Motivation:
1. Short writing response
2. Introduction to three dimensional sculpture
3. Introduction to Gargoyles
3. Images of Gothic architecture
4. Examples of ceramic Gargoyles (teacher made) - purchased gargoyle sculptures
5. Review of vocabulary- Have handout for students to take notes (Optional Quiz)
6. Demonstrations of forming techniques - slab, pinch - coil - scoring/fusing.
7. Demonstrations of various decorating techniques- texturing, under glazing.

Procedures:
1. Assign short writing response “What are your previous experiences with working with clay?”
2. Introduce medieval architectural elements.
3. Review ceramic vocabulary with handout.
4. Design gargoyle on sketch paper
5. Form Gargoyle body and heads using pinch pots, let dry until leather hard.
6. Further shape Gargoyle using pinch technique--add patterns—slip and score on wings, horns, etc
7. Carve, press in patterns and textures--add additional press-mold elements as desired
8. Glaze after bisque firing- use under glazes with clear glaze over or use Majolica technique.

Evaluation:
1. Have Students write about their experience making Gargoyles out of clay.
2. Grade form:

name__________________
DESIGN 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 other
CONSTRUCTION 10 9 8 7 6 5
CRAFTSMANSHIP 10 9 8 7 6 5
GLAZING 10 9 8 7 6 5

 

10 Points
Name:___________________
Date:___________________
Hour:___________________

3-Dimensional Sculpture Unit: Gargoyles in Clay

Brief History of Ceramics: People used clay to line rope baskets thousands of years ago. The baskets accidentally got near fire, and became hardened and permanent.
Uses of clay: Thousands of years ago clay was used to make bowls, statues and religious icons, vessels for wine, oil, water, sculptural forms to decorate houses and coffins, tiles to decorate houses and coffins, tiles to decorate walls, floors and roofs.
Modern Uses of Clay: Today artists have allowed modern industry to create the storage containers and have concentrated on being creative… from functional pottery to strange and unusual artistic objects not usually made out of clay.

Ceramic Vocabulary Review: Key words you should learn by the end of this Unit.
3-D:
Wedge:
Slab:
Coil:
Pinch pot:
Slip:
Score:
Leather Hard:
Greenware:
Bisque:
Kiln:
Glaze:
Underglaze:
Give at least two examples of how to add TEXTURE to clay.

 

 

NAME_________________________________

Write about your experience of making a Gargoyle out of clay.

- These ideas can help you write about your clay experience. Write about your experience on the back of this paper, feel free to include a sketch of your finished Gargoyle; you will not be graded for spelling and grammer mistakes. As always, be creative!

 

- Describe your Gargoyle completely. Write about all the features your Gargoyle has, does your Gargoyle have wings, teeth, a tail, long arms, furry clawed feet? Be sure to include colors, patterns, textures, shapes, and any resemblance to existing animals.

 

- Using your vocabulary sheet tell about the processes you used to make your Gargoyle. Did you start making the body using a pinch pot? Did you roll out coils for a tail or legs? A slab for wings? How did you add your texture?

 

Now that your gargoyle is done (and you have had more experience with working with clay), if you were to make your Gargoyle again, what would you do differently? What would you do the same?

-BACK TO LESSONS PAGE-

Objectives:
1. Art appreciation, art history- Medieval architecture
2. Understanding of beliefs of people of the middle ages
3. Understanding of 3D Sculpture
4. Understanding ceramic vocabulary
5. Explore slab technique and pinch techniques of
forming clay and sprigging of added elements
6. Develop skills in manipulating clay; decorating
techniques
7. Utilize a variety of resources to inspire art

Materials:

Clay, clay modeling tools
Cloth, rolling pins, guide sticks
Slip dishes
Stamps and gadgets for texture
Cups and bowls
Newspaper
Drawing paper
Glazes and under glazes
Animal reference books and magazines

Lesson by Alicia St.Germain,
7th Grade Lesson Plans
Week:
Unit: Medieval Art
Project: Literacy and the 3D "Gargoyle" Sculpture

All Lessons on this page were introduced to my 7th grade teacher assisting classroom.