Sculpture 1, ARTS 140 is an introduction to visual thinking in three dimensional form and space. Its objectives are to teach concepts and develop some of the many skills used in conceiving and making sculpture. A tour of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden initiates the semester and provides a sample of 19th and 20th century sculpture as a context for the work to be done in the studio. The intent of this class is to encourage creativity through the interaction of ideas, tools and materials. Sculpture offers students the opportunity to exercise there sensibilities and objectify their ideas as three dimensional form.

The semester, is divided between four projects. The first is a sculpture construction based on a rectangular linear wooden frame, a kind of skeleton, to be compartmentalized and "fleshed-out" to suit the various imaginations of each member of the class. A complementary small, construction, will be assigned at the same time. The next project will be realized by the subtractive method--carving. The form of the sculpture, an "organic-abstraction"(definition and explication at discussion) will be revealed from a cast block of molding plaster. The final sculpture assignment is to be modeled in clay and is therefore made by the additive process. This clay model will be cast in plaster from a waste mold. Each assignment will begin with illustrative slides and a lecture describing the use of tools and materials, and their potential for generating new forms and stimulating ideas. Every project concludes with a group presentation, critique and discussion. On these occasions we will compare and contrast the various approaches presented and consider some larger philosophical issues. In addition to time spent working in class during regular classroom meetings, you should plan to spend a minimum of two additional hours a week in the studio developing your sculptures.