Fifth grade art students are currently creating relief sculptures of sea animals. Students used the grid method to draw from photos. Some of their drawings are shown below. They transferred their drawings of aquatic animals to Styrofoam sheets which they have been cutting out with hacksaw blades. One end of the blade has been wrapped with paper and tape to make a protective handle. The form of each animal will be built with paper and tape on the Styrofoam base, which most students are reinforcing with splints made of popsicle sticks and tape. The back of the sculpture will remain flat so that it can hang on a wall when finished. After sculpting the form of the sea animal, students will apply paper mache and glitter glue to create a colorful skin. They will make hanging hooks with paper clips and screws.
A relief sculpture is a form of art that projects from a background surface. When hung, these sea animal sculptures will appear to emerge from the wall, in the way that the head on a coin projects from a flat surface.
