ART FOR A PURPOSE
When I started this project, I analyzed Jason deCaires Taylor who made hundreds of human sculptures that were submerged underwater. I love how great (in this context 'great' is how bold and large) and mysterious this concept is. I also from the beginning of the year really wanted to do a sculpture with clay or another medium, but the emphasis was that it was something that I use with my hands. I thought about the two things together, and the open-ended question our teacher had given us for the project, and I thought that I could create a multitude of paper mache bones, and have an underwater scene with many fish swimming over the bones, as if the fish are there swimming around the bones. This would represent a prediction I have of the future; that the human race will one day die out and then an animal species (like fish) would take over. The next step is to go through the process of making my product, which would allow me to answer the following questions i came up with after brainstorming this project:
-
​What material I would be making my bones out of;​
-
would I get real bones?​
-
would I get a few real bones and cast a mold of it to reproduce a lot more?
-
would I make the bones out of clay?
-
would I make the bones out of paper mache?
-
-
How would the bones be organized?
-
In piles​?​​
-
In one great pile?
-
Only a few?
-
One big bone?
-
 |  |
|---|---|
 |  |
 |  |
 |
During the making of the bones, I went through numerous methods of trying to replicate and create a plethora of bones. I tested 4 different methods in total until finding the perfect method that would allow me to have as much freedom with the shape of the bone, and for me to be able to create a lot in a small amount of time. Following is a. small timeline & summary of each method that I tried.
​
Response to Introduction:
After going through some of the process, I understand better what I want my outcome to look like now, I also know that I want enough bones to make a large pile which I'm assuming is roughly 20-30 bones, and I would also like have a looped video of fish swimming projected onto this pile when the piece is in exhibition.
Method #1: tape-mache
This was the first method that I tried that was introduced to me by my art teacher. What I did was use small ripped off pieces of IPG water-activated tape to paper-mache a mold of the handle to a lino cutting tool. This taught me how to make molds of cylindrical and curved objects, which is exactly how bones are shaped.
​
Pros
-
dried hard and very bone-like
​
Cons
-
was hard to mold round areas; which is why I left the top of the handle alone and tried to recreate that shape once it tried
-
took a lot of time; creating and drying was long
-
didn't dry as one layer; made it hard to cut through because it would come off in layers
​
Verdict: not working because I didn't feel that this would be the best method for getting around the more complex parts of the bone.
Method #2: paper-mache
 |  |
|---|
Due to the fact that the previous method didn't allow me to get around curved areas very well, I tried to use paper-mache over the mold made from the tape mache but which would also get the ends of the bone, because I thought it would be more malleable than the tape method.
​
Pros
-
was more malleable
​
Cons
-
but not malleable enough
-
took a long time to dry
-
didn't dry as one layer; made it hard to cut through because it would come off in layers
-
took a long time
​
Verdict: not working because it just didn't get into all the small spaces as much as I thought it could've.
Method #3: tape-mache without mold
 |  |
|---|---|
 |
Then I tried to make the molds from scratch, without anything inside because the previous two methods took too long to dry for me to reuse them again and make more replicas. This method required a lot of patience and a very gently touch.
​
Pros
-
didn't rely on original shape (bones) to be created
​
Cons
-
was very delicate while making and needed a lot of patience
-
took a long time to make
​
Verdict: not working because it was very time consuming and also required a very delicate hand which I do not have.
Method #4: plaster
I was still not completely satisfied with my products, so my teacher suggested using some CAST to create the bones. This was the perfect method for creating lots of bones in a short amount of time, having as much freedom with the shape of the bone, and it was also the most fun to do.
​
Pros
-
took very little time
-
dried very fast
-
gave me the most freedom with shape of the product
​
Cons
-
the textured was not very bone-like which would need to be fixed.
​
Verdict: This is the best method and I am very satisfied with it. However I will need to find a method that would give the bones a more smoother finish.
​
Update: I have made a few bones already and realised that if i rub the wet plaster the material that the gauze is drenched in turns into a paste, and depending on how much water it has it can be thick or thin. By doing this, as well as using rough sand paper to get a final finish, as well as thick coats of paint, the bones become very smooth and end up exactly how I want them to.
 |  |
|---|
Choosing the best method
During the middle of the project we as an art class visited the IB Art Exhibition where all the Grade 12's art was put on display. One of the students themes for their art was of how nature would still live on without us, maybe even better. I realised that this is what I meant to communicate to my audience. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to use, without having to change my actual product. After thoroughly thinking about it, I decided that my purpose/meaning of this artwork is that nature is independent. If the human population dies out, nature will still be able to live on without us. I think this is important to understand because I predict that nature might even live better without us creating pollution and harming the environment.
Although I gave myself a lot of freedom with the shapes of the bones, I had never really properly studied what they looked like especially the knuckles on the ends, so I used some photos to give me ideas of what realistic bones would look like.
I also experimented with size during this project, I had 2 very large bones that were double the size as most of my bones, and then I also had a few very small ones that I made at the beginning of the project when I was in an experimental stage. I realised the most realistic ones were the medium sized ones, so I made sure those ones made up the majority.
This is the video I decided to use in the end for the final display of the art work in the exhibition. Although it is meant for relaxation, I don't want to use the music because I don't think it has anything to do with my overall message and impression for my audience.
THE VIDEO
IB ART EXHIBITION
THE SHAPE
Underestimating
When I finished making, sanding and painting 30 bones, I put them into a pile to see how they would look and it didn't turn out how I wanted it to. I underestimated how many bones it would take to make as big as a pile as I wanted. I made 10 more bones in a few hours, and although the exhibition date is close I hope I can at least make another 10 more including a few more large ones.
-
Evidence of the student’s ability to construct meaning and transfer learning into his or her artwork.
-
The artistic response and the way in which it reflects or impacts on the world.
-
A critique of the student’s own artwork including its ability to creates awareness, promotes change, asks questions and/or records the past or present, or predicts the future.
​
My intention for this artwork was to evoke thinking in my audience about what would really happen when we die. This artwork is a form of a prediction of what that would look like, that our death will not affect the rest of the world, including the other animals here. It predicts that the world will then be silent, and life will go on. Just like the tranquility of the ocean life, so will the rest of the world be. It implies that humans are creating noise and disturbance, and also implies that nature is independent from us.
Set-up
Here is what my set-up looks like. In order to understand my set-up, it is important to explain my method.
Firstly, I set-up a newspaper to cover the area because it can quite messy. Then I will use a mod rock strips that come in 8 x 16 cm. I use these strips as whole when I am sculpting the Diaphysis which is the middle long part of a bone. I use two strips for this, wetting one very well and the other not as much so that it can dry faster and be less delicate.
After the Diaphysis is dried, I will then use one wetted sheet for each of the ankle parts that gets the rough shape of the ankle, and then I will go into more detail and shaping and blending with cut-up strips.
After that comes the sanding and the painting. I used a fine grit sandpaper (200-220 grit), which was ample in doing the fine-details of my art.
After sanding the bones, I needed to coat them with a few layers of paint because I didn't like the cold white that the plaster had. I used three colors for this; titanium white, umber brown, and cadmium yellow medium all in acrylic. Here are pictures of before and after sanding and painting.
THE PROCESS
BRAINSTORMING
COMMENTARY
Before After
