From Clay to Critters

Clay is a material often used by artists to create sculptures, vessels, and everyday objects such as plates and bowls. How about a sculpture made from a clay bowl? In most art work, objects are created from basic shapes. By learning to make a few basic forms in clay and joining them together, you can create almost anything.

Try your hand a creating a hedgehog

• Begin with a ball of clay roughly the size of a tennis ball. One third of the clay should be broken off and set aside.
• The remaining should be gently rolled between the palms of your hands to form a ball.
• Cradle this ball of clay in your palms with thumbs held together on top of the ball. Apply gentle pressure with the thumbs to form a dent or dimple on the top of the ball. Apply increasing pressure with the thumbs while gently rotating the ball in the hands. You are trying to form a thick bowl shape. Turn the bowl over to become the hedgehog’s body.
• Pinch off a small piece of the remaining clay. Form a hotdog-shaped piece by rolling the clay between the tabletop and the palm of the hand gently applying pressure out towards the ends to lengthen and thin out the piece. It should be the thickness of a pencil and about 2 inches long.
• Cut this coil into four equal pieces. These four coils will be the legs of the hog.
• Attach the legs by rubbing a finger from the leg to the body of the hog dragging a bit of clay from one to the other. Dip finger in water and gently smooth out this joint.
• The left-over clay should be rolled into a ball to form the head. Gently pinch and pull one side of the ball to form a snout. Ears can be formed from two pea-sized balls and then flattened and joined through the same method as the legs.
• Eyes, nostrils and other facial features can be drawn or scratched into the clay. Spines, hair, toenails, and whiskers are created with toothpicks or other pointed tools.
• The finished hog can be positioned in a standing position or gentled curled into a ball shape with head and feet poking out from the belly area.

If you would like more instruction on creating art, Saturday Morning Art Classes may be for you. This program presented by CCAD provides first graders through twelfth graders the opportunity to explore the visual arts through a variety of experiences. The campus setting lets you discover your own creative abilities, enhancing your expressive potential through a sequence of art experiences that incorporate a broad range of focused exercises using a wide variety of art materials.

For more information on programs for children and youth at CCAD click here or contact the Continuing Education office at 614.222.3248 or e-mail.