Organic vs. Industrial
|
Planning
I had been collecting drink stoppers from Starbucks for a very long time and I've always wanted to do something with them, so already I am planning to use them in whatever piece I choose to do.
To begin, I looked up some artists who make animals out of clay and I found an artist named Lisa Larson who creates simple yet smooth and intricate animals out of clay that are beautifully colored. The European Bison piece particularly caught my eye - the horns made me think of the many recently extinct kinds of rhinos and it bummed me out a little bit. After looking further on the internet, I stumbled upon this piece of a rhino created entirely out of empty cans and wire. Its main goal was to attempt to raise awareness for conservation. The creators are the Ruoko Project located in Elephant's Walk, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. They were quite successful, the piece was touted about the area and very popular. The meaning behind the piece in terms of conservation and removal of waste production from capitalistic tendencies really appeals to me, and I want to create a simplistic yet impactful clay piece somewhat like this one but not nearly as large. The most impactful part of the piece, I believe, is that her name is Twalumba which means "Thank you" in the Tonga language.
|
The large array of color gives the animal a playful and childish look, however, the humongous horn protruding from the fake animal's snout appears menacing and a snapshot of what poachers aim for when hunting these endangered animals.
|
After attempting a few sketches of what the small rhino figurine may have looked like, I decided that the piece would be made entirely out of green plastic drink stoppers that I had accumulated. Although my sketches weren't very detailed they gave me enough information that I could use to create my final product. The shading in my sketches, I believe, was very important in order to show space and balance that would be easily shown in the final, three-dimensional product.
|
Process
I began by creating the head and guessing the approximate size for the rest of the body using one of the sketches I did. The hot glue was easy to work with, and it helped me create my piece quickly. However, I began to run out of material quickly. I was using too many sticks to create a face when I needed those to create a body. I had to use the thick, top parts of the stoppers to make connecting points as well as create ears. When I had finished making the base, I definitely knew I did not have enough to make a perfectly three-dimensional rhino like I wanted to. As seen in step 2, I realized I could balance my very limited amount of material with a three dimensional type of look often seen when objects in 3D programs are laser printed. The folding into a three dimensional shape is almost always triangular, and that could definitely help assist in giving my piece shape and negative space. Although I did not have enough material to create a huge, 3D form, I believe that creating small triangle pockets made my piece more alive than it would have been had I just left it as a stick figure.
I had to make sure that my piece would stay balanced in the end, so I tried to make two large pyramid shapes on each side. While I succeeded in making it balanced, the movement is interrupted by the large plastic bits I was forced to use due to lack of resources.
I had to make sure that my piece would stay balanced in the end, so I tried to make two large pyramid shapes on each side. While I succeeded in making it balanced, the movement is interrupted by the large plastic bits I was forced to use due to lack of resources.
Reflection
Overall, I think that my final project was a success. The use of capitalistic materials ended up being more symbolistic than I could hope for it to be. The three-dimensional foray also was a strong success -- although it started out as a simple stick figure like object, the triangular pockets added that extra dimension as well as negative space that made the project stand out and look like it was planned from the get-go. The relation to recycled materials from my inspiration also helped give somewhat of a cultural aspect to it; Starbucks is associated with America and white teenagers and relating it to a nearly extinct savannah animal that is being poached is a contrast that another medium wouldn't have displayed.