Transcript Project 8: Ceramic Relief Sculpture

Ceramic Relief Project
Mesopotamia Art
Mesopotamia
The land between the Tigris River and
Euphrates River.
 Modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria,
southeastern Turkey and southeastern
Iran
 Flourished since the beginning of written
history – 3100 B.C. until the fall of
Babylon in 539 B.C.

Mesopotamia
Mesopotamian Art
Artwork was intended to
serve as a way to glorify
powerful rulers and their
connection to divinity
(gods and immortality).
 Artwork made from
natural resources such as
stone, shells, alabaster and
marble, and was often
created as didactic pieces.
 Didactic: teaching or
intending to teach a moral
lesson. Intended for
instruction.

Mesopotamian Art Cont’d.

No artist signatures
can be found on
most of the work,
because the pieces
were meant to
embody the subject
matter, rather than
the creator.
Relief Sculpture
Relief is the projection of a figure or part
from the ground or plane on which it is
formed, as in sculpture or similar work.
 Bas Relief: relief sculpture in which the
figures project slightly from the
background.

What will Bas Relief look like for
Art II?
Assignment
As a class, develop a theme/subject
matter that you would like to create a
sculpture of.
 Each student will create a relief of an
object within the theme you chose.
 Choose an object in that theme and begin
brainstorming and sketching your ideas.

Assignment Cont’d
Finalize your sketch to actual size
 Each student will receive about a 7x9 in.
 You will be creating a bas relief on this
tile.

Assignment Cont’d
Develop a bas relief sculpture that is
unified by the theme chosen.
 Incorporate additive and subtractive
techniques
 Properly slip and score pieces together
 Create a variety of textures
 Successfully apply 3 coats of glaze
 Try at least 2 different colors of glaze

Elements:

Focus is on
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Shape
Form
Texture
Space
Principles

Focus on
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Unity within the group
Variety of color and texture
Pattern
Balance of positive and negative space
Examples