Sacred Vessel
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Title: Roots of Knowledge
Medium: Clay Size: 7 cm x 4 cm x 16 cm March 2016 Exhibit Text: This piece represents my values of having knowledge and why it became so important for me to strive to achieve. It was inspired by Pablo Picasso's cubism sculpture, 'Head of a Woman' and African Culture tribal masks. This piece was self-made. |
Process
First, I thought about what 'Scared Vessel' actually means. Sacred can be anything from ideas, values, religion, morals, or innocence. While a vessel, is object that holds something inside of it. It was challenging for me to formulate ideas, however I began to think of things that were important to me, that being my education. Then, I began to consider all of the things that symbolize education, which are books, an apple, a light bulb, and an owl. While I was researching sculptures of owls, I noticed some similarities to tribal masks, and African culture. I decided I wanted to create an owl, and drew a few sketches.
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Next, I had to make my clay. I mixed wet and dry clay to create a decent consistency, then placed it all in the pug mill. Once I did this, I was able to slowly push down the handle and wait for it to come out the other end. Luckily, I only had to put it through twice until I created a consistency I could work with. The first thing I formed was the head, and added all its details. Then I formed the body separately and attached them once I was done. Once my piece was almost dry, I used a tool to scrap off access clay to make the edges more bold and the piece itself more smooth.
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Meaning Behind Piece
'Roots of Knowledge' represents my values of having an education. I chose to create an owl, being that it is sacred and a symbol of wisdom, intelligence, and wealth. I take my education seriously because my parents were not able to go to college, and I have witnessed the struggle of finding a decent paying job with only a high school diploma.
Artistic Inspiration
My artistic inspiration comes from Pablo Picasso, an influential artist during the 20th century. He was a painter, printmaker, sculptor, and Spanish draftsman and was involved in the symbolism, surrealism, and cubism movements. His cubism period was between 1909 to 1912, and he created 'Head of a Woman' in 1909. I can relate to his inspiration for the beauty of sculptures of anonymous artists in Africa because I was also inspired by African culture, and their tribal masks. Each mask symbolized a unique meaning, and in my piece I wanted to resemble something sacred to me, which is 'knowledge'.
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Reflection
This was the most difficult piece I faced. It was difficult because it was hard for me to think of ideas or objects that were valuable to me. I tend to over think myself. I plan on adding books to form stairs up to the owl to show my growth of knowledge. It will include childhood books all the way up to college books.