Sculpting human figures and faces

“Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” — Michelangelo. Sculpting, the act of finding art within a block of stone or clay, is one of the most refined forms of artwork. Although there are many materials you can work with, from metal to stone, it’s best to begin with a more malleable substance like clay. With tools that include polymer clay, an aspiring sculptor gets the opportunity to retry until the output is to their preference. While retrying, the student gets the opportunity to perfect skills.

Often, sculptures have been the strongest indicators of what happened in history. From artefacts used in daily life, to artwork, sculptures have often been around for centuries, telling stories for all future generations. Sculpture, like most art, is more than just a feast for the eyes: it’s a story being told.

In a beginner’s course for sculpting, one of the first polymer clay sculpting techniques taught are sculpting the human head. The following pointers will help you understand sculpting better:

Source: Barney Joseph’s course page on ipassio

1. Planning the sculpture: The first step to creating your sculpture is to figure out what your sculpture is going to be of. In this case, since you will be sculpting a human head in the clay, the first step is to figure out who your muse is.
2. Gather supplies: The next step to sculpting the human head in clay is to get all the supplies you need. The tools you will require need to be able to help you scrape off excess clay, cut out shapes and shape the actual sculpture.
3. Study the subject: Studying your subject helps you understand the intricacies and crevices on their faces. This helps you process how you can emulate the same in your sculpture. Although sculpting the human body in clay is also something beginners learn. However, perfecting the human head first is a basic requirement. From this, you will be able to move on to other sculptures.
4. Get the clay ready: The first step to actually working with the tools you have collected is to get your clay ready. Kneading the clay and getting it into the right size is important. This also prevents cracks in the clay, making it smooth and easy to work with. This also helps visualize better and work with the clay better.
5. Sculpt a silhouette: Sculpting a silhouette helps understand what the final outcome will look like. With this, you will be able to figure out the right proportions and the necessary features. It also helps you understand if you will be able to get the final output right. If you’re looking to learn how to sculpt the human figure, the first level is understanding the sculpting of the head and the silhouette teaches you that.
6. Add features: Adding features like the eyes and the nose comes next. This helps give your sculpture life. What looked like a featureless face on a lump of clay will slowly take form under your hands.
7. Fix errors: Once you add the features and do the detailing, you will be able to fix any errors that you spot when compared to your subject. Following this, you will be able to add any finishing touches, including colour, and finally, bake your clay structure. This completes the sculpting process.

While using polymer clay helps fix errors at every step until baked, it is not as easy as it seems. Sculpting is an art, and art takes patience. While learning to sculpt online, you will be required to be patient and repeat every lesson until you’ve achieved perfection.