Mrs. Avra’s Ceramics II students started off the year by sampling a dozen textures. Texture is an Element of Art that describes and interprets the perceived or actual surface feeling of an object. Students were encouraged to investigate textures from nature by taking a walk outside, exploring their homes from garage to kitchen, and observing textures during their day-to-day lives while filling up a sketchbook page of 12 texture thumbnails, some in color, exploring high contrast, overlapping, depth, and the four qualities of line: thin to thick, light to dark, straight to undulating, and continuous to interrupted. After compiling their 12 sample textures, students selected a minimum of 6 textures emphasizing the most dynamic, visually interesting designs to fill a 360* hollow clay rattle.
It is art serendipity in the classroom as clay is one of the oldest art media and rattles are one of the oldest instruments. As an elevated round-two approach to their original Emoji-themed rattle from Ceramics I, Ceramics II rattles are larger in size with a complex detailed design, and students had the opportunity to use a different clay body, red earthenware. After completing their texture rattle designs, students made at least 20 beads from small, to medium, and large to create the multi-pitch sound after being inserted into their connected, hollow pinch pots. To create their textures, students varied the surface by subtracting clay, attaching clay, carving, etching, and using a myriad of tools to manipulate the feel of the clay. Students discussed their work with their peers, received informal feedback, edited their plans, and reworked their designs to execute optimum revisions.
