Observing Hands in 2 and 3 Dimensions

After 8th graders observed their hands through drawing (blind contour, continuous line, wrong hand), we practiced observing hands in three dimensions. The students followed along with a video clip from Ceramic Arts Daily where an artist made a 1:1 sculpture of her hand starting with a slab, adding, subtracting, and shaping.Awesome hand sculpting video: http://ceramicartsdaily.org/bookstore/figure-sculpting-in-clay-with-melisa-cadell/

Some students kept their hands flat while others posed them and/or added a base.

The students could glaze their projects in any color they chose.

I honestly can't remember what color we were trying to make here, but I love the effect of the 3 glazes combined on the hand above. I think it was gray, fuchsia, and petal pink.

In case you were wondering, 2 days to sculpt, 1 day to glaze.

Not 8th graders in this photo, but here are some high school students observing their hands with the same drawing techniques.