High School Studio Lesson
Clay
Portrait Boxes
Nancy Corrigan Wilbert
In an attempt to incorporate
sculptural elements into my
ceramics program, I decided to
try direct plaster casting of the
face to make a plaster mold for clay.
My students were a bit leery to say
the least. When the terms “bathing
cap,” “petroleum jelly,” and “straws”
were used in one sentence, images
began to flood the imagination.
Making the Cast
Once I explained the process, most
students were eager to begin and help
each other. We began by putting on a
bathing/swim cap to protect the hair.
Then petroleum jelly was applied liberally to the entire face. Damp paper
towel pieces cut into small ovals were
positioned over the eyes, and straws
were placed in the mouth for breathing.
Students lay on the top of a table
covered with plastic trash bags. Once
they were comfortable and the giggling ended, the loose plaster was
slowly applied to the face. As it began
setting, more layers were applied to
add strength.
I explained to students before we
started that the plaster would become
warm as it set. After about ten minutes, the cast was hard enough to
remove. The casts popped off the face
with ease, and students cleaned up
with soap and a wash cloth.
sculpt a hand traced a hand onto 2" ( 5
cm) thick slabs of clay, cut them out
with a pin tool, and sculpted them
into the desired position. A second
mound of clay was formed to serve
as the wrist/arm. The two pieces
were attached and hollowed out with
a wrist tool. Incised line and raised
line were employed to create a lifelike
rendering.
Thosewhochosetocreateabox
used templates and
slab construction
tomakean8x
10 x 4" ( 20 x 25
x 10 cm) form.
Before the last
side was
added,
plastic bags were packed inside so
that the box would not collapse when
the face was attached.
Casting the Face in Clay
Finally it was time to cast the face
in clay. A 1" ( 2. 5 cm) thick slab of
clay was carefully worked into the
face mold using the
fingers and knuck-
Working with Clay
For the project, students could choose
to create a covered box to which they
would attach their cast faces, or to
sculpt a hand where the cast face
would “rest.” Those who wanted to
