Functional Art

In this unit, the Year Four students investigated how an everyday object can be a thing of beauty. We found examples of functional art in many cultures dating back to ancient times. We also discussed how many people today use their artistic skills to design practical, yet aesthetically pleasing, items.

The students then applied clay sculpting techniques, such as pinching and rolling, to create a Chinese-inspired pot. These are similar in style to the Chinese 'dings' which are typically a 3-legged pot. The students had to pay close attention to how they attached the legs to the bowl of the pot, using the 'slip and grip' technique. Interesting patterns were applied to the outside of the dings using a variety of tools.

Once the pots were bisque fired, we had fun painting glazes onto the pots. We placed a few marbles into the bowl of each ding before the second kiln firing. We discussed how materials can change under intense heat - the clay became rock hard and, after a second firing, the glazes that were once matte in appearance, became shiny and smooth. The marbles melted into the base of the bowl and created a coloured glass base. We loved the results!