Today's Class- We opened today by looking at completed projects, particularly the natural found objects pieces that were due today, but also any back projects that had come in , such as book sculptures or plastic found objects. The rest of the day was spent working on a portfolio exercise, a sort of a continuation of last week's proportions exercise, this time involving creating an environment for the figures. I also collected and reviewed museum papers, letting students know what needed to be done in order to complete the assignment.
How to make this up- We started by looking at slide examples of installation art involving figures, specifically examples from Edward Keinholz and New Jersey sculptor George Segal, each creating environments for life size figure sculptures. You need to select some portions of our classroom to reproduce at the same proportions as the first constructed figure, the one that looks like the figure in the original photo from last week. You need to make one major piece of furniture, such as one of the work tables, or one of the big power tools (table saw, drill press, etc), a cabinet, a portion of the wall with a specific feature (chalk board, doorway) If you make the work table, include the top, the base, and one of the mounted vice clamps; if not the work table, bring what you make to a similar level of detail. Also make one small piece of furniture, such as one of the stools.
The furniture/classroom pieces should be to the same scale, and should be of the same scale as your figure. You need to decide how tall your figure is. The tops of our tables are 5' 6" long, a very typical human height, so if you make that your figure's height, you have a handy measuring resource. Some students used their own bodies, standing next to items and noting where parts lined up with knees, hips, etc. Construct the pieces using foam core, and when showing it, include your first figure in the created environment. Above are examples created last semester, a project that required two major pieces of classroom, but you only need one and the stool for today's assignment.
This is a portfolio exercise that must be made up by the last day of the semester to receive full credit. You may need to wait until next week to gain access to the classroom and select what parts you'll be reproducing.
Homework- Nothing new, but anyone who still owes a back graded project or the museum paper should get them done as soon as possible to receive partial credit.
For next class 4/29/14- We will be starting on the Final Project of the semester, where we'll take something from sketch, to scale model, to large three dimensional sculpture. For the first stage you'll need a sketchbook (or equivalent paper for drawing), pencil and eraser, bristol board, scissors or knife, and suitable glue.
