Cardboard Relief - Altered Artworks

Objectives

The student will create a relief sculpture with deconstructed corrugated cardboard and other paper/board materials.
The student will take inspiration from Famous Artists and their Artwork, and recreate an artwork that they have altered.
The student will build layers of surfaces, resulting in a Background, Midground and Foreground in their final work.
The student will manipulate the material with various techniques, such as; peeling, rolling, piercing, and detailed cutting.

What is "Relief" Sculpture

Sculpture In The Round - When most people think of sculpture they think of “sculpture in the round”. Sculpture in the round has a front, back and sides; it is meant to be seen from all sides.

Relief Sculpture - Another form of sculpture is called "relief sculpture". Relief sculpture is meant to be seen from only one side. There are two subcategories of relief sculpture – high relief and low relief, which is also called bas relief.

High relief sculpture stands out from the flat surface, sometimes to a great degree.
Low relief sculpture does not stand out as much and both may feature parts that are indented into the flat surface. Sometimes, it is hard to determine whether a relief sculpture is high relief or low relief.

Famous Artworks Remade in Cardboard Relief

Materials Needed

For this project, you will need:

Corrugated cardboard
Scissors
Ruler
Exacto Knife and Cutting Mat
Tape (hold things temporarily)
Glue gun and White/Elmer’s glue
Optional: Chipboard, Poster Board, Thick paper, etc...
Optional: Paint/Finishing material

What Kinds of Cardboard Can I Use?

Project Steps

Step One:

Research famous artworks or artists and find an image you want to work with that inspires you. (Could be one of your inspiration artists...don't just try to find one that would be "easy")

Historical Artists Page

Contemporary Artists Page

Art Synectics-Rosin

Step Two:

Work with your chosen image and one of the "Synectics" methods to create an new image of your imagination.

Work in your sketchbook to come up with small sketches of 3 different ideas to alter the original artwork. Submit a photo of your work for a grade.

You MUST end up with an image with a Foreground, Midground and Background...so you may have to add them in.

Step Three:

Once you have chosen your idea, make a simple line drawing on a sheet of paper that is the same dimensions as your planned artwork.

Focus on shapes. Once you are done drawing out your ideas in actual size, take a photo and submit for a grade.

You may also draw directly onto the cardboard base but using a separate sheet of paper helps in cutting out your shapes from the cardboard.

Cut out the shapes made by the outlines of your drawing as though you are making a puzzle.

Step Four:

Lay your paper shapes on your card board and trace around them. Now you can accurately cut out your shapes from the corrugated cardboard.

If you made your contour line drawing right on the cardboard base then cut out the shapes to match your drawing. You can lay them on the base and trim them until they match the drawn shapes.

Step Five:

Begin building your relief sculpture by gluing down your shapes, starting in the background and working toward the foreground.\

Cut your background and middleground shapes a little long on the bottom edges so that the next closest shapes overlap those edges (see below). Overlapping is one of the ways to indicate space in an artwork.

You will need to build up the thickness of your shapes as you work from the background to the foreground.

Step Six:

As you work, incorporate different techniques to solve design problems and to create a more visually interesting image. I will be grading for your use of at least 5 different techniques, ways of using cardboard, "creative solutions" you have incorporated.

See Below for "Cardboard Techniques and Ideas", as well as even more "Cardboard Relief Artwork" that may inspire you!

Tear the top layer of paper off of some of your cutout shapes to add more visual separation (contrast) to your pictorial elements.
Create texture by ripping, repeatedly cutting, punching holes etc...
Add pops of different media, such as paper or string/yarn
Cut thin strips of cardboard and glue on sideways instead of flat side to flat side.
Use watercolor to add color that doesn't over power the cardboard color.

Step Seven:

Once you are done, look over your work and make sure all areas feel completed and finished.

Check your work on the rubric that I will be grading your work with.

If you are unsure...ask your neighbors for some feedback on whether it feels complete.

Cardboard Techniques/Ideas

Inspiration Artwork

These first examples are more basic in layering and techniques. There are all different levels of skill and methods applied in these examples.
These artworks are not examples of this assignment, just inspiration on using cardboard in a relief artwork.