CHAPTER 6

SCULPTURE
(Week 6)

MY JOURNEY

Sculpture, an artistic form in which hard

or plastic materials are worked into three-
dimensional art objects. The designs may be
embodied in freestanding objects, in reliefs on
surfaces, or in environments ranging from
tableaux to contexts that envelop the spectator.
An enormous variety of media may be used,
including clay, wax, stone, metal, fabric, glass,
wood, plaster, rubber, and random “found”
objects. Materials may be carved, modelled,
moulded, cast, wrought, welded, sewn,
assembled, or otherwise shaped and combined.
In this chapter, you will know the origin
and importance of sculpture, the types, media, and
techniques of sculpture. This will be give you the
ability to make your own sculpture at the end of
the chapter.

MY EXPECTATIONS

At the end of this chapter, the students should be able to:

1. discuss the origin of sculpture;

2. recognize the importance of sculpture;
3. demonstrate knowledge about the type, medium and technique of sculpture;
4. display an ability to make sculpture.
 MY INITIAL TASKS

As a preliminary activity for the topic, please reflect on the following questions:

1. Why are sculptures made and then displayed in

buildings or public areas? What stories or messages
can these sculptures tell us?
2. Is sculpture better than paintings? Why?
3. If you design a relief sculpture for yourself, what
story would you tell?
4. Imagine that you are looking at a statue. How do you
describe it? Does the appearance of the surface of
the material influence your feelings or thoughts?
How?

MY READINGS

The Origin of Sculpture

S
culpture is from the Latin word sculpere which means “to carve.” The tools used in
sculpture are varied and is changing throughout history. It engages our sense
differently than paintings because it occupies space as a three-dimensional mass
through carving, casting modeling or assembling materials (Sheldon,
1968). It has sought to produce artworks that are as permanent and is working in durable and
expensive materials such as bronze granite, limestone, marble, and stone. More rarely, precious
metals such as gold, ivory, jade, and silver were used for chryselephantine works. More common
and less expensive materials were also used for broader consumption, like cast metals, ceramics,
glass, and hardwoods.

The sculpture has long been one of the most popular forms of fine arts and one of the most
beautiful representations of the humankind. It was also used to represent societal concerns, such
as morality, politics, and religion (Witcombe, 1997). For many of years, scuplture has filled
many roles in human life. For example, the earliest sculpture was made to supply magical help to
trackers, to represent gods, and to hope of making their ancient kings becomes immortal.
 Most common purpose of sculpture during the ancient time is associated with religion.
Different images like a human-made object revered for the spirit are familiar in many cultures.
One of the oldest sculptures discovered is an ivory statuette, dating approximately 30,000 BCE
from a cave at Hohlenstein-Stadel, Germany called Löwenmensch (which means a“lion-
human”). This Paleolithic period statue is about 12” tall and depicts a human figure with a feline
face.

Another very iconic and famous piece of sculpture is “the Sphinx” of Egypt. This sculpture
of an image of the pharaoh Khafreand is part of a funerary complex for the pharaoh. Egyptian
sculpture and all Egyptian art were on the belief in a life after death wherein the body of their
ruler (the pharaoh) was preserved carefully and buried with some goods with him to provide for
his needs forever. The Egyptians often combined features from various creatures to symbolize
ideas. For example, the head of the pharaoh Khafre is added to the bowing figure of a lion to
form the Great Sphinx. This type of masterpiece suggests the combination of human intelligence
and animal strength. The Great Sphinx of Egypt is an enormous sandstone sculpture, measuring
240’ ft. Long and 65’ ft. High.

Importance of Sculpture

The sculpture is a perceptive-regeneration of reality through the use of three- dimensional

form. As a specialized work of art, its objective is to exemplify a concept by forming a visual
equivalent. Since the shape is the dominant characteristic of sculptures, the human body and
animals have been its primary subject. They are constructed using bronze, clay, ivory as their
mediums.

Likewise, the making of Sculpture is with the idea of expressing religious, personal, and
political views. This kind of artwork is meant to create a sense of patriotism, pride, greatness and
spiritual respect. Statues and sculptures have always been an integral part of museums and art
history. They become more popular as decoration items in private homes and office facilities.
Sculptures and miniatures have also become more popular as decoration items, and in the long
term, valuable art investments.

Types of Sculptures

Bust. A bust is a sculpted and painted representation of the upper

part of the human figure such as the head, neck, shoulders, chest or breast.
 Statue. A statue is a life-size or a larger size of a sculpture of a
person or an animal, made of metal, stone or wood. The world's tallest
statue is the 420 feet (128 meters) Spring Temple Buddha in Henan,
China.

Architectural. Architectural
sculpture is a universal classification
used to describe a structural design
such as buildings, bridges, burial
chamber and other big projects. It is
from a brand of materials which
includes carved stone such as
brownstone, cast iron, machine
pressed sheet zinc, terra cotta,
concrete and other architectural
supplies.

Medium and techniques

Sculpture techniques have the aim of providing practical and technical support through
several procedures. These processes are either additive (added material) or subtractive
(material is removed or carved out). Sculptures primarily use four basic techniques, namely:

Carving. It is a procedure in which the artists cut away objects until reached the desired
form. Various tools are used, depending the materials to be carved and the statue to which the
work has progressed.

a. Stone carving- It is a type of sculpture which requires patience and planning. It is a

shaping activity of pieces of rough natural stone through the use of essential hand tools
like hammer and chisel.
b. Wood carving- It is the art of shaping objects of wood using cutting tools. It is done
through a specialized carving knife (used to cut or smooth the wood), the slicer saw
(used to cut off chunks of wood), the chisel (used for lines and cleaning up flat surfaces),
and the gouge (used in carving hollows, rounds, and sweeping curves).
 Casting. Casting is a method by which a liquid material is usually poured into a
frame or pattern, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then
allowed to harden. It has two types, namely:

a. Glass casting- It is a shaping activity of pieces of rough natural stone

through the use of essential hand tools like hammer and chisel.
b. Slip casting- It is a technique for the mass-production of pottery,
especially for shapes not easily made on a wheel.

Molding. Molding sculpture is an additive process. It is the working of soft or

plastic materials(like clay and wax) by hand to build up or shape to create a form.

Assembling. Assembling is an additive process of gathering and joining

different materials to create an assembled artwork. An example of assemblage is
Martin Puryear's network of welded and sandblasted stainless steel tubes whose joints
are bound together by strands of silver and patented bronze.

Basic Sculpture Terms

a. Armature- It is skeleton-like framework used to support the building of paper-

mâché, usually made or stiff wire.
b. Assemblage- It is a three-dimensional art assembly of various materials, often
taken from scraps, junk, or various natural or human-made objects.
c. Base- It is the portion of the work on which the sculpture rest.
d. Craftsmanship- It is a skill with which one uses tools and materials in producing art.
e. Plaster of Paris- It is an excellent white powder which sets hard when blended
in the water.
f. Freestanding- It refers to a method when a sculpture is intended to view from all sides.
h. Manipulation- It is a process of shaping an object by a skilled worker.
i. Replica- It refers to a precise reproduction of an artwork.