The title of my work is "Wolf pack." This piece was inspired by the wolf statues on the NC State campus. My goal was to re-create using wire the howling wolf. I have always been fascinated in wire sculpting so the NC State wolf was a good figure to model mine off of. The first thing I did was plan the figure out on paper. I drew out how the wires would connect for the legs, arms, head, and body.
As I read about how a wire sculpture can be made I learned that by twisting wire you can make interesting textures in your piece. I used this technique for the spine of my wolf, because it is the main line for the entire animal. As I made this piece alone in the corner, each day I would zone out in methodical wire twisting and bending. I had to constantly refer to my plan, because the piece would not make any sense until the whole thing was put together. Occasionally I came across a seemingly insurmountable problem. One example was when I was trying to weave my wire among many threads; after some thinking and persistence I found that by forming the wire into a zig-zag shape, I could twist the wire into the weave perfectly. At one point I made a leg based on the shape of the first leg I made. the 3-d pop out wires I used ended up on the wrong side because of the orientation as I created the form. After freaking out for a moment I realized I could just pop the wires through to the other side and it looked the exact same. When the legs, head, and tail were all attached I asked many people if they thought the legs were dis-proportionally long. I still feel as though they are too long. The animal also didn't look like a wolf, I knew it needed sharp, perky ears in order to look like a wolf (everyone understood this as well). I noticed that the form and completeness of the animal was not great either, so I wove strips of chicken wire throughout to help the shape come together in human eyes. Overall this project was very fun, and I definitely learned a lot about sculpting in the Process. The biggest thing I found that I needed was persistence and will power - especially when my fingertips were burning!
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The title of this piece is "Autter." This is a combination of the seasons Autumn and Winter. Earth art is using natural inhuman resources as medium for art. I used leaves that have fallen in the autumn season and formed them into something that resembles winter - a snowflake. While autumn is a great time, winter is my favorite season; I love all of the holidays, snow days, and weather that happens in this season. This piece reflects how even though we are currently in Autumn, my head is already in winter. As I was making this, I put headphones on and went to work. My first step was to rake leaves into a pile for me to pull from. Then using my hands I moves clumps over to the middle of my yard to make shapes. This was new to me, so eventually I learned how to gauge how many leaves I needed to grab for each line. I also used my feet to help shape lines and adjust the thickness of lines. The most frustrating thing with this piece was the fact I was dealing with leaves; leaves don't like to stay put. I was constantly re'adjusting leaves and moving leaves out of places I intended to stay empty. Persistence and patience led to nice forms and straight lines. What was interesting as I did this project was that it almost felt like I was drawing with my hands on the ground. I experimented with different dropping techniques, such as shaking or dropping them then spreading across the ground like butter. Every snowflake is different, so I felt full freedom to make mine however I felt. I formed the snowflake based on what felt right to do; no planning took place as I made my snowflake. Overall the experience was fascinating and I look forward to watching the piece spread across my yard and decompose over the next few days, it will be one to be missed. In this project I learned a lot about how styrofoam works and how to use a razor blade. I found there were cleaner and more effective lines the quicker I sliced the styrofoam. I also developed a certain steadiness of hand needed to cut and place edges together. I discovered that I have pretty nimble hands, and can work tiny things easily. At first I had trouble glueing things, I even tried to dry the glue with a blow drier (the only effect was overheating the styrofoam). After putting tape on, my art skyrocketed and it was much easier for me to make my art.
The biggest problem I faced in this project was unifying edges and trying to tape them - all without harming other edges I taped. Before learning about the tape, this project seemed impossible. After taping edges everything held together just fine. I felt like I could actually create art. Another challenge I faced was putting edges together and taping them, I needed someone else to hold it as I put tape on. Most people around me were cutting and shaping cups to fancy designs, but I wanted to form something of my own. I started by making a circle, and the design in my head was much different than what I ended up having. After making my first ring I decided to just go with the creative flow and make a spherical design. Afterwards I thought, "Hey! Now my sphere needs a pedestal." So I cut a cup up and made it interesting. Now after doing a few things I was not prepared for, I have a pleasant piece that looks laced and gridded, yet it forms a coherent whole.
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AuthorI am an SGD student at Vernon Malone College and Career Academy. I have made many pieces of art in my college courses and Art and Design Studio class. I enjoy 3-d sculptures and picture taking the most, feel free to explore my various artworks posted on this website to the left! Archives
December 2017
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