Wednesday, July 1, 2009

How to make a Giacometti statue?

Do you know the work of Giacometti?
He was a Swiss sculptor, painter, draftsman and printer. His trademark are the stretched statues that look like they are never ending.
In this how to, I will show you how to make a similar statue so that you can make your own Giacometti. It looks a bit messy but it's fun to make - especially with children - and the result is super!
Here is what you need: plaster, a plastic yoghurt container, plaster of Paris bandages, a container with a bit of water, black ecoline, wire, paper tape, clothespins and scissors.Cut two small pieces of wire and fold them double.
Clasp the folded pieces of wire between a clothespin. Add another clothespin on the other side so that it can rest on a container later.
Cut off the upper part of the plastic yoghurt container.
Fill it with plaster.
Take the clothespegs and make 'em rest on the yoghurt container. Make sure that the ends of the wire are in the plaster. We will attach the legs of our statue onto them later on.
While the feet set, you can work on the body. We make it with wire and paper tape.
Cut a piece of wire of about 60cm or 24 inches and fold it double.
Make a loop in the middle and twist it around a bit. This will be the head.
Cut a piece of wire of about 50cm or 20inches and fold it double towards the middle where you attach it onto the body beneath the head. Make sure to make a little loop for the hands too.
Twist the body to create a belly and legs.
Then start putting paper tape around the wire to create a bit of tickness.
When that's done, it kind of looks like a mummy.
Now take the little yoghurt container with the plaster and cut away the plastic.
Then attach the legs to the bottom part.
This is how it will look.
Then cut pieces of the plaster bandages of about 15cm or 6inches and cut them in half again.
Now put the strips very shortly in a bit of water.
Then drape the pieces around the frame.
Let it dry for a while and when it's nearly dry, apply ecoline paint to it.
Doing this while the plaster is still damp, it will give an antique effect to the statue.
So, here is the result:Will you give it a try?