Artist & Display Face Class #2 - Faces in Clay

Pam talked a little bit of art to answer someone's question. Black & white tends to be thoughtful while color is more about feelings, emotion. You can work intuitively or think what your motivation is for a piece, color and application. Backgrounds are important. One of her college drawing teachers made the students do a whole semester of straight lines while looking at the positive and negative shapes. Don't know if I mentioned this in a previous blog or not, but one of her college assignments was to do 20 self portraits.

The lesson today was making faces in an air dried clay called Marblex. (She loosely wrapped our pieces in saran wrap to slow down the dry time so everything would dry more even.)

First we got a rectangle of clay. Rolled it to about 1/2" thickness. Then lightly drew with a round toothpick and egg shape which we then cut out with a plastic tool. Best to score where you want to cut & make repeated passes till you're through? We rolled up the clay pieces in a ball to keep them from drying out so fast.

Then we used our hands to carefully work the piece so it was cupped like a bowl on the back yet keeping the face shape. Then we lightly drew vertical and horizontal guidelines down the center with a toothpick.

Using the end of the roller we made light depressions for the eyesockets and also measured with it the center between the eyes. Then fingers were used to deepen the eyesockets.

Then we measured the space from the center of the face to the edge of the eye and made a rectangular piece of clay to glue on for the nose. The technique for attaching to pieces of clay together so they dry together, not separately and to prevent popping off; is to score and wet both sides with water, push them together then smooth them together with fingers and/or tools. This is called Score & Glue.

Then we made 2 eyeshaped cups of clay to attach for the eyelids. After they were attached a slit was cut and they were formed into eyelids. Then the next part was difficult, you take a flat piece of clay, attach it on the back for the eyes and draw the iris and pupil with a toothpick.

Then we pushed out the cheeks, made lips, pushed out the chin. I was too enthusiastic and made my piece too thin in places so we'll see if it survives the drying.

Last step before drying was to attach a rectangular piece in back to hang it on a wall and draw hair.