Abstract Figure Sculptures in Plaster - Student Work

Last school year's junior Nandi Best took this slab of Plaster of Paris (above) ,that she had mixed and poured into a milk carton with a little added green and marbleized blue acrylic paint, and turned it into this sensitive and lovely figure sculpture below. 

I asked the kids to work with abstracted figures (male or female) in an asymmetrical design, to carve them, smooth and sand them and to finally mount them with something that visually flowed without over-powering the pieces.

Brilliant Work Nandi, I adore your piece.

She even did something special on the bottom of the mounting with a wood burning tool.

I loved this one too.  Where Nandi's piece was very curvy, senior Brittaney Lee's was very angular and also stunning.  She, like Nandi, swirled a bit of paint in her plaster before it set up, and it actually resembles marble stone. 

Junior Carolina Navor is just getting hers started.  It looks like a lot of the paint will be showing in the after piece, but it's a bit deceiving, not that much showed in the finished work. So the lesson learned, what you see on the outside isn't necessarily what you get on the inside.

Sorry the shots are a bit blurry, I guess I wasn't holding very still.  The one on the left side belongs to junior Kelsea Lee.  I actually lost my paper work on these so I'm guessing here that the one on the right was made by junior Dana Urcia.  Lovely pieces ladies.  A close-up below.

I think this one above was done by either Vivian Vo, or Miya Clark, both seniors.  If any of you are reading this blog, email me and let me know so I can correct this.  Thanks.  What I loved about this piece was that it was mounted asymmetrically, and the glass shards were glued onto the other side to balance the sculpture.  What a great idea! 

And lastly, I'm guessing again, I believe this last one was done by senior Jessica Jay.  HELP!!!  Let me know!  Whoever made it, it's sensitive and lovely, with just enough glass shards to balance it.

For EXTRA CREDIT, on a piece of green paper, cut out the shape of an abstract figure.  Put your name and period on one side of the paper figure and on the other side, write and tell me which of these pieces you liked the best and why.  Hand this green paper to me when you walk in my door tomorrow.

Katherine England - Artist Extrodinaire

It's really fun for me to share with you one of my all time favorite people, glass artist Katherine England, my mosaic teacher. I have featured her work and those of her students in her art studio at the Muckenthaler in Fullerton in my blog, but recently I was lucky enough to be able to visit her at her home in a wonderful older Fullerton area neighborhood where the homes are at least 100 years old. She allowed me free access to both the interior and exterior of her house, so I hope you enjoy what I was able to experience firsthand. From top to bottom are: an embellished 3-d self-portrait of Katherine, a side shot of the exterior of her lavender colored home, a close up of one of the two magical gates her husband built with a glass inset, an interior view of the attic space she and her husband blew out to make to cubbie holes to serve as additional bedrooms for their family of six, a sculpted metal sheep her husband created that sits on top of her roof in the backyard, a life size plastic figure sitting in her garage studio space made out of clear packing tape, a group shot of her families hands molded in plaster them embellished with each persons favorite things and a close up of one of her sons hands, one of many handmade quilts she made that are displayed throughout the house, and lastly some recent silver/copper/hand fused jewelry pieces that came out of her kiln from a class she taught last week.