MASKS

TOTUM MASKS FROM PAPER SCULPTURE

Traditionally, masks have had many functions, all of them related to ritual.  The totem animal masks shown below are constructed from paper sculptures and covered with Paper mache. 

Study all of the examples, both the design of the sculpture and the designs painted on the surface.  Notice the surface designs are made to augment and  fit the shapes of the sculpture.

The paint medium is acrylic.  the  sculpture uses light cardboard and paper mache’ made of newsprint and flour and water.

Building the Sculpture.......

After building the structure of the mask by scoring and bending the card, cover the surface with paper mache and sand it.

Here, students are painting the masks with acrylic paints.  In these examples, the process journals were important.  Students researched  the subject of masks, made their own drawings, and eperimented with paper sculpture technique and different surface designs in their process notebooks.

These paper sculptures are very simple.  It is the way they are ornamented that make them interesting.

ITALIAN THEATER MASKS

Plaster gauze was used to make the mask structure. It dries quickly. Care needs to be taken so that students don't lose eye-lashes. A cream is applied to the skin before the plaster is applied.

These masks were done by a seventh grade class at the international School of Florence. They used acrylic paints and a gold glue-like substance that is used in silk painting called gutta. The gold lines and dots are made with the gutta.  They also used gold leaf.

Students worked in teams to apply the plaster gauze on each other.   After the gauze dried and was  hard, it was left for 24 hours before working with it.  Then white gesso was applied and sanded several times to create a smooth surface. 

CERAMIC LIFE MASKS

The masks in this section were made by applying plaster directly to a student’s face, then pressing  ceramic clay directly into the cast .

Care must be taken to leave nostrels unblocked and a patch of paper towel place over the eyes so the plaster doesn’t remove eyelashes. 

After the face is taken out of the cast, students used slabs of clay to create headpieces. 

Most of the work shown here is unglazed.  My records are not complete. These masks were done by students at the International School of Prague.