Sculpting The Sea

At Tafe I'm loving my sculpture class. This Semester we're learning mould-making. We've been set the task of making a sculpture of small pieces that connect or interlock in some way. The originals are created from clay. I love clay. It's a bit hard on my hands but there's something magic about it, the transformation of base material to artwork. I've decided to make a small seascape, moulding waves and boats that can be fitted together. Here's my first test mock up in clay:

This is the clay boat, the silicon mould, and the plaster boat made from it:
The wave shapes are more complex structures. I had to cut the clay original out of the mould:

Then make a two part interlocking plaster shell to hold the silicon in place when it's filled with wet runny plaster:

Which all results in this plaster cast of a wave:

I've been buss-ing in every Monday for a 9am start, which is hard as I'm not getting to sleep until around 3am at the moment. I'm coping really well with the public transport though, that can be something I find stressful but I haven't had any issues. My new super fast smart phone is awesome and makes using public transport so much easier. My car broke down for a few days recently and I kept all my appointments on trains and buses, very pleased with myself. So much easier when Google maps does all the route planning instantly! I'm loving all the extra walking too, it's setting off a bit of tendinitis but nothing severe. Summer is going to make that hard so I'm making the most of the last of the cool weather where I'm able to be more active. The early mornings are surreal but manageable for now. I've a few extra ones coming up, like the Rufus May training, and that wipes me out. My schedule is pretty packed at the moment, I'm needing all the down time I can make in it. Worth it though. :-)