Lesson video

Hello, welcome to our lesson today.

My name is Ms. Holland and I'm gonna be teaching you, I'm really excited about getting started.

So let's go.

Our lesson today is planning for an assemblage sculpture, and this is part of our unit called me in a box: drawing and sculpture.

By the end of today's lesson, you will have planned and gathered personal objects for an assemblage sculpture.

Our keywords, which we will explore in more detail later in the lesson, are assemblage, sculpture and self-identity.

Assemblage is an art form that involves creating a composition by combining objects into a unified artwork.

Sculpture is a three-dimensional art form, created by shaping or combining materials.

And lastly, self-identity is about how a person sees and understands who they are.

Our lesson will be in two parts.

The first part is answering this question, what is an assemblage sculpture? And the second part is planning and gathering for your very own assemblage sculpture.

And at this point, we'll meet one of our pupils who will take us through the journey that they did to do this, and we will do the same.

So let's get started.

What is an assemblage sculpture? What do you notice about this artwork? Look really, really closely.

What is it contained in? What are all the different objects? What do you notice about it? Well, this artwork is in an art box and it can also be described as an assemblage sculpture.

Assemblage sculptures are distinctive, so they're unique because they are.

They're often made from found or everyday objects.

So objects that you might find around your house, for example, such as buttons, cans, cardboard, or old toys.

Can you see what the heads are made of? Of the dancing figures? Yeah, they're made from Christmas baubles from a Christmas tree.

And I can see an old soldier, tin toy soldier.

Parts are often assembled using glue, tape or wire, rather than carved or moulded.

And it is three dimensional, so it can be viewed from different perspectives.

'Cause remember, a sculpture is three dimensional.

And they're often made by combining recycled or reused materials.

So rather than new materials, these found or everyday objects are collected and then reused and repurposed.

Assemblage sculptures can also tell a story which is personal to the artist.

So Laura says, "I really love ballet, and my favourite memory is going to see a dance performance at Christmas time." So how do you think her assemblage sculpture echoes and tells the story that is personal to her? The Christmas baubles, the ballet dance, her name.

True or false? Assemblage sculptures are carved or moulded.

True or false? That is correct.

It's false.

But why is it false? And don't worry if you don't have the exact same answer as mine, but if it carries the same sentiment, well done.

So an assemblage sculpture is not usually carved or moulded, but instead parts, often found objects, everyday objects, are assembled, they're combined, they're put together using glue, tape, wire.

So let's now really think about this.

What makes this artwork an assemblage sculpture? Have a think.

Well, we have the words, Laura, the name.

It's been collaged.

And if you look closely, you can see they've been cut out of magazines.

So they've been recycled.

And the figures are gathered from everyday objects such as old toys.

Let's look at this example.

What makes this artwork an assemblage sculpture? Look really, really carefully at the different components.

Where may they have come from? How has it been put together? Has it been carved and moulded? Have a think.

The parts have been assembled using glue and tape.

It hasn't been moulded or carved.

It's telling a personal story about the artist.

And the elements of the are three dimensional.

This is an origami bird, and we also have lots of found objects, old photographs that have been recycled.

I can see an old part of a map, some old tickets perhaps from a concerts.

So it's an assemblage sculpture.

Betye Saar is an influential American artist, best known for her powerful assemblage art.

So Saar combines items like old photographs, fabrics, symbols, tools, and creates three dimensional artworks that tells stories and shares strong messages.

Her work is both personal and political.

So she sometimes includes objects from her own life or family, but always these are connected to bigger ideas about justice, what's fair and heritage.

And she uses her art to challenge racist stereotypes and make viewers think more deeply about history and society.

So her assemblage art is very, very powerful, and both combines personal items with these bigger powerful messages.

Check for understanding.

Which images show an assemblage sculpture? So this is really important.

We now need to think about what assemblage sculpture means.

Think back to what we've learned and which of these images show an assemblage sculpture? Well done, it is A and C, because both A and C are made from found or everyday objects rather than carved or moulded.

Well done if you've got that right.

So our first task, I would like you to select an image of an assemblage sculpture.

I would then like you to discuss how the artist has used an assemblage technique to create that artwork.

Now, you could go and research assemblage sculptures, or you could include and use this assemblage sculpture here.

And I'd like to you to really, really think how the artist has used an assemblage technique.

So you may consider, does the sculpture use found or everyday objects? So think to yourself, are they included in the sculpture? How are the parts put together? Are they assembled or are they carved or moulded? Is the sculpture or elements of the sculpture three dimensional? Has it been made using recycled or reused materials? And importantly, does the artwork tell a story or is it personal to the artist? And how do you know? Pause the video.

Well done.

I wonder if you chose to use this example or you went off and researched your own.

Let's see what our pupils have said about this example.

So one pupil have said, "I could see the artist has used objects such as pencils and paint brushes." So the artist has used found objects, everyday objects.

"Perhaps art is their favourite subject." Perhaps they love art.

Another pupil says, "Yes, it must be assemblage because there are 3D parts to the sculpture such as this flower." And another one has said, "It's personal.

They've included their name." And lastly, the fourth pupil have said, "I can see reused everyday objects such as the pencils and the collaged paper and the paintbrushes." So yes, it is an assemblage sculpture.

Now we're gonna move on to planning and gathering for our very own assemblage sculpture.

And here we're gonna meet Sofia, our Oak pupil, and see how she plans and gathers.

And we are going to follow her lead and do the same.

So let's get started.

You are gonna be making an assemblage sculpture about your self-identity.

And we've already seen a few examples of this.

Self-identity means how a person sees and understands who they are.

So how do you see and understand who you are? Your self-identity might include ideas about your name, your age, your family, your culture, and your background, your interests, hobbies, and favourite things.

I love drawing, that would be about my self-identity, one of my interests.

Your personality, values, and what makes you unique.

One of my values is treating everyone equally.

And your experiences such as holidays, birthdays, or other significant meaningful events to you.

All of these ideas can make up our self-identity.

A check for understanding self-identity means.

And I'd like you to finish off that sentence.

Is it A, the games you play with friends? Is it B, how a person sees and understands who they are? Or is it C, what someone else thinks about you? Well done, yes, indeed it's B, self-identity is your personal understanding of who you are.

So this can include ideas such as personality, values, your background.

It's what makes you unique.

Before making an assemblage sculpture, an artist might plan and gather objects about their self-identity, about what makes them unique.

This can help their sculpture be meaningful.

So the choices are intentional rather than just picking up random objects and placing them together without a purpose or an idea.

And in this way, the artist can share the message about themselves more effectively with the viewer.

So here we meet Sofia, and she's starting her journey for creating an assemblage sculpture.

And she started by gathering objects that remind her of a hobby or interest.

So Sofia said, "Last year I really got into making bracelets from elastic bands.

I've grown out of it a bit now, but I like showing my younger brother how to make them." So that's an interest and a memory.

So she's collected some of these elastic bands.

Is there a hobby or interest you like doing or perhaps that you used to like doing that is now a really important memory.

I remember going on walks with my parents when I was younger, so perhaps I'd want to go and gather some leaves from outside.

You might also think how you can show your name within your assemblage sculpture to make it a personal sculpture.

And Sofia says, "I think I'll just use my initial rather than my whole name." And she's thinking about the design of that now, what it could look like.

She could even make it out of recycled pieces of paper from a magazine.

She could create a collage of it.

And you can think about representing an experience within your sculpture.

And Sofia says, "One of my best memories is going birdwatching with my grandparents.

I don't have a model of a bird to include though." So she doesn't have a model or found object of a bird.

What could Sofia do if she wants to include something that is not available as a ready made model? And think back to those examples we've seen before.

Think back to that origami bird that was included in one.

She says, "I could collage the birds that we saw from recycled paper!" "I might need some images of birds to help me." So artists always and may adapt their ideas to use what is available to them.

So we don't have to have a ready-made or found object to represent each of our ideas.

We can then adapt and create our own.

She could create an origami bird, for example, which would be very effective if origami was one of her interests and hobbies too.

She would then be merging together memories and interests.

And finally, you might think about what makes you unique that could be included to represent your self-identity? All of us are unique.

So you could think what makes you unique.

And Sofia says, "I'm learning to play the guitar.

I have to work really hard at this.

So I think it shows by determination as well as a hobby." So again, she's combining two things, a hobby, but also what makes her unique is her determination.

True or false? Before making an assemblage sculpture, an artist might plan and gather objects that represent their self-identity.

Well done.

Yes, it is true, but why? Yes, planning helps artists choose meaningful objects that tell a story about who they are rather than picking items at random.

You might want to sketch some of your ideas about your assemblage sculpture.

So here we have Sofia's sketch.

This can be a really helpful step to help you consider which objects you'd want to be more prominent, so more obvious, and which you'd be happy to have in the background.

So here we can see that Sofia's really decided that the bird is a prominent element.

So Sofia says, "Although I really like my hobby, it's not as important to me as some of my other objects." So she's gonna place her elastic bands around the outside of the sculpture.

But she really wants the bird to be most prominent, "As this represents one of my favourite memories as well as people who are important to me." So she's really considering the composition of her assemblage sculpture.

Moving on to our final task, I would like you to write a list of objects and ideas that you wish to include in your assemblage sculpture that represent your self-identity.

What makes you you? So you might think about your name, your age, your family, your culture, your background.

You could think about an interest or a hobby or one of your favourite things to do.

Perhaps it's baking.

What's your personality, your values, what do you hold important? And what makes you unique? And experiences such as holidays, birthdays, or other significant and meaningful events to you.

So really consider these things, and then take some time, write a list of objects and ideas that you would want to include.

Pause the video.

Well done, so let's have a look at what one of our pupils has included.

So it might have included a letter S to represent your name, elastic bands to show my hobby, a guitar string or plectrum for my determination and an image of a bird or binoculars.

Now we're gonna sketch your plan.

So you might like to think about which items you'd want to show more prominently in the foreground.

So what's gonna be your biggest item? And we saw in some of our examples that we had the origami bird, we had the daffodil.

And Sofia of course, wanted the bird to be the most prominent in hers.

And which items are you happy to be less noticeable in the background? Perhaps that could even be your name.

Or is it something that means a little bit less? So think about what is really meaningful to you, the most important thing that speaks about you, and make that perhaps the most prominent.

Pause the video.

Well done, so we can see Sofia's sketch here and we can see that she's placed some items that she was less happy to be less noticeable in the background, such as the elastic bands.

And then of course, some of the objects more prominently in the foreground.

I wonder what you decided, and if you are in class, perhaps you could share it, show and discuss with a partner and explain why some are more prominent than others.

I wonder what you use to sketch, pencil and paper? You might have used pen and ink.

Well, thank you for joining me today.

I've really loved this lesson, and I hope you have too.

So we've been planning for an assemblage sculpture.

An assemblage sculptures are made from items which have been found, gathered, and arranged by an artist.

And they might be meaningful objects which represent their self-identity like Sofia's.

And by making intentional choices, so thinking really hard about the choices we make, the artist can share a message about their self-identity more effectively with the viewer.

Thank you again, and I hope to see you very, very soon.