This was a fun lesson – another one of my inventions: Greek urns. They are made of Pariscraft, not clay. We used the plastic water bowls as molds, so it was a stagger start since I don’t have very many of them.
Students placed 4 layers of plaster of Paris on the bowl. In the following class, they were in a déja vu re-run because we needed two bowl molds for the armature. Next, they added plastic cups (from Subway, Wendy’s, and various cottage cheese varieties). I cut the hole at the bottom of the top cup and at the top of one of the plaster bowls. They added plaster to the separate pieces then taped the bowls together with masking tape and went back to the plaster station to complete the step. (Aluminum foil for the handles.)
This was followed by painting the urn one solid color and then applying Greek patterns – and more color.
They are stunning. I love them! Really substantial two and three feet sculptures. I want them to write a note to their future selves and store it inside the vessels. I am always thinking about my thirteen-year-old self. Is she proud of who I have become? (I know she is!) The note would serve as an artifact, the way Ancient Greek urns found in an archeological dig teach us about the culture that once was. So fun!
