06.03.2019
For my four main sculptures within the installation I have been making them with a plastic base polymer clay. As you have to bake the clay for hardening once you've finished the making process, the base needs to be oven-proof. For my base I have used aluminium foil tightly packed and moulded into the shape of the animal I was making. I would then apply the layer of clay similar to a layer of skin. Polymer clay is typically used for smaller scale sculptures or objects as its quite an expensive material. But as using a plastic base clay was important within the context and story of my work, a smooth base was imperative to reduce the amount of clay being used for filling lumps and bumps. Creating a dense base is also key to the sculpture keeping its form. 

Using an array of images of Sea Turtles I then added the layer of clay very carefully creating lots of detail within it's skin and shell. After baking I used an acrylic white paint to create a mannequin feel to add to the shop details, as I would with all sculptures. I also will add a shiny glaze to their eyes to create a teary sadness within them. 

Making the Seal, Penguin and Turtle sculptures were quite straight forward as they would be free standing on a surface. The Seagull/Stork sculpture was slightly more complicated. Originally the photo the sculpture was based on was of a Stork, but reading into the measurements and scale of the bird, it was too large to recreate. So I then adapted the sculpture to become a Seagull. The next issue I had was calculating a way of making the sculpture so that it had the least amount of separate pieces as possible. My oven is quite wide so I was very lucky that I didn't have to make the wings separate and attach them afterwards or even on site. This would've had its risks as if they were too heavy they could've snapped off and I would've had to work out a type of attachment that could be embedded in the wings before baking. I decided to make the legs separate as when it would've been in the oven baking they would be at too much of an awkward angle and likely be damaged. 

Also as the bird was to be hung from the ceiling with fishing line, I had to make the bird with an attachment to allow me to hang it. This attachment had to be strong and have the weight of the sculpture evenly distributed so that it wasn't too heavy and would break off. I thought about how I can create a strong enough loop within the base and decided to use a thin but strong metal wire to wrap around the aluminium base of the bird, and twisted into a circle above the surface of where the clay would be. This has allowed me to have a subtle but sturdy way of suspending the bird.

            

I had made the base out of aluminium foil but as the wings were so thin they weren't sticking out in flight mode but instead flapping down. This stopped my making process until I could work out a way to keep them upright. Thinking about materials I could use I purchased some bamboo skewers. Taking 4 skewers at 30cm in length I pushed them through the aluminium foil and around an inch or two into the birds body so it would hold. Mirroring this on the other wing they stood in perfect position. 
Using the same idea of wooden skewers but in cocktail stick form, I created a thin base of aluminium foil covered in clay with an inch of the sticks uncovered to create the bird's legs. By baking these first and separate, this allowed me to work out where they would be attached and remove a small circle of clay. This is so that when I attach them they will go straight into the aluminium base, slotting inside the body, making no clue that they were made separately. When I attach the legs I will put a small blob of hot glue to keep them secure. 

Once the sculpture was ready to bake the wings had dropped ever so slightly, this meant I had to bend them to get them into the oven. This was seemingly no issue until I removed the sculpture and it began cooling. From where in the cooling period the angle of the wings changed from when it was baking I started to get some severe cracks in the clay. Luckily they were only on one side of the wings so didn't damage the structure of the sculpture. I then filled these cracks with some glue which seemed to hold it together. 

Other than a couple issues with the Seagull sculpture I'm happy with how the sculptures have turned out and have enjoyed the making process of trial and error.