Back to Gallery Crafts and Sculpture
Sculpture, ceramics and crafts make up the 3D body of visual arts. Sculpture is unique in that it can be seen from multiple views. Sculpture consists of various medias including aluminum, bronze, cardboard, clay, glass, neon tubes, plaster, plastic, rock and wood. Traditionally, sculpture has been used as part of religious worship or decorative ornamentation.
The four major methods of sculpture are assemblage, casting, carving and modeling. Assemblage is the additive method of sculpture where objects are combined with glue or sticky materials. Casting can be one of the more difficult methods in that it requires the pouring of liquid metal into a molded design resulting in a solidified form. Carving is the subtractive method of sculpture and requires the removal of material. Modeling is the last of the basic sculpting methods and is created from scratch by the artist into the desired form. Wire sculpture is also an option, but less common amongst artists today. A feature example of this method is Guitar Player by Magdalena Rusiecka, found in the Youth Visions Collection.
Ceramics is a functional art form that requires three steps: molding, bisquing and glazing. Molding is the forming of the ceramic, bisquing is the firing of the form in the kiln, and glazing is the coating of the ceramic with a smooth finish. A ceramic artist uses their hands or potter's wheel to create a work. With hand-built ceramics, the artist chooses between pinch, coil or slab methods.
The mask, mosaic and ceramic works shown in this gallery reflect the diverse nature of sculpture and pottery.
Sara Caissie
