Title: A Cup to Myself
Size: 13.716 cm x 4.318 cm
Medium: Clay, Found object, Spray paint
April 2016
Exhibition Text: For my piece, I was inspired by the religion of Catholicism. I was influenced by the looks of a Chalice, and I wanted to create a Chalice that was filled with my Mexican heritage instead of the ¨blood of Christ¨.
Artistic Inspiration:
I was inspired by the work of Michelangelo, specifically the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo created the paintings on the ceiling for about a four year period. The religious paintings depict scenes from the Old Testament. This artwork is considered to be in the art movement of Renaissance Art.
"Khan Academy." Khan Academy. Web. 08 May 2016. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/high-ren-florence-rome/michelangelo/a/michelangelo-ceiling-of-the-sistine-chapel>. |
Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, 1508-1512, Fresco. Vatican City, Rome.
|
Cultural Inspiration:
For cultural inspiration, I was inspired by the religion of Catholicism. I'm Catholic, and I've never done any art related to religion, and this seemed like a good subject for this project. Catholicism is believed to have originated in the Roman-Latin Empire in 1st-5th centuries C.E. The religion has since developed over time, and currently has around 1.1 billion followers.
"Chalice and Paten with Red Stones." (20.3 x 10.2 cm) Aquinas and More Catholic Goods. Web. 04 Apr. 2016. Made in Poland.
<http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-gifts/chalice-and-paten-with-red-stones/sku/8517>. |
"24kt. Gold Plated Satin Ciborium." (21.2 x10.7 cm) Aquinas and More Catholic Goods. Web. 04 May 2016.
<http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-gifts/24kt.-gold-plated-satin-ciborium/sku/96462>. |
Process:
|
1.) I began by creating my own clay using a pugmill. I mixed in hard and soft clay to make the right amount of softness for what I wanted to make.
2.) After making my clay, I wedged it out for a few minutes. 3.) Once I felt that my clay was wedged out enough, I began to make my Chalice by creating three separate parts. I made my base, then the Chalice's stem, and finally the cup/bowl itself. 4.) First, with the base, I took a small amount of clay and rolled it into a ball. Then once I made the ball into a circle and shaped it to be as circular as possible, I made it flat. 5.) Once I had gotten it to the shape I had wanted it to be, I began to slip-and-score the base. 6.) I quickly made the stem of the Chalice, slipped-and-scored the bottom, and connected it to the base. 7.) Once the base and the stem were connected, I started to make the bowl. I made the shape of the bowl into a hemispherical shape, and tried to smooth it out as best as I can. 8.) After everything was connected, I began to do some modifications with the shape of everything. I started to smooth certain edges around |
Sketches:
|
For my sketches I drew:
|
Meaning Behind My Piece:
In Catholicism and in other religions, the Chalice holds sacramental wine also known as the 'blood of Christ'. For my piece, instead of wine, I filled the Chalice with cloth that was red, white, and green. The cloth's colors represent my Mexican heritage, and how my heritage means a lot to me and my family. The Chalice itself is also sacred, for as mentioned before that I'm Catholic, and my religion plays a big part in who I am.
Reflection:
After finishing my clay piece, I reflected on the successes and challenges I faced while working on the project. A few challenges I had was trying to keep my stem connected to the base. Every once in a while, my stem would break off the base while I tried to smooth my Chalice, and after successfully keeping the stem connected to the base once I finished, my Chalice began to dry and once it dried, the stem broke off the base again. While I had a few setbacks, I also had my successes. I wanted my Chalice to be as smooth as possible, and while it isn't perfectly smooth, it was smooth enough to a point where I was happy with it.
Additional Sources: "Library." Roman Catholic Origins, Roman Catholic History, Roman Catholic Beliefs. Web. 14 Apr. 2016. <http://www.patheos.com/Library/Roman-Catholicism>.