Category: Project 1

In this project the students chose an object to create a two part mold of and produce multiples by casting the object in a variety of materials. The students developed their own conceptual ideas with the theme of assimilation and multiples in mind.

PROJECT OVERVIEW:

In this project you will create molds of found objects, and then create multiples from your mold(s), and assemble these multiples into a larger sculpture.

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PART 1: WRITING ASSIGNMENT

At its best, sculpture is just as much about exploring ideas as it is about crafting objects.  To develop the conceptual aspects of your project, please complete the writing assignment outlined below and post your work to the “research binder” section of the class website by following these instructions.

Please write a response that addresses all of the following questions in 100 – 200 words:

• What is your object in a direct, literal sense? (e.g. I have chosen to work with an urn, which is a metal vessel designed to store cremains.)

• What does your object denote –what does it signify, symbolize, or represent?  (e.g. I think the urn denotes the human desire to preserve the deceased.)

• What connotations does your object carry — what undertones or associations?  (e.g. The urn reminds me of ancient Egyptian canopic jars that held organs removed during the mummification process, and by extension it makes me think about hieroglyphics, pyramids, the sphinx, and other ancient Egyptian constructions that are intriguing because of their cryptic nature)

• How do you want your project to conceptually relate to the literal, denotative, and connotative ideas you’ve outlined above?  Are there any particular ideas you want to explore or resist?  Please explain.

Why we write about ideas: Every decision you make in the planning and execution of a work of art has meaningful implications.  When one begins a project by thinking about what they want to accomplish in the end, it enables the artist to have more control over the final meaning in their work, AND it provides the artist with a useful tool for editing their work during the process of creating.  While one could employ many methods for thinking critically, writing is especially helpful for developing this skill because it forces one to be precise and clarify ideas.

So far you have done some writing to facilitate your critical thinking about the object you’ve selected, and you’ve created collages to help with the early stages of brainstorming; these steps have helped you find a direction for your project.  However, in any sculptural project there are a lot of issues to figure out about how everything will come together in the end.  Please create at least three detailed sketches of three distinctly different solutions for your project.  Use these sketches as a means of visually thinking through the decisions that you still have to make, and further refining your vision for how the project will be resolved in the end.

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