Everyday Object Sculpture

Assignment

Your assignment is to create a sculptural installation out of everyday, commonly used objects. Your challenge is to transform what we recognize and see often into a sculptural work of art.

Objectives:

Students will create a sculpture using everyday objects
Students will create an abstract design
Students will consider their sculpture in the round
Students will understand how their sculptures will be displayed

Artist Inspiration

Tara Donovan

Tara Donovan is well known for her large-scale sculptures that use store-bought materials like toothpicks, drinking straws, plastic cups, and Scotch tape to create organic forms.

Plastic cups

Buttons and glue

Index cards

Federico Uribe

Born in Bogota, Colombia, Federico Uribe began his career as a painter in his native South America before moving to New York, and eventually Miami, where he is currently based. After abandoning painting, Uribe began to collect knickknacks and organize them by color and shape—allowing him to see the potential unity that could arise from serial repetition. Uribe’s sculptures are made of colored pencils, coins, screws, plastic cutlery, and clothes-pins.

Bullet and bullet casings

Colored pencils

Shoe laces

Screws

Colored pencils

What makes a good everyday material?

Cheap
Accessible
Mass produced
Recycled garbage

Ideas List:

plastic bottles
plastic cups
styrofoam cups
straws
masks
.......

Ideas List Cont.

........

More Resources for Inspiration

11 Everyday Objects Transformed Into Extraordinary Works of Art | artnet NewsThese eleven artists take everyday objects, like duct tape, straws, and cous cous, and transform them into amazing works of art.

In Class Practice

Practice Piece #1: Styrofoam Cup Sculpture

Objectives:

Students will safely use an Xacto knife to cut styrofoam

Students will transform Styrofoam cups into an abstract sculpture
Students will create a well balanced free standing sculpture
Students will demonstrate good craftsmanship with their cutting and gluing of the Styrofoam

Directions:

Using a minimum of 2 Styrofoam cups, create an abstract sculpture that transforms it from a cup
You may work with a partner but each person is responsible for contributing to

Examples:

Practice Piece #2: Popsicle Stick Sculpture

Objectives:

Students will create a geometric shape out of popsicle sticks
Students will use repetition to combine the forms into an abstract sculpture
Students will use a high level of craftsmanship

Directions:

Create a 12" tall or wide sculpture using popsicle sticks
Begin by creating a geometric shape
Make multiple of these shapes
Attach forms together to make your abstract geometric sculpture

Examples:

Modular Sculpture:

Summative Project

Your assignment is to create a sculptural installation out of everyday, commonly used objects. Your challenge is to transform what we recognize and see often into a sculptural work of art.

What is an "everyday object"?

Objects that you can collect a large quantity of for cheap. They are most likely objects that we encounter everyday or very often. Maybe things that we use so often we take for granted.

Planning and Design

Things to consider:

1. Material- what material will you use? Is it something that we have and you can use in the art department or will you need to gather the material outside of class? Do you have a reasonable amount of time to collect it?

2. Form - What kinds of forms will you create with this material overall? Transformation is key here. For example, if you are making a sculpture out of Styrofoam cups, you want to end up with a piece that no longer looks like a cup.

3. Repetition- consider designing a form and repeating it to build up a larger sculpture.

4. Construction- how do you plan on assembling this? Do you have access to the materials that you will need to do so?

5. Display- Where is this installation going to be displayed and how? Does it support itself your will you need some kind of base.