 1-Small spray bottle construction paper assorted colors bone folder (scoring tool) tacky glue Unit 2 Folia color corrugated paper (classic colors) Unit 3 1-wheat paste 1 lb. 1-gesso 1-#8 round brush 1-1½ inch bristle brush acrylic paint set plastic paint pallet masking tape Unit 4 armature and sculpture wire 16 gauge, 128 feet. long nose pliers wire cutter
Additional items needed: Scrap paper for papermaking, pencil, ruler, scissors, newspapers, paper plate or tray and containers for paint mixing, assortment of food containers and paper tubes, etc.
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How to Use This Book While making a sculpture in this book, you will focus on a single element of sculpture while working with a unique material that may be unfamiliar to you. You will find information on the elements of sculpture on the first two pages of each unit. That is followed by valuable information on the properties of the material that you will be using in that unit. It also includes an introduction to tools and equipment, safe handling information, and basic instructions. This is a lot of information, but necessary to your success with the projects that follow. Read this information before you begin the projects and you will be able to refer back to specific information needed while you work through the projects. Pacing for this book is different from what you have experienced in other educational materials. When building using sculptural processes you will be guided by yourself and the materials, not by time restrictions. When it is important, we tell you to stop. This is usually for the purposes of allowing your materials time to dry. Look for the hands-on and hands-off symbols throughout the book. For example, when creating the armature for a papier - mâché creature, you may work throughout an afternoon and be finished or you may choose to stop and take up the task the following day or week. That decision is guided by you. However, when applying the paper strips, once the creature is covered you must stop to allow the papier - mâché to dry before going on to the next step. That need to stop is guided by the materials. There you will see a hands-off symbol following the text . Because of this unique feature of the book, you will need to be self-regulated, guided by independent thinking as you work your way through a single project, starting and stopping as you decide.
Elements of Sculpture
The elements of sculpture discussed in each unit are related to how we view and understand sculptures. Here you will learn how to see the important visual aspects of three-dimensional works. You are introduced to artistic concepts specific to the subject of sculpture and will see how contemporary artists have used an element within a work of art. As you consider the work, you will begin to understand the choices and options available when making an original work of art.
Project Inspiration
Each project starts with a glimpse of what type of material you will be working with and how you might explore that material. Processes are shown as well as examples to inspire creative thought.
Project Execution
Clear and concise instructions with plenty of visual examples guide you through the steps of creating with the materials. You are asked to choose and create your own subject for each sculpture. Unite the newly learned processes for working with the material and your own personal agenda for each project. Your sculptures will be unique and reflect your understanding of the material as well as your own developing skills and craftsmanship.
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unit 1: creating form in papermaking
Form is the three-dimensionality of an object.
Forms shape the space around them just as figures shape the space on a sheet of paper. When working two-dimensionally, we call the parts of this relationship figure and ground. (a) In figure/ground arrangements like the one below, we may focus on the spaces (ground) as much as we focus on the figures. (b) When the same eleven figures are rearranged to create one figure, it changes the way we view the relationships. Here we focus on the figure more than the ground.
a.
b.
Figure
Ground
The solid/void relationship is the three- dimensional counterpart to the figure/ground relationship of two-dimensional spaces. Depending on where the solids are placed, the void spaces will change and feel different. Just like the boundaries of the paper define how we view two-dimensional figures, boundaries determine how people react to the forms of a three-dimensional sculpture. Sculptures may have implied boundaries that give a sense of being in the space of the sculpture or being outside the space of the sculpture. In the sculpture on page 6, the platform marks this boundary. If you chose to stand outside the platform, you participate as a viewer. If you chose to stand on the platform, you participate as part of the sculpture.
Solid
Void
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Red and Blue Pony by Kevin Box. Painted Bronze. Size: 4.5 x 6 feet. Location: Benton Sculpture Garden, Loveland, CO. Photo Credit: Daniel D. Ellis
Shape describes the two-dimensionality of objects in our world while form describes an object with three-dimensions. Two-dimensional shapes, like a flat piece of paper, can be bent, folded, or creased to create an object with form. Red and Blue Pony , by Kevin Box, has the unique quality of being folded from a flat paper shape into a standing form. On a small scale this type of paper forming is called origami. Box creates both small and large origami forms. His works range in size from 2.5 inches to 10 feet! While most sculptors working in bronze create the original sculpture in clay or wax, Box uses large sheets of paper and coats them in wax to give the forms strength. A mold is then made from it for casting in bronze. Red and Blue Pony can be seen from any direction as viewers walk around the horses or pass on a near-by path through the Benton Sculpture Garden.
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materials Properties of Paper
Paper is a sheet material that is typically made from the fibers of trees. The natural fibers in wood are broken apart before being pressed together again to interlock in a sheet of paper. Since the breakdown of wood fibers during the pulping process requires heavy machinery and chemicals, individuals do not begin the process with trees. Artists make paper from fibers that have gone through this process. The fibers determine the strength and durability of the paper. Paper has more strength when fibers are long. Fibers that have been recycled many times are short and the paper disintegrates much more easily and may break when you make a fold. The qualities in paper that a sculptor is interested in are its folding strength, bending stiffness, tensile strength (ability to handle stress), weight (thickness), and size. The alignment of the fibers in paper determines whether it tears in a straight line or randomly. Additives in paper can make it glossy, bright white, or more or less absorbent.
Tools and Equipment
Artists use a blender to break down sheets of paper. Pulp for paper making can be obtained from cotton linter pulp, recycled copy paper, construction paper, newspaper, or strips of 100% cotton rag made especially to create strong sheets. Avoid using glossy or shiny sheets of paper except in small quantities for decorative purposes. A dish pan holds the water and pulp. A deckle frame placed on top of a mold is used to pull a sheet of paper. The mold gathers the suspended fibers while the frame keeps the fibers from escaping the mold. A tightly woven cover screen secures the fibers while water is sponged from the sheet. We suggest Grummer’s Dip Handmold , which serves as a mold and frame. The step by step illustrations show how to pull paper using that method. A towel, large sponge, and some sheets of paper towel are also needed.
Safety
Extra care should be taken when using the blender. We suggest that an adult do this part of the process.
Basic Instructions
Paper scraps are torn into small pieces and water is added to the pieces. Fibers are torn apart using a blender to make paper pulp. Colors and decorative papers can be mixed to make unique sheets of paper. Paper fibers are then suspended in a water-filled tub. The pulp-per-water amounts determine the thickness of the paper sheet. More pulp will create a thicker sheet of paper. A mold with screen and a deckle frame is used to gather fibers, separating them from the water. Excess water is sponged out of the fibers as fibers are compressed into a new and unique sheet of paper. Pulling uniquely colored sheets is only the beginning step to creating works of art with handmade paper.
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1 Low-relief Handmade Paper Form project
Most paper is made from tree fibers. Paper is found in abundance because it has long been a highly recycled product and today trees are planted and harvested as crops on privately owned tree farms. Artists repurpose scraps of paper to create a
paper product that is uniquely colored and
textured. A sheet of paper consists of fibers that have been squeezed or locked together. These fibers can then be cut or torn to make unique edges. Paper can be folded to make forms.
You can create amazing low- relief sculptures with sheets of paper. Low-relief is a type of sculpture where parts of the sculpture project slightly from the background. When you make a
sculpture, it is important to choose a subject that is of
personal interest to you. On this page are works incorporating abstract forms and a more realistic wolf formed from paper. All of the low-reliefs shown were created by cutting, tearing, and folding handmade paper and then gluing pieces onto a flat sheet of hand constructed paper. When hung on a wall, the paper forms extend outward into the space of the room.
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create a sculpture You’ll need: dishpan a blender and electricity source for it large sponge towel
Grummer’s Dip Handmol d® (frames and screens) copy paper, construction paper, or scrap paper container of water and water source tacky glue scissors bone folder or rounded knife blade (used as a tool to score the paper) pencil and paper
Get Started: Prepare the paper pulp. Soak pieces of copy paper, construction paper, or other scrap papers which have been torn into quarters, for about 30 minutes in a bowl of water. Place these wet paper pieces loosely within the blender to about ½ full. Add water to within one inch from the top and blend for about 30 seconds until paper fibers are torn apart. If blender slows down, stop, unplug the blender, take out some paper, and continue. Pour pulp into the dishpan. Repeat the process. Add warm water to the dishpan, filling it to about ½ full. Paper thickness is determined by the ratio of pulp to water in the dishpan. Paper thickness makes a difference in how the paper feels and what it is able to do. Thin sheets can be curved into a cylinder easier than sheets that are very thick. Use this knowledge to intentionally make thick or thin sheets as needed. Set the dishpan on a water resistant counter where you You will want to select a theme before beginning so that the color choices of the paper you make will be something you can use. Decide if your low-relief will be abstract or realistic. If abstract, you may want to repeat some type of pattern. If you choose to make something more realistic, find a photograph of the subject to refer to as you draw, cut, and fold the shapes. Keep your ideas simple. Read through the project instructions before you begin to better plan your own design. Size: 5x7 inches or the size of your frame.
will work. Place a folded towel beside it. Place the sponge and gray, tightly woven cover screen (not shown) nearby. Stack the Grummer’s Dip Handmold in the following way:
1.
2. 3.
1. Place the screen support on the bottom (plastic grid).
2. Place the screen directly on top of the support.
3. Place the deckle (wooden frame) on top of the screen.
Hold these three pieces together firmly with just your hands. You are now ready to pull a sheet of handmade paper.
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Stir the paper pulp with your fingers to evenly distribute fibers within the water. Assemble the handmold as shown on page 9. Hold the three pieces firmly together, thumbs on top and fingers under the grid. Slide the handmold under the pulp to the bottom of the dishpan in one smooth movement.
Keep the handmold level, allowing the pulp to flow over the handmold. Lift slowly as you pull the handmold straight up out of the water. Hold it for ten seconds as you gently jolt the frame a few times to help water escape back into the dishpan.
Place the gray tightly woven cover screen over the sheet of paper pulp. The paper will look very thick and watery. As water is separated from the pulp in the next step, the paper becomes compressed.
Place the handmold onto a towel. Carefully lift off the deckle frame. Set it aside.
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Press a sponge onto the gray tightly woven cover screen three or four times. It will absorb water. Squeeze the sponge out so that water falls back into the dishpan. Repeat until the sponge no longer picks up water. Flip the whole piece over so that the screen support grid (white plastic) is on top. Remove the screen support grid.
More water can now be removed with the sponge by pressing the sponge onto the wire screen. Next, remove the wire screen to reveal the sheet of paper.
It is necessary, when two or more are making paper, to identify your piece of paper by writing your name onto a paper towel with a pen. Place the paper towel over your handmade paper sheet. Flip the whole piece over so that the gray tightly woven cover screen is on top.
Remove the gray tightly woven cover screen by peeling back one edge sharply until it separates from the paper sheet, leaving the paper sheet resting on the paper towel. The wet paper sheet can be transported to a safe spot for drying while atop the paper towel.
After about three paper sheets are made the paper pulp in the dishpan gets thin. More pulp should be added as described in the Get Started section. If a paper sheet is too thin, it is a sign that more pulp should be added to the dishpan. You can dump the sheet back into the dishpan at any time and start again. Once sheets are created and resting on paper towels, lay them flat on a hard non-absorbent surface such as a laminate or stone countertop. Keep off of wood or other absorbent surfaces. Allow your handmade paper sheets to air-dry completely in 2-3 days. Once dry, pull the paper towels from the handmade paper sheets. Use the dry sheets for the project on the next page.
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Tip: To speed the drying of paper, place a single sheet on a paper towel in a microwave oven. Heat the paper for one minute at a time. Check for dryness. Watch the paper closely because this method can cause curling or bubbling. The microwave is best used to make the paper partially dry, followed by air-drying until completely dry.
a.
b.
For both the abstract low-relief and making an identifiable object follow these steps: (a.) Sketch your plan on paper, breaking it down into a few simple shapes. (b.) Copy the major shapes on another sheet of paper and draw tabs (extra paper) along the edges for attaching to the background. See page 33 for instructions on making tabs.
CUT: A straight, clean edge can be cut with a scissors. Cut out one shape at a time from your drawing. Trace around the shape onto a sheet of handmade paper. Cut the shape from the handmade paper.
TEAR: A rough edge, one that shows the fibers of the paper, can be torn with your hands. Carefully guide the tear with your hands, ripping small sections at a time. You will also see rough edges on the outside edge of the paper. Use those edges in your design.
FOLD: To fold, line up the ruler on a fold line. Each tab will have a line for folding. Hold the ruler firmly with one hand as you drag the scoring tool along the edge of the ruler. Repeat this action for each score line. This should not cut into the paper, but leave a crease so that it can be folded. Bend the paper at the fold.
Finish your three-dimensional work by gluing the pieces to a full sheet of handmade paper. This full sheet is the background for your piece. Allow the low-relief to dry.
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2 Methods of Forming Handmade Paper project
When you draw a line around a leaf you make an outline of a shape. When you cut that line drawing out, you make a shape. When you bend, fold, or crease that shape, you create a form. A paper form describes an object that rises from a flat surface. Handmade paper can hold a form like the plant petals and leaves shown here. Two methods for making a petal or leaf are demonstrated in this project: to crease and to curve.
These methods can be used for a variety of other objects, but for the purposes of simplification, begin by selecting a type of leaf. It is important to choose a plant form that is of interest to you. You have a choice in color as you create the handmade paper for this project. You have a choice in leaf shape as you draw a pattern or use ones provided in the templates at that back of the book. Use your imagination to create an interesting arrangement for the sculpture. Here is a work that revisits the final days of fall when the last leaves cling to the branches. The methods shown are your starting point for creating a unique paper sculpture.
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create a sculpture You’ll need: a dishpan for each color blender and electricity source for it large sponge towel Grummer’s Dip Handmold ® copy paper, colored construction or other scrap paper container of water and nearby water source small spray bottle scissors tacky glue pencil a ball, approximately 2 inch diameter
Plan what type of plant you intend to make so that you know what colors of paper to produce. You may use realism or design an abstract plant form. Your colors may be realistic or imaginary. Read through the project instructions before you begin to better plan your own design. Size: about 6-10 inches in diameter.
Get Started: Prepare the paper pulp as directed on page 9. Mix paper colors for a variety of interesting effects. Use the color wheel to guide you in creating a great sheet every time. Colors that sit next to each other on the color wheel look great when mixed in the blender. Try these color combinations:
Red-orange-yellow Blue-green-yellow Purple-blue-green Mix colors using a wide range of values such as:
dark green-light green-yellow Light blue- dark blue-white Black-gray-white
Have several dishpans available for different colors. You may make sheets beginning with two of the three color combinations listed above. As you need to add more pulp, add the third color to the mix. That way you will change the color slightly as you add more pulp. For this project, make at least six to eight sheets in a variety of colors. Let these sheets dry completely. You may want to keep stacks of handmade paper on hand for future projects.
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a.
b.
c.
To make a form like the poinsettia, cut a 3” long petal shape from copy paper, trace around the edges onto a piece of handmade paper to make 6-8 petals and leaves. See template #3 on page 80. Place the leaves close to each other to get the most out of each sheet. Cut the leaves out. Moisten the center of a leaf by spraying the front and back in the center.
(a) While wet, hold the leaf with both hands as shown, with thumbs on the underside and pointer fingers on top. (b) Push the paper together in order to form a crease. (c) Lift the top fingers. Press finger and thumb on the underside to form a crease the length of the petal.
Allow petals to air-dry. Cut out a small circle to use as a base from the scrap paper. Once petals dry and hold their form, glue the end of each petal to the base. Work in a circle from the center point.
Add cut out circles for the center and attach them with glue. Attach green leaves to the underside of the base, arranging them so that they are visible from the top. See page 13 for a look at the finished piece.
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Prepare the petal shapes in the same way as described on the previous page using template #4 on page 81. Lotus petals should be a bit wider than the poinsettia petals. Spray water onto the front and back center of the petal shape.
When wet, hold the petal in the center of one hand and with the other hand, press a ball into the center of the petal. Grasp the ball with the hand that holds the petal so that the paper forms a gentle curve around the ball. Remove the ball and allow the petal to dry. Repeat with all the petals. Allow the petals to dry.
Once the petals are dry attach them to a one inch base at the center of the base. Glue each petal to the base to form the lotus flower. Work in a circle from a center point. Place a second layer of petals around the base, centering each petal between two petals on the first layer.
Cut a rectangle and cut snips along one side. Glue the uncut side, as shown and roll into a tube. Apply glue to the bottom of the roll. The roll is thick so no tabs are required. Glue it to the base, pressing it into the center of the flower. Cut a leaf from paper and glue the lotus flower onto it. Let it dry completely. See page 13 for a look at the finished piece.
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unit 1 evaluation - Reflect on What You Accomplished
Understanding the Elements of Sculpture
1. Form, an element of sculpture, was discussed in this unit. Now that you have created works based on form, explain your understanding of form.
2. What variety of actions did you employ throughout this unit to create form with a two dimensional sheet of paper?
Understanding Art and Craft
3. Read The Intersection of Art and Craft by Daniel D. Ellis on page seventy-three. Here you will find an explanation of how the word “ art ” has changed throughout history. According to the author, what qualities do we give to the term “fine art” today that distinguishes it from craft? 4. The author says, “ What puts the fine in fine art is the artist’s ability to p resent an idea or some kind of experience to the viewer.” This idea is often more clear as we look at a body of work, rather than one piece. Look at the works you created throughout this unit. Do you see consistency in any of the following areas? the subject you chose the way you handled the materials the type of experience similarity of ideas Briefly explain what you see in your work as it relates to these ideas. 5. The author encourages self-evaluation and reflection after completing each sculpture. You created four sculptures. Refer to any one of the four while answering these questions. What do you like about your sculpture and why? What would you do differently after seeing the final results? Why did you choose this subject? Are the feelings your artwork evokes in you related to your reasons for making it?
Understanding Craftsmanship
6. What technical difficulties did you run into throughout the process of making a sheet of paper?
7. How did you correct or change your method to get better results?
8. Did you seek information outside of this book to perfect the craft or inspire ideas for subject matter? If your answer is yes, describe the information that you found. If your answer is no, then what key words might you use to find information?
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template #1 Closed Form - Cube
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classroom schedule
The projects within this book fit within a thirty-six week school year. For most projects, schedule one period per week that is 1-2 hours in length. Most projects require multiple sessions. The student at home will progress through the book at his or her own pace. For teachers who need to plan according to the school year, use the schedule below. It is one that I use in 75 minute class sessions that meet once per week. Working times of individual students vary greatly so it is necessary to modify scheduling once students get into the project.
Unit 1 : Creating Form in Papermaking
1 Low-relief Hand Made Paper Form Week One : Practice the process of pulling a sheet of paper using white or scrap paper. Week Two : Experiment with mixing colored papers and pulling sheets of colored paper. 2 Methods of Forming Handmade Paper Week Three: Cut, fold, and glue sheets of dry paper to create 3-dimentional wall art. 3 Wet Paper Construction Week Four: Make wire armatures for all figures. Week Five: Pull sheets of paper and wrap the figures in paper mash. Week Six: Create a support and suspend all figures from it to create a mobile. 4 Wet Wrap Construction Week Seven: Make a wire armature for cacti figures or other rounded figures. Week Eight: Pull sheets of wet paper and wrap them onto the wire armatures. Week Nine: Arrange the dry sculptures onto a wood or cardboard base. Cover the base with paper. Add details.
Unit 2 : Creating Planes in Cardboard
5 Explore Relationships of Planes Week Ten: Draw a plan, cut, and glue 2-D arrangement from corrugated cardboard using a ruler and scoring tool. 6 From Planes to Form Week Eleven: Trace, cut, fold, and glue to create solid forms. Week Twelve: Trace, cut, fold, and glue to make solid forms (continued) 7 Construct an Architectural Model Week Thirteen: Review arrangements of space. Draw an architectural design for a building site or refine the arrangement created in lesson five.
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ART/EDUCATION
Sculpture Technique, CONSTRUCT offers students, upper elementary to high school, the opportunity to discover their own creative strengths in the world of three-dimensions. This book is the first of its kind to bring the processes and concepts of construction methods in papermaking, papier - mâché, cardboard and wire into the home environment. Unlike craft books, the assignments in this book focus on processes of working with specific materials while introducing the elements of sculpture in ways students can put into practice immediately. Students work as sculptors, creating original works of art while selecting subject matter that is interesting and relevant to their own lives. Text written in conversational manner means student can work independently Full year course in one book Elements of sculpture are introduced using Contemporary Art by working artists Projects are described in fully illustrated pages Evaluations for greater understanding of concepts Papermaking - Papier - mâché - Cardboard Construction - Wire
Published by Artistic Pursuits Inc. www.artisticpursuits.com
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