Wire Sculpture

Artist Statement:

For this project, we were required to create a wire sculpture that depicted an interesting object. This object was supposed to be about head-sized, and capable of transformation into a different medium. Under these guidelines, and with the hope of choosing something fairly creative, I took and L.L. Bean boot that I had and made a sculpture out of it. Eventually though, I changed my idea a bit and made an L.L. Bean boot slipper.

When sculpting, I used only black wire, copper wire, and needle nose pliers. There were some other materials available, but I decided against using them.

While sculpting, I often referenced the Bean boot that I had in front of me. I started with the base or the "sole" of the boot. I had to do this a few times until it was sturdy and satisfactory. Once I did this, I built the frame of the boot, or the part that would cover your feet. After that, I added the heel and bottom of the boot. I also had some difficulty here, as the heel kept shifting positions. I added the tongue of the shoe next. Finally, for added detail and decoration, I wrapped a little copper wire around the tongue, heel, and bottom of the shoe. As a last touch, I added my name to the design bent in copper wire.