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Clay Figurines
Posted On 08-06-2007 , 5:26 PM
Experiments and Disasters of Clay Figurines
A couple of weeks ago I started playing with modeling clay figurines. Before this, I had only ever worked with pottery. Pottery is fun, but figures were new.
So I went out and bought some clay that air dries (my oven was broken, so I couldn’t use my bake-able clay) and some tools. I pulled out a piece about the size of my fist and sat on the floor. I didn’t know much about the tools, or the media, so I played. I molded a rough shape that sort of resembled a man, cartoon style with a big head and smaller body.
I created the overall clay figurine shape with my hands. Then I used the tools to cut out the areas that I didn’t want, and create lines. I pretty much cut out and drew the figure with the tools. In the end, I had created a clay figurine from an anime cartoon that I am particularly fond of: Naruto.
I learned a few things from this creating this clay figurine.
- The first and most obvious was how to use the tools.
- But I also learned something about the media.
- I learned that air-drying clay is great for experimenting and learning.
- It is easy to afford and easy to mold.
- But it is brittle.
My clay figurine fell over and broke. Just fell over backward when the table was knocked, and its head and arm fell off. I was devastated. Yes, this was just something that I created one day to learn how to use the tools, and just for something to do…but this was my first clay figurine. I had never done this before and was proud of the outcome. I wanted to keep it, but it was broken. I glued the pieces back together, but it is so fragile that now I’m not sure where to put it. I had planned to paint it and take it to work and put it on my desk, but that is out of the question now.
So I learned something valuable.
- Air dry clay figurines are brittle.
If you want to create something to keep, buy the bake-able stuff. This can be stuck in any oven and is more durable, and definitely recommended if you are creating something (like clay figurines) that you plan on keeping or selling.
A few days after the death of (and resulting glue experiment with) my clay figurine, my fiancé came up with a plan. Now, I am going to paint the clay figurine Kakashi and then coat him in silicone. According to my fiancé, this will help hold the clay figurine together, and will preserve my first ever experiment with this topic. I will update when this is done to explain how it worked.
-------Updated--------
Well, I ended up simply coating the clay figurine in silicone, but not painting him. I liked him in all white (more creamy off-white, really), so he stayed.
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