Lesson video

Hello, everyone? How are you.

I hope you're feeling great today.

My name is Ms. Afzal, and I'll be your art teacher for this lesson.

I'm happy about that because I love teaching art.

And today we're getting into something very important, which is the principle of volume.

In fact, that's the title of our lesson, "The principle of art: volume," and it comes from the unit of work, The principles of art.

So this is something very core, very principle to art, is learning about volume.

We're going to find out what is volume, how do we create volume, and of course, we'll be having a go at that ourselves.

Are you ready? If so, we'll begin.

The outcome for today's lesson is: I can create volume in two and three-dimensional work.

We have some keywords in our lesson.

Let's go through them.

Our words are: volume, bust, chiaroscuro, contour.

Volume: how much space an object takes up.

Includes height, width, and depth.

Bust is a sculpted or cast representation of a human head and neck.

Chiaroscuro is an Italian word meaning light-dark.

And contour is a line that helps describe the outline and 3D form.

These are our keywords: volume, bust, chiaroscuro, and contour.

Let's look out and listen out for them.

They will certainly be coming up in our lesson today.

Today's lesson is called "Principles of art: volume," and it has two learning cycles.

First of all, sculpt a clay bust to experiment with volume and then use tone and line to create the illusion of volume.

So we are experimenting in 2D and 3D.

Let's begin by sculpting a clay bust to experiment with volume.

And your practical outcome might look like this.

Pretty impressive.

Yes, that's what could be to come.

So why does this painted vase look 3D? Pause the video and share with someone.

Thanks for sharing your responses.

I wonder what you came up with, maybe something like this.

Here's Jacob.

"The artist uses tone.

Tone helps things look 3D because adding different tones creates the illusion of volume." Volume is the amount of space occupied by an object or figure in three dimensions.

It includes the height, width, and depth.

Artists working in the creative industries with 3D design, modelling, sculpture, or product design need to have a good understanding of volume.

Volume helps us see how things in real life look and feel.

It makes objects in 2D artwork seem more lively and believable as depth is created.

Pause the video and share with someone, how has depth been created in this image? Thanks for sharing your responses.

Let's have a check for understanding.

What does volume add to art? Is it A, depth and realism; B, flatness; or C, bright colours? Pause the video while you decide what volume adds to art.

Well done if you selected answer A, volume adds depth and realism.

Sculptures have actual volume.

Materials like clay and stone make forms that you can walk around and see from all angles.

Architecture, products, and jewellery all have actual volume.

Are there any 3D artworks where you live? Pause the video and share with someone.

Thanks for sharing about 3D artworks near where you live.

In their sculptural work, artists explore volume.

Barbara Hepworth explores volume by creating smooth, rounded sculptures with holes that allow light and space to pass through.

Angela De La Cruz's 2004 work, "Larger Than Life," explores volume by transforming everyday objects into oversized sculptural forms with thick, textured paint.

And Nari Ward makes voluminous artworks composed of found objects from his neighbourhood, addressing issues related to consumer culture, poverty, and race.

So we can see there are a number of artists exploring volume in their sculptural work.

Artists like Barbara Hepworth utilise the negative space inside a 3D artwork to emphasise volume and form.

Internal space highlights the size and shape, contrast within a form.

The volume of an internal negative space can be explored by casting it.

This example shows plaster that was poured into a plastic mould.

Once hardened, the cast was removed, turning negative space into positive space.

Rachel Whiteread famously cast the internal space of a whole house using concrete.

Incredible.

Let's have a check for understanding.

What does casting an internal negative space help us to do? Is it A, increase brightness in the artwork; B, explore and understand its internal volume; or C, change the colour of the space? Pause the video while you decide what casting and internal negative space helps us to do.

Well done if you selected answer B.

Indeed, we are better able to understand the internal volume through casting.

A bust is a sculpted or cast representation of the upper part of a human body.

It depicts a person's head and neck.

Many cultures have represented the head.

For example, the Moai are megalithic statues from Rapa Nui, Easter Island, often placed upon ahu, ceremonial platforms. They're said to be the aringa ora, the living faces of the ancestors.

There are around 900 Moai on Rapa Nui.

Olmec colossal heads, these huge basalt stone heads date from at least 900 BCE and are a distinctive feature of the Olmec civilization of ancient Mesoamerica.

And the Ife head.

This is a detailed sculpture of a head from Ife, modern-day Nigeria, made by the Yoruba.

The brass head is a little under life size.

It has a headdress, suggesting a crown and details.

So we can see that many cultures have represented the head.

Contemporary artists continue to depict the head in 3D, including Yoshitomo Nara, who creates child-like characters in ceramics that explore how characters can look back at us from our past.

Taslim Martin, who is known for creating expressive portrait heads and sculptures from a variety of mediums, including clay, cast iron, and by lost wax casting in metal.

His work explores cultural identity.

And Rayvenn Shaleigha D'Clark creates large realistic sculptures that celebrate people of colour.

She combines live casting and 3D printing.

We can see a number of contemporary artists continuing to depict the head in 3D.

Aisha is making a clay bust.

She forms clay into a head, neck, and shoulders, adds features by pressing in the eye sockets and building out the nose, and then explores texture and experiments with tools.

She adds eyes and nostrils using a pencil.

Check for understanding.

True or false? A bust is a sculpted or cast representation of the lower part of the human body.

Pause the video while you decide if this is true or false.

Well done if you selected false.

Now I'd like you to say a little more about your answer.

Pause the video while you do this.

Perhaps you said something like this.

A bust is a sculpted or cast representation of a human head and neck, which is the upper body.

And now it's time for your first task.

I would like you to create a quick clay bust.

You could: consider the volume, observe a person from life, use a mirror to look at yourself, experiment with texture and surface, create holes to explore negative space.

So pause here while you have a go at this task, which is creating a quick clay bust.

I'll see you when you're finished.

It's great to be back with you.

How did you get on with creating a quick clay bust? You might have made something like this.

Wow.

And said something like this: "I created a clay bust.

It has volume in three dimensions.

I had to consider the front, sides, and the back, which was tricky.

I pushed back the clay to create a negative space for the mouth." I love that.

So interesting and intriguing.

Well done, Aisha.

And well done you for creating your quick clay bust.

And now we are on to our next learning cycle, using tone and line to create the illusion of volume.

And your practical outcome might look like this.

Fantastic.

Can really clearly see the volume there.

Artists trick our eyes into seeing volume in 2D artworks using the illusion of light and shadows.

Artists create the illusion of volume so their artwork looks like a real 3D object.

Without it, everything can look flat and two-dimensional.

Lines called contour lines describe the outline and the 3D volume on a flat surface.

Tone adds shadows and highlights, giving the illusion of light hitting the object.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false? Volume makes shapes look flat.

Pause the video while you decide if this is true or false.

Well done if you selected false.

And now I'd like you to say a little more about your answer.

Pause the video while you do this.

Perhaps you said something like this.

Volume is what makes things look 3D, not flat.

Pause the video and share with someone, what has helped the object on the right to look more three-dimensional than the one on the left? Perhaps you mentioned contour lines.

Contour lines create volume by curving around a 3D form.

They can curve in either direction to give a different effect.

Andeep is drawing his bust using contour lines.

He follows these steps.

First of all, he draws the outlines and curved contour lines to create volume.

Next, adds features along the contour lines.

And then refines the shapes and improves line accuracy.

The combination of tone and contour lines makes 2D images look like they have depth and form, as we can see on the screen.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which drawing uses contour lines and tone to create the illusion of volume? Pause the video and decide whether this is A or B.

Well done if you selected B.

Drawing B uses curved contour lines and tone in hatched lines to describe the volume.

Contour lines and tone create the illusion of volume.

So here we can see some contour lines curve around the 3D form.

So we started with just a circle, and then those contour lines are curving around our form.

And then we can see the lines curve in two directions.

And now tone is applied in layers working in multiple directions, and that is really effectively creating the illusion of volume.

Andeep is shading his bust using tone.

He adds light tone to begin to describe volume.

He adds hatching using curved lines.

And remember, you can curve in either direction to create particular effects.

He builds up the range of tones.

And adds a background to make the bust stand out.

Yeah, I love that contrast there.

What do you notice about the use of tone in this artwork? What is the impact? Pause the video and share with someone what you notice about the tone and its impact.

Thanks for sharing your responses.

Chiaroscuro is an Italian word meaning light-dark.

It describes a strong contrast between light and shadow.

Artists use this to suggest volume.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio used stark contrast to show the form of figures and to create drama and emotion.

Artists can experiment with lighting to explore volume in their work.

This desk lamp creates staged lighting, and natural sunlight creates bright tones.

Altering the angles can change the shadows and emphasise volume.

Pause the video and share with someone, do you prefer the effect of the desk light and the stage lighting or the natural sunlight and the bright tones? Thanks for sharing your preferences.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which image uses chiaroscuro to create high contrast and volume? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video while you decide.

Well done if you selected image A.

This uses high contrast to make exaggerated volume.

And now it's time for your next task.

I would like you to experiment with lighting your clay bust to create high contrast tones.

You might move your sculpture into a window, capture the sunlight.

Use a lamp to create a high contrast chiaroscuro effect.

Experiment with different angles and viewpoints.

Photograph your work to document experimentation.

So pause here while you have a go at this part of your task, experimenting with lighting your clay bust to create high contrast tones.

I'll see you when you're finished.

Okay, how did you get on with that part of your task, experimenting with lighting a clay bust to create high contrast tones? You might have photographed something like this and said, "I experimented with using a torch in a dark room and using the natural light directly from the window to emphasise the shadows for volume.

The natural light was strong and effective." And now I'd like you to use contour lines to represent the volume of your 3D sculpture on paper.

Remember to start with contour lines to represent the shape and size.

Add curving contour lines to represent the volume.

Add details to give your work character.

Refine your work as you go.

So pause here while you have a go at this part of your task using contour lines to represent the volume of your 3D sculpture on paper.

I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

How did you get on with that part of your task, using contour lines to represent the volume of your 3D sculpture on paper? You might have made something like this and said: "I drew contour lines for the outlines and added curved contour lines to represent the 3D form's volume.

These lines help show how the face curves around and outwards." Good to hear that, Jacob.

And now I'd like you to add tone to your drawing to create the illusion of volume.

Remember to work in layers to build tone gradually.

Consider using curved lines to create volume while shading or hatching.

Add a contrasting background to make your work stand out.

So pause here while you have a go at this part of your task.

It is good to be back with you.

How did you get on with adding tone to your drawing to create the illusion of volume? You might have created something like this.

Super impressive.

Let's hear from Jacob.

"I added tone gradually to create contrast between light and dark.

To emphasise this, I added a darker background on the light side." Love that additional contrast.

Great job, Jacob, and great job you as well.

Hope you enjoyed your task.

In our lesson, "Principles of art: volume," we have covered the following.

Volume is the amount of space occupied by an object or figure in three dimensions: height, width, and depth.

Volume can be created in a physical sense, for example, in a clay bust.

In a two-dimensional artwork, the illusion of volume is created through contour lines and tone.

Artists manipulate light and shadow, for example, using a chiaroscuro effect to suggest volume, making flat surfaces appear three-dimensional.

Well done, everyone, for joining in with this lesson.

It was great to explore volume together, exploring it in the 2D and the 3D sense.

I love the bust that you created and then the drawing of the bust and creating that illusion of volume through your contour lines, through your tone and contrast.

I think you did a great job.

I hope you're feeling pleased with yourselves and proud of what you've created.

I'm looking forward to seeing you at another art lesson soon.

In the meantime, stay creative.