work and progress

November 1st, 2011 at 08:00am ivar_theorin

I have been alternating between two projects during the Open Studios Program. I have been working on a wall-mounted ram’s head made from brown craft paper and a series of cardboard masks representing the 12 animals in the Chinese Zodiac. For these two projects, I have had different approaches. In the ram, I have tried to capture the look and proportions of a real ram with the help of photographs and for the masks I have been more spontaneous, using only my imagination. (More about the masks in another post.)

For the ram sculpture,  I began with making an armature out of metal wire. For me it is similar to the sketching process, and the wire works like a three-dimensional line drawing, defining the outline and basic volume of the form. The second step is to fill the armature with paper that I stitch to the wire frame. This gives me a better sense of the volume and provides a foundation where I can attach additional layers. During this phase, I can still make changes to the armature, and I can build volume by adding more paper. The final step is an outer layer of paper that I stitch onto the armature. Using folds and creases, I define the features and capture the expression.

When making full body animals, the posture and body language play a large role in the gesture of the sculpture, but in a wall mounted head the expressivity of the face is the most important.

Entry Filed under: in the studio