Oldenburg Clay Food

We wrapped up the year with a study of Pop Art, always a favorite of mine!  We touched on Warhol and Lichtenstein before delving into the world of Claes Oldenburg.  He is such a fun artist to teach children about- something about his sculptures that evokes  childlike whimsy!

With my 2nd, 4th and 5th graders we created clay food.  I was very open ended with my students on this project (and happy that I was such!).  I reviewed three clay techniques with them: slab, coil and pinch and we discussed ways that these techniques could lend themselves nicely to creating food.  The only other guideline I set was that it had to be food and whatever they created must be recognizable!  

We painted the clay instead of glazed it; partly due to time constraints and partly due to my hope to have these look even more realistic.  We reviewed how to mix complementary colors to create brown and then discussed shades and tints.

Here's some of the fantastic and diverse results!

Smores!  Isn't this excellent!!!

Hot cocoa complete with marshmallows and a candy cane

A tiny whole chicken with gravy

A burger with all the fixings

Cotton candy!  Isn't it to die for?

I have more pictures on my school computer that I'll have to find.  What a success!  It was a fun project that took just over 2 class periods to complete.