Final Project- Introduction to Clay Figurative Sculpture

I created 2 busts using Cristina's methods from this course. Both have been selected for regional juried exhibitions.
The first bust is my final project for the course and is entitled "Host".
The second bust is entitled "Transmutation".

Stoneware cone 6 clay with various grog. Layers of oxides, underglazes through multiple firings in electric kiln.

My favorite part of this project was how it gave me the freedom to explore mark making and surface treatments in exciting new ways. I enjoyed experimenting with different tools, finding multiple ways to contrast the skin and hair. Below, this texture on my first bust was made by repeatedly chipping and faceting the hardened clay with a fettling knife to define planes within the hair and bone structure, and using a terry cloth towel to soften the skin surface and add subtle direction similar to brush strokes.

The course also pushed me to re-examine "editing" the surface- deciding which areas to refine, and which to leave raw. For my second bust, I gave myself permission to love the ventilation holes in the face. The marks reminded me of burn holes in cloth from embers. I chose to leave many of them un-filled.

Over the years I have always enjoyed figure drawing and sculpting figures on a small scale. This was such a fun challenge to get the proportions right from multiple angles and views. I like to pay attention to the changes in surface and how all the parts "fit" together.

As I worked, the body felt like an organic mountain or an engineered structure. To reference this, I added both organic elements and clean lines within my figure. Some parts of the body were treated with abstraction or given a biomorphic surface. Compare the two busts and how I treated the chest and clavicle. For the first bust, I simplified the chest and clavicle to feel open and monolithic. In the second bust, I allowed the body to morph and reference natural elements such as fungus, trees, and bone.

After spending so much intense time on the facial features, I wanted to spend equal effort on the hair and back of the form.

I used Cristina's method for the hair on my first bust, squeezing and shaping a mass of hair from very wet clay. I also pressed clay "chips" into the slip into a trail that leads the eye up the spine, around the neck, and into the ear. I liked to think of this as visualizing a shiver or sensation on the skin.

For the second bust, I wanted to expand on this idea of using additive texture to lead the eye through a path along the body and hair. I began the base of the hair with Cristina's technique, and then built up cavernous pockets and arches using a coiling technique. I wanted the back of the body to feel like a rock face or series of mines could be explored and extracted.

After the forms were bisque fired, I applied multiple washes of stain: red iron oxide, copper oxide, and cobalt oxide and wiped away the excess. I also applied some white and black underglaze (sparingly), bisque firing at ^06 between layers. I used a wax resist to block out areas wherever I wanted to repel color, but did not add any glossy glazes. I chose a final ^6 firing to vitrify the clay and deepen the stain colors.

This course taught me to trust myself. Every step was a risk, every choice was heavily weighed, every kiln firing was nerve-wracking.

I entered both busts into a juried show for a museum. I was confident the "better" one (my second attempt with more time invested) would be selected. I entered my first attempt for the heck of it... and that's the one that was accepted. I began to doubt myself on what is good and what is not. But, I was confident my second piece should be shown as well. I immediately entered into another juried show, and that one got in. So both works were simultaneously on view in two different exhibits, in two different cities, selected by 2 different jurors.

Thank you Cristina for sharing your knowledge!