Clay Fish Sculptures

This is a simple sculpture project my grade ones completed a while back. We used Model Magic in order to complete all the sculpting in one day. Although I don't use this product often, this air drying modelling material does allow students to model, add textures and to press bits like the shells, pipe cleaners and googly eyes directly into the clay. The next lesson we were able to paint using tempera paints and enhance details with permanent marker.

 

Flower Sculptures in Clay

These flower sculptures were created by grade 3 students in paper clay. Students were given a large variety of fake fabric flowers to observe and chose one flower of their choice to reproduce in clay.  Each student began by rolling and cutting a clay tile approximately 10cm square. They then rolled and cut pieces for leaves and petals and attached them to the tile using the correct joining method (score, slip, stick, smooth).  We also researched the way flowers are made in icing for cake decoration and some students chose to use some of these techniques, particularly for roses. 

The completed clay work was so lovely that I decided against ceramic glazing as I felt students could achieve more subtle, realistic results with paint only. Painting also allowed for exploration with colour mixing and creating tone for a more realistic look.

Clay Bird Vessels

These clay bird vessels were made by my grade 4 students recently, inspired by these bird vases from 'Be Creative Mary'. Students rolled a slab of clay and cut a basic bird shape. They then rolled a second slab and traced the first bird shape so they had two identical pieces. The pieces were joined at the head and the tail, leaving the middle section open and unjoined. 

The vessels were stuffed with newspaper for stability whilst texture and decoration were added to the bird using clay tools.

After firing, students added colour by rubbing oil pastels into the surface of the clay to pick up the texture and then painting with coloured inks and dyes. I later added a coat of spray varnish to each piece to seal it.