Final Reflection

Through my journey with clay creation, I was able to learn the trials and tribulations of having to work with the material. I had worked with sculpey clay before, but never the real deal, so this was very new to me. It's the idea of patience rather than just popping it in an oven to let it cool down. It's way more of a process from start to finish that can take multiple days rather than just one with my usual sculptures, which taught me to be humble with the way I work. It also taught me that I didn't always get how to work with things and to ask for help if I needed it, which in the end I did. One thing that stood out to me is that something isn't always going to turn out the way I expected it to, and that its okay. I can work with acrylics so if a mistake is ever made I can go back and work on it later with the colors I want and it can become the thing I need it to be. I was able to make gifts for people in my life, something they would go on to cherish because of the work I put into it, and that I can feel proud of because they liked it. The whole process is really calming, where I can turn on a podcast or music and just make art without any worry, and it helps that the class is at the end of the day. I'm going to miss not being able to have a studio like the class, but I still have the sculpey clay I can work with if I ever get that creative spark again. 

Another note is that I can put any idea into what I make, and that it'll still be good if I try hard enough. Even if I failed a lot at putting together the underglaze transfer and it doesn't look right, I still had fun making it because it taught me a new method to putting my skills to the test to try a new process. I can take pieces from each lesson to put into my mind to better improve how I do things, and how to look for details I may have missed. It teaches me to be humble in my work and that even if things don't work out the first time, they can always get better if I give it enough love. I thought my forest spirit sculpture was a complete fail, but I went over it with acrylic paint and it improved heavily to the point I was satisfied with the thing I achieved. One of the boxes I made, based on the video game Cult of the Lamb, turned out amazing but it needed a little touch-ups here and there due to some unfortunate ignorant mess-ups I did in the glazing process, but it helped me learn what not to do in that time-frame. Even when I made five seperate sculptures for an assignment involving a singular sculputer, it still fit the criteria and did well. 

What I can conclude from this overall is that I'm going to miss this class, I've learned so much and unfortunately won't be able to continue. From just relaxing in an art filled setting to doing a lot of hands on work that made me sweat, it was always fun in the end as I got the sculpture I needed and the satisfaction of giving them to my friends and family (an old friend's birthday party is coming up and people I haven't seen in a year are coming, yippee!) and just seeign how happy they are at recieving them is so heartwarming. Thank you.