Unit 4 - Dec/Jan

I had a general idea of what I wanted to do with my box before starting, but didn't keep in mind the actual size it would become. I measured out my slab to have even sides with a very plastic clay. Before putting anything together, I used the blow dryer to make the pieces a little sturdier, so the box wouldn't collapse as I constructed it. My biggest fault was the measurements and letting it dry. If I had made a smaller box, I think I would've been more happy with it and keen to keep it. I also let it dry over a weekend instead of during the week, which meant when I came back to the clay it was very dry and difficult to work with. At this point I changed my method into carving out shapes that would let light shine through if i put a candle inside. This is when it went sideways. again, I did not measure out or consider the sizes of the holes I was creating, and by the time I reached the shorter sides of the box, I was tired and frustrated. I again let the piece sit, with made it get bone dry and was unable to be carved. I was not happy with this piece anymore, and knew it wasn't something I would be happy with even If i painted it, so i scrapped it.

This piece was inspired by Georgia O'Keefes Rams Head With Hollyhock. It took me a few false starts with different pieces before deciding on this one, but overall I am very happy with my ending result. Construction, although not too difficult, was most challenging with proportions and trying to layer to give dimension. I tried carving out the mountains and clouds to make the 3D head of the ram stand out more. I made the decision to glaze after firing because I wanted to make sure it got through the kiln faster, and because I thought colors of the sky and mountains would blend together more with the glazes. My only regret is the size of the Hollyhock. I only remembered it later after comparing my piece to the painting, and had not given room for the flower. It ended up way too big, and vary close to the Rams head. I still haven't gotten back the fully fired piece, but im hoping the colors blend like I predict they will.

I struggled for the longest time trying to find something practical and small that I could duplicate 4 times. I tried plates, bowls, and even darted cups, but in the end decided on very simple little succulent pots. My mom has been hoping for more pot holders to add to her window, so this inspired the design. I built them simply with a slab that I cut into 4 even strips, that I darted and rolled into the pots. When I added the bottoms, the edges got pushed out and I was unable to clean them up, but looking back i probably could have used a metal edge and ran it on the outside of the pieces. They aren't fully identical, but in painting them I think I got them to look more similar, and for half of them I followed a little Valentines day theme. 

When I heard the next level slab could also be darted etc to be turned into something useful, I got excited. I was already working on my mug and handle, with a handle inspired by pinterest, but wanted to make something of the face of the cup. Again I went back to pinterest and found a mug with the face I tried recreating. To make the mug itself, I rolled out a long slab and darted it together before cutting out and adding a bottom. the handle was relatively easy, and I used the remains of the slab to cut two thin strips that i told to make more round and then scored and slipped onto the cup. With the handle in place, I could move on to the face, which i did by again cutting out the shapes from a slab, and then scoring and slipping the on. The lips required the most shaping once on the mug, and I used my finger to attempt molding them out into a more natural shape. The most difficult part of construction was the cigarette, because it had to be rolled thin, and was very delicate when I had to put it in the mouth. The difficulty continued when painting, because the small shape and change in colors didn't leave much room for slips of th paintbrush. I took abut half a class smoothing out the mug after it had dried for a  period, and then once my mug was fired i used similar colors to the inspo to paint the piece.

My poem reflected a lot on the surroundings, but also on time moving by. The emphasize these ideas, I created a simple slab wall piece to sgraffito scenery from the poem into. They talked about the sunset and rise, so I tried making a sun behind the mountains. It ended up a lot larger than I would have liked it to be, and so I feel like some of the effect was lost. She also talks about mountains with a barn in the distance, so again I laid out both of those things. In hindsight, the mountains also look very bland and could use some more detail. They also talk about the sun passing through the branches of a tree, so I drew a tree over the girl. The. tree is probably my favorite part of the piece, and I think the best tree ive drawn. Because of the note on time passing by, I chose to draw three versions of the character watching the scene, growing older in each version. I wanted them to be wearing sort of blankets, but they ended looking more like potatoes. If i were to recreate this piece, I probably wouldn't sgraffito it and instead would mold something to make it more 3D.

These are pictures of my inspo and planning for my projects. Most of it relies heavily on pinterest, but the rest is elaborated on while creating.