Printmaking Techniques on Clay

My daughter’s slip transfer ceramic wall piece “Ripply River”

My marionette class is winding down at the Art Student’s League of Denver- well actually ramping up into a crescendo of activity as we finish our marionettes.  Tomorrow is our last day of camp, yet it feels like we just started.  The clay pieces went into the kiln on Tuesday evening and spent the overnight on low in an attempt to dry them out completely before firing.  They were fired yesterday and I will unload the ceramic  heads, hands and feet this afternoon so that we can finish constructing our marionettes by the end of class tomorrow – I’m keeping my fingers crossed that all the little pieces survived!  Otherwise, on to plan “C” for those affected.  Incidentally, I don’t know what plan C is – but will figure it out if necessary.

In the meantime, I’ve started writing the lesson plan for next week’s class titled, Beyond Silly Putty – which is basically an exploration of different printmaking techniques on clay.  (I didn’t name my class, btw- though I like it)  This class won’t require as much prep work as the marionette class since it’s an area of clay exploration that I’m very much interested in applying to my own work.    I’ve already taught a couple of the projects that we’re going to make next week in my after school kid’s clay classes last school year.

Some of the projects we’re going to make:

• slip transfers
• handmade roulettes and stamps to use and keep
• relief printing on clay and unlike the linoleum that I carve for my own work, we’re going to use something similar to this which is a Styrofoam type printing plate for kids which does not require the use of sharp carving tools, but uses pens, and other instruments to incise lines.
• stencils
• found objects that we can use to stamp or use as stencils
• collographs – we’re going to make our own printing plates using the contents of the recycle bin and other misc. items like rope and hot glue to make our own texture printing blocks
• paper resist designs
• if we have time, we’ll even make a “Plate-o-matic” as outlined in a recent Pottery Making Illustrated

I’m going to play it by ear as the week passes to gauge the energy and productivity level of the class.

Anna, 3rd grade, “Lucky”, slip transfer wall plaque

While I love all my student’s work, these 4 pieces are a few of my favorite slip transfer pieces that some of the kids in my class made last year.

Ryan, 4th grade, “Copper”, slip transfer wall plaque

Cassidy, 2nd grade, “Cat”, slip transfer wall plaque

These pieces along with several others were on display at the Space Gallery last April.  The kids worked very hard and were so pumped seeing their work in a professional art setting.

Needless to say, I haven’t had the energy to make any of my own work this past week and doubt that next week will be any better.  I suppose this is the down side of teaching – I find teaching inspiring, invigorating, but thoroughly exhausting.  I teach in the morning next week, instead of the afternoons that I’m teaching this week, so maybe I’ll be able to do a little something in the afternoon clay wise.

Until later,

~Cynthia