Artist-made Jewelry with "cold connections"

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Assignment for today:

Jewelers, like other artists, are always looking for new ideas. Where better to look that the work of other artists?

Do some research online and find some artist-made jewelry that you like. You should be looking for things that you might be able to make with the techniques we have learned so far (or something similar that looks like you might be able to do).

Experiment with searching for different combinations of "key words". Some words you might use could be: cold connection, rivet, jewelry, pendant, bracelet, earring, necklace, hand-made, artist, etc.

REQUIREMENTS FOR TODAY'S ASSIGNMENT: Find pictures of at least 5 pieces of jewelry that you like, and post links to the pictures by posting a "comment" below. (Make sure that your NAME is attached to your comment!)

Remember, what we are looking for is hand-made jewelry that is made by artists, NOT commercially manufactured jewelry. And, it should be something that you might actually be able to make on your own.

Here are a few more examples:


Note connections: small nuts and bolts.


This ring is formed on a ring mandrel. We have one of these.


Note: on this piece, the pieces of metal are separated by copper tubing, and connected with nuts and bolts.

The main idea of this assignment is just to get inspired!

Assignment: "Prehistoric Venus" Sculpture

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The Venus of Willendorf


(click on image for a larger view)

Earlier this year we learned that the small sculpture known as The Venus of Willendorf was, until recently, the oldest known piece of sculpture in existence. A number of other "Venus" sculptures of similar age have been found, some even older. Today, you will do a bit of research about these sculptures in preparation for your next project.

Your next project will be to create a small "Prehistoric Venus" sculpture. You will be using the "subtractive" method, carving your sculpture from a block of plaster.



Assignment for today: do some digging around online to find information about the Venus of Willendorf and other similar prehistoric "Venus" sculptures. Look for written information, and also for pictures. Then, answer the questions below by making a "comment" on this blog post.

To "comment", scroll to the bottom of this post and click on the words "Post a Comment". A window will pop up. Where it says "Choose an identity", select "Name/URL". Write your name in the box next to "Name". (You do not need a URL.) Then, where it says "Leave your comment", type the answers to the questions. Fill in the word verification box, and then press the button for "Publish Your Comment".

Note: if you do not have enough time to answer all then questions below, you may finish this assignment at home tonight (or a.s.a.p. if you were absent today). Also, you will be receiving a handout sheet for your plaster sculpture assignment-- it will have some pictures of Venus sculptures on it, but you might want to print some of your own here in the computer lab or at home.


Questions:

1. Who was Venus?

2. When was the Venus of Willendorf made?

3. Who made the Venus of Willendorf?

4. Why is it called The Venus of Willendorf?

5. There are a number of other prehistoric Venus sculptures. What is the general range of dates during which these sculptures were made? (example: 500 BC - 200 BC)

6. Look up another prehistoric "Venus" sculpture (similar to the Venus of Willendorf). Compare and contrast: what are the similarities and differences? Be specific.

7. Select another similar prehistoric sculpture, and once again compare and contrast.

8. Why are these prehistoric figurines (small sculptures) referred to as "Venus" sculptures?

9. What do the "experts" think the purpose of these sculptures was?

10. What do YOU think think the purpose of these sculptures was? Do you think they meant to be erotic or "sexy", or do you think they were made for some other reason or purpose?

Teapot assignment (Int. and Adv.) 1/3/11

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For your next project, you will make a teapot. The teapot is a favorite object of many ceramic artists. There is a lot of history and tradition world-wide regarding teapots and tea in general.

The "tea ceremony" can be found in both Western and Eastern civilization. In Asia the tea ceremony goes back hundreds of years. The Japanese tea ceremony is highly ritualistic-- everything must be done a certain way. Likewise, the British "afternoon tea" also follows a specific procedure. In both cases, the vessels, tools, and so forth are carefully defined.

So, when a ceramic artist sets out to make a teapot, there are several things to consider...


Traditional vs. Non-traditional

As mentioned above, there is a long tradition in teapots regarding style, form, etc. Some contemporary artists prefer to make their teapots within the tradition, while others use a more non-traditional or individualistic way of making a teapot. Over time, the teapot has come to be a way for artists to express themselves in any number of number of ways.


Korea, 13th century


China, 18th century


contemporary


contemporary


Functional vs. Non-functional

A traditional teapot will of course be functional. In other words, its main purpose and function is for making and serving tea. A non-traditional teapot may still be functional, but it does not have to be: this is where the artist can really get creative!


Non-traditional, but functional


Definitely non-functional-- 18 inches tall!


Your assignment for today:

Using Google image search (or something similar), find some teapots that you especially like. The idea here has two points-- first, to see what's out there in the world of artist-made teapots (not commercially manufactured), and second, to find some teapots that are particularly inspiring to you. Hopefully this will help you in coming up with some ideas for your teapots!

Image search keywords-- Try combining the word teapot with some of the following: stoneware, earthenware, traditional, contemporary, non-functional, abstract, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Ming, Tang, celadon, or anything else you can think of.

DIRECTIONS for TODAY:

You are to make a "comment" on this blog post, and give links to at least five teapots. For each teapot, briefly explain why you selected it.

To make a comment, go to the bottom of this post and click on the word comments; you can then select anonymous from the pop-up menu, but YOU NEED TO PUT YOUR NAME ON YOUR COMMENT to receive credit for this assignment.

Also... you can also print pictures of a couple of teapots if you wish, but it is not required.

Tomorrow:

Be prepared to create sketches of designs for your teapot.

Art Installation by Advanced/Intermediate 3D Art class

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This is a class project from the Advanced/Intermediate 3D Art class at Arts Academy in the Woods. Rick Jacobi, art teacher; Jane McBride, student teacher.

Click on the individual images for a larger view. Photos by Rick Jacobi


The site.


Installation complete.


A few days earlier...


Ready to begin the installation.


The first two boards are placed.




The last boards are placed.


The boards are temporarily tied into position, and then fastened with screws.




Some of the boards are still tied; the ties will be removed after all the wood is screwed together.














Finished.

Recent student art: plaster figures, assemblage

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Alex Aniol


Lachelle Byars


Shannon Vorus


Chris Rudko


Alex Aniol


Emma Jeffrey


Tache Davis


Jazmine Hill


Madeline Toro


anonymous by request

Kayla Friess

Totem Pole project

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(click on images for a larger view)



Our 3D Art class just finished this totem pole project; we installed the poles yesterday after school. The installation was completed in about two hours. The posts are about eight feet high, with a little over two feet in the ground, encased in cement. I supervised and pitched in, but the kids did most of the work.





I would like to say that I came up with this idea by myself, but credit must go to art teacher extraordinaire Ken Vieth. The project came from his excellent book From Ordinary to Extraordinary. He has another book called Engaging the Adolescent Mind, which I also recommend>

I had the opportunity to take a seminar with Ken a couple weeks ago; it was kind of a coincidence that we were actually working on this project at the time of the seminar. By the way, Ken's seminar was really good-- if you are an art teacher and have an opportunity to take his seminar, go for it-- I highly recommend it.



The class really enjoyed this project-- many of them were using power tools for the first time, so this was a great learning experience for them not just in terms of creativity, but also for learning a number of new skills. The totems were cut out with jigsaws, primed and painted with exterior latex, and attached to the posts with wood glue, clamps, and screws. The screws were counter-sunk and covered with wood fill, and then touched up with paint.

As per Ken's recommendation in the book, I had the students collectively decide on a color scheme. I told them they could use two colors, plus black and white. Somewhat surprisingly, there was no arguing about the colors; the discussion was very orderly and most everyone seemed happy with the colors that were selected.



As you can see, the totem poles are situated alongside our school, close to the sidewalk and street. As we were doing the installation, several people drove by and stopped to take a closer look-- we got several compliments!



Here are a few closeups of some of the individual totems. They are "relief sculptures", and the students were required to add at least one additional layer of pieces to the base sheet of plywood.











This was a really fun project-- maybe someday we will have totem poles all around the school!