Saturday, January 19, 2013

Drawing with Wire


 Alexander Calder, (1898-1976) changed the whole definition of sculpture with his beautiful kinetic, movable "mobiles" and stationary "stabile" sculptures. He was born into a family of artists. As a child he had his own studio space where he built his own toys and artworks for himself and his sister. I especially love his early wire pieces, so at the end of last semester, we used 16 gauge wire, solder, wood and paint to create the works below. I called it Drawing with Wire. Each piece had to include a kinetic component. Here are just a few pieces. They are very impressive in size, quality and movement. 


Amelia B. created an angel with colorful, moving "solder" gems.


Leah's Penguin with Snowflakes and Snowballs.


Liris created two pieces. Hanukkah House and Christmas House. The wreath and the dreidel both move.


 Gemma with her Statue of Liberty, above and below. 




 AiLi's  Fork, Spoon and Knife!


Wow!! John created a very dimensional bird that has incredible wings that had such flow and movement .


 It's hard to see the great dimension that Topher achieved in the sailboat above. It was a gift for his father for Christmas. Really fantastic!


Lukas created this candle holder. The red kinetic piece on the right side is a gift.


 Sky astonishes us with her strength of vision and personal style. Here's her signiture cat with wings!



Kassi and her creation, above and below! Intricate 20 gage wire was used in detailing. 






Harpo in pink, during break time, acting as inspiration and muse.


 Maggie's "hand's" above. The swirl in the palm had a lot of depth, funnel-like, and the ring was her kinetic piece.


 Hady's Angel holding her cat. So fabulous.


 Amelia created this happy Red Dog. The collar is studded and moveable.


In celebration of her new puppy, Ilana created a giant paw with heart.


 Zarinah's work always has such zest and life. This had a lot of color and presence too.


 Annie's piece Love is Everywhere. Each angle had hearts bursting forth. Lovely Darling!

 

 Dimas (5) joined us a guest artist for this project and impressed us all with his sketches and his final piece.


 Thalia created this wonderful Skull with a Bow. Her work always stands out, doesn't it?


Zoey has been on a fairy and goddess them for a few projects. This one, above, is gorgeous.



 Wow James! He captured the beauty of his initial sketch with the wire. 
He mounted the eagle at a great angle too.


Mia represented herself and two brothers, all stars of course, in this piece she wanted to surprise her parents with. 


To me, Amity has an aura of kindness and focus about her and her Fawn, above, reflects who she is very well.


Simon was sick one week of this project, and then came the second week and created this wonderful owl. Great isn't it?


Look at Jesse's Striking Snake above. Amazing, huh? His kinetic piece on the tail of the snake, a bell, also added an auditory component. He has such a clear vision in the studio about his work from concept through execution. Such a pleasure to watch him at work.

1 comment:

  1. They are all to amazing. To think that these were created by children. The depth of understanding is so amazing. They are all items that will be displayed with pride for many, many years to come.
    You never seem to underestimate the abilities of your students.

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