Photos as clarification

I have decided that a critical part of my lessons, once I start teaching, will be the inclusion of photographs during my explanations. If I intend on teaching complex strategies, such as mold making and casting, I will need to have proper documentation of the entire process, step-by-step. This might seem like an obvious realization for some, but the fact that I came to this conclusion while still in school is very important.

First of all, outside of an art school, you can't just set up a foundry in your spare room like you might with painting or illustration. The process is labor intensive, requires many different materials, and a lot of space to carry around molten metal. Needless to say, if I want to take images of the steps involved, I have to have a foundry to even do the work in.

So, this brings us back to my initial point - its a good thing that I realized the need for photos while I am still in a class with access to a foundry. Part of my Advanced Sculpture work will be attempting to establish strategies for teaching sculpture and foundry in a K-12 setting, and from this point forward I will be documenting every single step as I make my own work.

Cutting and bending steel rod.

The photos included on this page are a couple very initial steps in my current sculpture project. These photos will help to clarify the process and expectations of student work as we move through the casting process for the first time.

Fitting piece in preparation to take a mold.

   I also think that photos of my own work, rather than those found offline, are a positive reinforcement for students. An art teacher needs to bring out their own work every once in a while to set a positive example for their students. Let your students understand that you actually do know what your'e talking about, and set the bar high for quality work.

The wax cast resulting from a mold of my face.