CERAMICS II

SKETCHBOOK ASSIGNMENTS

Ø  Sketchbooks are an important part of this course

Ø  Sketches are the visual thought process of design

Ø  Sketches are plans for the organization of art elements

Ø  Sketches also help improve drawing and observation skills

Sketchbook practices:

Ø  Bring your sketchbook with you to every class and take it home with you every night.

Ø  Use your sketchbooks for sketching, notes, comments, journaling, and collecting images.

Ø  Properly adhere images to the sketchbook page. For lightweight paper, use a glue stick. Points will be deducted from your grade if images are not properly adhered in your sketchbook when you turn it in.

Ø  If you get an image from the Internet, make sure it is the full size image, not a thumbnail.

Ø  Keep in mind that you are sketching three-dimensional pieces. Especially when designing your own pieces, be sure to include enough information in your sketch to accurately convey your plan. You may need to draw the piece from more than one angle.

Ø  Sketchbook assignments are homework assignments. Class time is for studio time and is generally used for the completion of projects.

Ø  Don't wait until the last minute to do sketchbook assignments. Excuses about printer problems the night before the assignment is due are not acceptable.

Sketchbooks are due on the first day of the week, usually Mondays.

Ø  Turn sketchbook in at the beginning of class on the days assignments are due. (See below)

Ø  For each day that a sketchbook assignment is late points one point is deducted per day.

ASSIGNMENTS

Sketchbook # 19
Week 2 / Canopic jar research & sketch
Research to find some examples of Ancient Egyptian canopic jars.(Some can be found in the links section of the Ceramics II webpage.) Used in the Ancient Egyptian burial process, these jars held the internal organs of the deceased. The lids of these clay jars were usually in the form of an animal or a person.
For your assignment, you will be creating a contemporary version of a canopic jar using the coil method of construction. Make a sketch for this first assignment.
In order to function as a jar, your vessel will need a lid. The jar lid is where you can have some fun and be creative. Consider some creative ways in which you might design the lid to represent our contemporary culture. You might still have an animal or human head, but the lid decoration might also be an object.
Sketchbook # 20
Week 3 / Italian Majolica decoration
Majolica pottery is tin-glazed and decorated earthenware. It originated in the Middle East but is now most often associated with Italy and Spain. The designs are highly decorative and colorful.
Research Italian Majolica Pottery online. After doing so, sketch a design for a ceramic piece on which you will create your own version of a Majolica design. Note that in addition to being very colorful, these designs cover the entire ceramic piece and include different decorative patterns. Use colored pencils or markers to color your design.
Sketchbook # 21
Week 4 / Stamp design
Draw several thumbnail sketches of different non-objective designs. From at least one of these designs you will be making a ceramic stamp.
Don’t use letters or words in your design. Think in terms of lines and shapes to make up your designs.
Sketchbook # 22
Week 5 / Sketch of vessel to be stamped
Sketch a design for a ceramic piece that includes slabs to which your ceramic stamp will be applied. It could be a box, cylinder vessel, or some combination. It can have elements made from coils or drape molds. The piece can be either functional or decorative. Don't be afraid to experiment and take risks with your design.
On your sketch, draw in where the stamped design would appear.
Sketchbook # 23
Week 6 /

Mixed-media ceramics

From print media, find 2 examples of ceramic pieces that incorporate other materials with the ceramic piece. Perhaps wire, glaze, raffia, fabric, wood, metal, or other materials were incorporated into the ceramic piece. Glue the examples into your sketchbook.
Make a sketch for a mixed-media ceramic piece of your own design. Indicate the additional media that you would be using.
Sketchbook # 24
Week 7 /

Figure sculpture from different cultures

Do some research on figure sculpture from several different cultures. (Ancient Africa, Native America, Central American, South American…)
Find 3 examples that you like and glue them into your sketchbook. Each example should represent a different culture. Next to each example write the culture from which it originated.
Sketch a figurine of your own that uses some of the characteristics of the different pieces that you researched. Your piece might include characteristics from 2 different cultures.
Sketchbook # 25
Week 8 / Distorted Ceramic House
Go online and research distorted ceramic houses. Look at the examples and make a sketch for a distorted house of your own design. Be sure to include details that will give the house character and strong visual appeal. Don't be afraid to experiment with different ideas and take risks.
Sketchbook # 26
Week 9 / Variations on Hand building Techniques
For this assignment you will need to look at the following artists:
Raul Acero
F. Carlton Ball
Janice Lovoos
Joaquim Chavarria
These artist show variations of some of the hand building techniques that you have already used. Look at some of the different techniques and think about a ceramic piece of your own design that you could make using one or more of those techniques. Make a sketch of that ceramic piece. Next to the sketch, write the name of the artist who inspired you and the techniques name.
Sketchbook # 27
Week 10 / Non-objective Ceramic Sculpture
Go online and research non-objective ceramic sculptures.
Make a sketch of a non-objective ceramic sculpture of your own design. Consider whether you want an open or closed and/or active or static sculpture. Give thought to all of the art elements and design principles and how you might use any or all of them as you develop your design.
Sketchbook # 28
Week 11 / Teapot
Ceramic teapots are common to many different cultures and time periods. In more recent years, in addition to performing their function, teapots have also taken on sculptural, decorative and even whimsical qualities. In order to perform their function, to steep tea, teapot needs to consist of the pot body, a spout, a lid, and a handle. But these components can be designed and arranged in many different and creative ways.
Plan and sketch a design for a teapot of your own. Make sure that it includes all of the necessary components. Be creative!
Sketchbook # 29
Week 12 / Textured Tile Wall Plaque
Look at the example at the bottom of this page. It shows a textured tile wall plaque that is constructed of etched and carved slabs. The carvings create pattern and texture.
Make a sketch for a similar decorative piece that is made up of slabs decorated with carved and etched designs. Consider the shapes of the slabs and how they would be pieced together, as well as the pattern decoration.
Sketchbook # 30
Week 13 / Chess Pieces
Design and sketch a set of chessboard pieces that could be constructed from clay. In planning your design, think about the construction method(s) you would use in their creation.
The chess set will need one sketch for each of the following pieces: king, queen, bishop, rook, knight, and pawn.
Sketchbook # 31
Week 14 / Ceramic Jewelry
Clay can also be used to create beads, pins, and pendants for ceramic jewelry. Sketch at least 3 different designs for ceramic jewelry. Beads could be created for necklaces, bracelets or earrings. Think about what the entire finished piece would look like including cords, and fasteners. Additional media, such as wire, jute, leather cord, cloth…could be added to the clay to enhance the piece. Include possible surface decoration and texture. Color your sketches with markers or color pencils to indicate the color and decoration.
Sketchbook # 32
Week 15 / Ceramic Liquid Soap Dispenser
Sketch a design for a ceramic soap dispenser. It will need to consist of a sealed vessel with a opening at the top that could take a pump mechanism with cork to seal the opening.
Include any surface decoration, either etched or glazed, and any additions you may wish to add to the design.
Sketchbook # 33
Week 16 / Box with Attached Figures
Sketch a design for a box to which 3-dimensional figures are attached in relief. The figures can be human, animal, mythical, or objects, but they must be of your own design. The figures should decorate and create a theme for the box. A figure, or part of a figure, should decorate each side of the box. (A figure can be wrapped around more than one side of the box.
Consider the size and shape of the box (it does not have to be rectangular) as well as the figurative decoration.
Sketchbook # 34
Week 17 / Stylized Ceramic Animal
To stylize means to focus on design elements rather than realism. Some of the characteristics of stylized art are abstraction by simplification, exaggeration, strong use of pattern, and bright colors.
Sketch a stylized animal that you could sculpt from clay. Try to draw the animal to look 3 dimensional. Use marker or colored pencil to indicate the color and pattern decoration that would be applied to the finished sculpture.

Textured Wall Plaque