Nature Clay Mobile

Makey-Makey Art Camp at the Blackfoot Art Center is all about (you guessed it)  MAKING STUFF! 

We started outdoors with some beautiful circle weaving using looms made of natural sticks. Next, we switched to airdry clay to create a nature imprint hanging mobile. This was a 2-day project because the clay needed to dry overnight. 

Artists first explored our green space in search of interesting objects that could be impressed into clay. They worked the clay until it was soft and rolled it out to create a slab. Then the pressed each object into the clay and cut around it with a table knife to create a piece for their mobile. Some objects had very distinct textures (such as juniper bush evergreen needles), while others were flatter and less easily seen (like leaves). 

Once all of the clay was impressed with an object, we then flipped over each piece and impressed a new object into the back of the piece. Some artists embellished a piece of two with additional markings using clay tools. We also cut out a hole into each piece for hanging. 

The next day we painted each piece with acrylic craft paint. This was a quick process, especially working outside on a warm day! Artists chose natural colors and painted one side of a piece, ensuring the the impressed areas will filled with paint. Then, before the paint dried, they wiped off the piece slightly with a damp paper towel so the impressions would pop out, and repeated the process on the other side. 

We sprayed them with acrylic gloss sealant (Krylon) and began the process of stringing them to a birch stick.  We strung a few pony beads to a piece of jute for each piece before tying it on. Then we laid everything out on the table to decide what will go where. 

We found that placing the larger piece in the middle helps to balance the mobile, and placing the others at various levels keeps them from banging together (these aren't chimes - and they could break!).