Relief Tile Project Vocabulary
Four Basic Sculpture Techniques
Sculptors primarily use four basic techniques. The processes are either subtractive (material is
removed or carved out) or additive (material is added).
1. Carving: Carving involves cutting or chipping away a shape from a mass of stone, wood,
or other hard material. Carving is a subtractive process whereby material is
systematically eliminated from the outside in.
2. Casting: Sculptures that are cast are made from a material that is melted down—usually
a metal—that is then poured into a mold. The mold is allowed to cool, thereby hardening
the metal, usually bronze. Casting is an additive process.
3. Modeling: Modeled sculptures are created when a soft or malleable material (such as
clay) is built up (sometimes over an armature) and shaped to create a form. Modeling is
an additive process.
4. Assembling: Sculptors gather and join different materials to create an assembled
sculpture. Assembling is an additive process.
Clay Terminologies
1. CLAY: Mud; moist, sticky dirt. In ceramics, clay is fine-grained, firm earthy material that
is plastic when wet, brittle when dry, and very hard when heated.
2. TYPES OF CLAY: The most common ceramic clays are: Earthenware
Stoneware Porcelain
3. EARTHENWARE: Earthenware is a low-fire clay that is porous and not waterproof.
4. WEDGING: A technique to make clay plastic and remove air pockets. The clay is
thoroughly kneaded and cut before use in modeling or pottery.
5. THREE BASIC DRYING STAGES:
a. PLASTIC: Clay is plastic when it can be easily manipulated - modeled, molded or
pressed into a desired shape; malleable.
b. LEATHER HARD: In ceramics, leather hard is a state in which clay has lost
moisture to evaporation, but has not yet completely hardened. The clay is damp
enough to be joined to other pieces with scoring and slip.
c. BONE DRY: In ceramics, greenware which is thoroughly room dried is said to be
bone dry.
6. THREE BASIC HAND BUILDING TECHNIQUES:
a. PINCH POT - Pinching is a fundamental pottery technique. Making a pinch-pot is
pressing the thumb into a ball of clay, and drawing the clay out into a pot by
repeatedly squeezing the clay between the thumb and fingers.
b. COIL - Long, snakelike ropes of clay that are used in making pottery. The coil
method of making pottery involves building the walls of a pot with a series of coils
into the required shape.
c. SLAB BUILT - Clay slabs are cut to shape and joined together using scoring and
wet clay called slip. Scoring and applying slip to such roughened surfaces creates a
bond that holds the pieces together.
7. RELIEF: A type of sculpture in which form projects from a background. There are three
types of relief: high, low, and sunken.
i. In high relief, the forms stand far out from the background.
ii. In low relief (best known as bas-relief), they are shallow.
iii. In sunken relief, the backgrounds are cut back and the points in highest
relief are level with the original surface of the material being carved.
8. GREENWARE: Greenware generally refers to unfired pottery.
9. BISQUE: Bisque clay has been fired once but has not been glazed. Also called biscuit.
10. KILN: A kiln is a special oven or furnace that can reach very high temperatures and is
used to bake, or fire clay.
11. SCORING: Making scratches in pieces of clay to be joined together is called scoring.
12. CLAY SLIP: Slip is made by mixing clay with water. Slip is a fine, liquid form of clay
used with scoring to cement together parts that have been formed separately.
13. GLAZE: Glaze is a thin coating of minerals which produces a glassy transparent or
colored coating on bisque ware. Glaze is fixed by firing the bisque ware in a kiln. Two kinds
of glaze are:
1. Underglaze is liquid clay mixed with minerals to produce a color that is painted on
the piece prior to the bisque firing.
2. Overglaze/Glaze is a glassy colored coating or a glassy, transparent coating that
is painted on top of underglaze.
Terminologies for Sculpture Relief Tile
Name:________________________________Class_______
Day 1
1. Cutting or chipping away at a material is called __________________.
Is it an additive or subtractive process? _________________________.
2. Clay that has not been fired is called ____________________________.
3. A type of sculpture in which form projects from a background.__________________.
4. Making scratches in pieces of clay to be joined together is called___________________.
5. In ceramics, greenware which is thoroughly room dried is said to be ________
______.
6. Sculptures are created when a soft or malleable material (such as clay) is built up and
shaped to create a form is called ___________________________.
Is it an additive or subtractive process? _________________________.
7. A state in which clay has lost moisture to evaporation, but has not yet completely
hardened. The clay is damp enough to be joined to other pieces with scoring and slip. This
state is called ____________________
____________________.
8. A technique to make clay plastic and remove air pockets. The clay is thoroughly kneaded
and cut before use in modeling or pottery. This is called _______________________.
9. This is liquid clay mixed with minerals to produce a color that is painted on the piece prior
to the bisque firing.___________________________________
10.
A special oven or furnace that can reach very high temperatures and is used to
bake, or fire clay______________________.
11.
Sculptors gather and join different materials to create an assembled sculpture. This
type of working is called ______________________________
Is it an additive or subtractive process?_______________________
12.
Clay that is can be easily manipulated - modeled, molded or pressed into a desired
shape; malleable is called ___________________________________.
14.
Sculptures that are made from a material that is melted down—usually a metal—
that is then poured into a mold is called _____________________________.
Is it an additive or subtractive process?_______________________
15.
_____________________is a glassy colored coating or a glassy, transparent
coating that is painted on top of underglaze.
16.
A fine, liquid form of clay used with scoring to cement together parts that have
been formed separately is called _____________________ _________________.
17.
Clay slabs are cut to shape and joined together using scoring and wet clay called
slip. This type of clay technique is called ________________ _______________.
18.
This is a low-fire clay it’s porous and not waterproof, it is called ____________
19.
Long, snakelike ropes of clay that are used in making pottery are called________