Jewelry
880 JEWELRY
1/2 year • 1/2 credit Repeatable up to 3 times
Grades 9, 10, 11, 12 • Elective • Fee
Course Description:
Welcome to the world of Jewelry! This introductory sculpture course is designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental principles, techniques, and creative processes involved in creating wearable three-dimensional artworks. Whether you are an aspiring artist or simply interested in exploring the realm of metals, this course will offer a solid foundation for unleashing your artistic potential.
Course Objectives:
Introduction to Basic Techniques: Teach students fundamental techniques like wire wrapping, bead stringing, and basic metalworking.
Material Knowledge: Familiarize students with different types of metals, gemstones, beads, and tools used in jewelry making.
Design Principles: Help students understand design concepts, such as balance, symmetry, and color theory, and how to apply them to their jewelry creations.
Safety and Equipment: Educate students on the safe and proper use of jewelry-making tools and equipment.
Skill Progression: Provide a structured approach to skill development, allowing students to progress from simple projects to more complex ones.
Project-based Learning: Encourage students to complete a series of projects that incorporate the skills and techniques they've learned.
Creativity and Personal Expression: Encourage students to express their creativity and individual style in their jewelry designs.
Technique Mastery: Work towards helping students master specific techniques, such as soldering, stone setting, or metal clay work.
Quality and Craftsmanship: Emphasize the importance of quality and craftsmanship in jewelry making, including finishing techniques and attention to detail.
Historical and Cultural Context: Provide a broader understanding of the history and cultural significance of jewelry in various societies.
HW SCHEDULE: Assigned every Monday, due every Thursday
Every week, students will turn in a sketchbook page inspirational work. This can be a combination of collected images, text, and their own drawing. The pages should reflect at least one hour of work.
Students will also be asked to critique their work using able to using the following chart. Students will choose 3-4 descriptors to talk about their work and write a 3-4 paragraph reflection of the work.
1.1 - Wire Wrapped Pin
RINGS
BIG IDEA: BEAUTY
Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate... Beauty, some might argue, is the domain of the visual artist. While some might traffic in the macabre or the abject, beauty- and all of its subjectivities- makes a strong argument for why one creates. Beauty is subject of philosophical debate, has launched a thousand ships, started and ended wars (if you believe in myth), and continues to fall us in and out of love.
Students will:
Create jewelry in a variety of different styles
Focus on design as well as function.
Learn metal techniques and safety.
Learn how to make items to measure.
Research artists and styles.
Homework for this Unit:
Homework during this unit is:
3-5 Images of a ring and how they think it is built.
1 final plan of the ring with measurements to fit the finger.
Ring assessment and reflection.
1.2 - Wire Rings
RINGS
BIG IDEA: BEAUTY
Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate... Beauty, some might argue, is the domain of the visual artist. While some might traffic in the macabre or the abject, beauty- and all of its subjectivities- makes a strong argument for why one creates. Beauty is subject of philosophical debate, has launched a thousand ships, started and ended wars (if you believe in myth), and continues to fall us in and out of love.
Students will:
Create jewelry in a variety of different styles
Focus on design as well as function.
Learn metal techniques and safety.
Learn how to make items to measure.
Research artists and styles.
Homework for this Unit:
Homework during this unit is:
3-5 Images of a ring and how they think it is built.
1 final plan of the ring with measurements to fit the finger.
Ring assessment and reflection.
1.3 - Copper 3 Ways
BIG IDEA: BEAUTY
Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate... Beauty, some might argue, is the domain of the visual artist. While some might traffic in the macabre or the abject, beauty- and all of its subjectivities- makes a strong argument for why one creates. Beauty is subject of philosophical debate, has launched a thousand ships, started and ended wars (if you believe in myth), and continues to fall us in and out of love.
Students will:
Create jewelry in a variety of different styles
Focus on design as well as function.
Learn metal techniques and safety.
Learn how to make items to measure.
Research artists and styles.
Homework for this Unit:
Homework during this unit is:
3-5 Images of a ring and how they think it is built.
1 final plan of the ring with measurements to fit the finger.
Ring assessment and reflection.
2.1 RIVETING
BIG IDEA: FUNCTION
Students will create a functional pice of jewelry that is inspired by cold connecting(using no solder).
The function of jewelry is to make a fashion statement—and of course we’ve all heard that jewelry is a means to define ourselves through adornment. But the function of jewelry is much more than that. Jewelry has two more hugely important functions—For one thing, well-made jewels are objects of beauty. The marvelous workmanship of antique and vintage findings, the glimmer of rhinestones as they reflect light, the soft glow of pearls, the grace of a beautiful necklace resting against the skin, earrings swaying seductively from earlobes, the sensuality, mystical shapes and marvelous colors of stones, make for objects that we honestly cannot live without. Beauty, is in itself, more than enough reason to wear jewelry.
But jewelry is a powerful means for us to create a story, an exciting and evocative world to dwell in, coming from the dreams that we create for ourselves. A link not only to our nostalgic past, but a link to what we dream of doing in the future.
Review measuring and jewelry techniques.
Learn how to saw, drill, and cold connect metal.
Research of styles and artists in relation to metals.
Review safety
2.2 CHAIN:
BIG IDEA: REPETITION
Students will create a chain of their own design out of metal using basic metal smithing skills.
The type of link you choose for your chain will determine how easily it will kink and how likely it will be to break.
For example, flat chains such as the omega chain and the herringbone chain are more prone to twisting. Chains should not catch on your clothes or twist awkwardly. A kinked necklace could be very hard or impossible to repair. It is also important to decide how thick the links should be, and this depends not only on your style preference but also on whether you will be wearing a pendant. If you are going to put some kind of charm on your chain, make sure it is thick enough to bear the additional weight. Make sure your chain has a clasp that closes well and is not easy to break.
Review of soldering and tools in metals
Review of measuring in metals
Review of safety
Learn new tools, metals, and other materials that will be useful in chain design
Research of styles and artists
2.3 CASTING
BIG IDEA: WHAT ARE THE LIMITS
Students will create a piece of jewelry using lost wax casting techniques as well as new rubber and plastic casting techniques. Lost-wax method of metal casting in which a molten metal is poured into a mold that has been created by means of a wax model. Once the mold is made, the wax model is melted and drained away. A hollow core can be effected by the introduction of a heat-proof core that prevents the molten metal from totally filling the mold. Common on every continent except Australia, the lost-wax method dates from the 3rd millennium bc and has sustained few changes since then.
Layout and planning of mold and piece
Learn how work with wax
Learn how sprue and mold
Research of styles and artists