Today's Class- Today we opened with a critique of the natural materials projects due today. They were graded and returned this afternoon, or left on our shelf for those who weren't ready to take them today. Then we moved on to a class exercise involving the material of coffee trays. These are pulp cardboard trays designed to hold coffee cups, generally available anyplace coffee is sold to take out. The cheap disposable trays have a surprisingly complex design, so students were asked to spend a few minutes looking at the shapes found on both sides, and then see what was inspired (kind of like we started with the sea shells a few weeks ago) Below are examples from previous semesters, as well as some from today.
How to make this up- Everyone was present today for at least part of the class so you should all know the assignment. Essentially students cut up their trays and glued the pieces together to make new sculptures. Their new creations could be based on known objects or living things, or could be pure design and geometry. This is a portfolio exercise, so if you did not complete it during today's class, you can make it up for full credit any time before the last day of the semester.
Homework- Nothing new this week, though some still owe me some back graded projects, and getting your museum visit out of the way is always a good idea.
For next class 10/27/15- We will begin our next graded project in class. Sort of a companion piece to the recent natural materials project, our medium will be discarded manufactured materials, such as plastic, metals, and other junk. The student example below includes on old cell phone, plastic utensils, and parts of hair clips, among other things.
This project is partly inspired by Lisa Bagwell, a shore area artist I have known for years. She specializes in making sculptures from discarded materials, a mixture of stuff that has washed up on the beach and donations from friends who know her tastes. Below are photos of examples of her recent works.
Two views of a 3 foot "hoagie", where the bread is made from wine corks strung on wire, the garnishing olive from plastic bottle caps, and the filling from such items as plastic can lids, disposable razor blades, and old gloves.
These two birds are mostly made from thin white plastic tabs with care information, included in plants purchased from nurseries. Plastic mouthpieces for small cigars are used in the shell above and bird feet below. The egret at the bottom is mostly plastic utensils and #2 pencils.
The two main rules for this project will be no use of natural materials, and that all colors and textures must come from the used materials. Subjects can be anything you want, but the sculptures should physically resemble the intended subject. These are just a few examples of the kinds of materials that can be used for this project. Bring with you next week whatever you would like to use to start construction of your piece.
