I like challenges. The idea of overcoming an obstacle and proving that anything is possible is a huge force behind my work. When I had the idea of making a figure inspired by those days spent at the beach with my kids, I decided to make it a life size full figure.
The scale presented some initial challenges, but also the pose was of concern to most people, as some thought the legs would collapse with all the weight on them. While others thought it would be difficult to make the girl sitting up with a slight lean and still balance. I know many well know artists that work at a large scale and I knew that I was not trying anything new, but it was simply new to me. I enjoy taking myself out of the comfort zone and pushing boundaries to gain a deep understanding and limits of the medium.
In some ways building the figure was easier than I thought. Adding the supports, adding details, and keeping the clay at the right moisture during the entire process came naturally. However, maintaining everything in the right proportion was a bit more tricky. Once the figure was built and I was able to admire all of its components together, I realized that the legs were too thin, and not in a way that would help the sculpture. Sometimes a little quirkiness works well, but not this time. I thought the only way to learn is to go through the process and fix them. So, I did…. It was tricky. The bottom part of the legs fell off in the process and had to be reattached, but the legs were fixed in the end.
As a result, I unknowingly created a weakness in the knees that would become a challenge after the bisque firing. The legs broke off at the knees. (yikes!!!) – But I saw another learning opportunity. I managed to join the legs back on the piece with help from my instructor at The Armory Art Center. By this point, my original idea of working with many layers of underglazes, oxides and stains had to be thrown out the window. I had no other option but to treat the surface with a cold finish, which was also a first and another learning opportunity.
I am pleased with how it turned out, although it is heavily influenced by my painterly and illustrative background and it does not look quite like the rest of my work. I built a life size ceramic figure with a dynamic pose and I can now move on to my next project.
I’ll be posting a video documenting the process on a separate post.