3-D Wrapped Sculpture

Submitted by: Cathy Gaul, Haddonfield Friends School
UNIT: Sculpture - Fiber Arts
Grade Level: Middle School (examples by 6th grade)

 

Lines in Space 3-D Yarn Sculpture

This project is a hanging sculpture. It challenges the student to think ‘in the round’ and to coordinate color choices with yarn and other materials. The student also learns how to determine if their piece has balance and to problem solve to achieve this.

 

Materials:

Piping cord (or rope) - Yarn Assortment, Scissors, E6000 Glue, Beads, feathers, pipe-cleaners

 

Construction:

Begin with about 9 foot (2.75 m) length of piping cord or roping, use a diameter of about ¾" to 1" (1.9 to 2.5 cm). Other alternatives are thick diameter twine but that makes the sculpture very heavy and it tends to droop more in a humid environment over time.

 

Discuss color palate and why limiting colors works for a sculpture such as this. Think of color families and contrast, for example, choosing cool colors and one warm color for contrast. The more successful projects are well thought out BEFORE the wrapping begins.

 

 

Wrap the roping in choice of yarn colors being careful to cover the roping entirely.

 

I demonstrate the technique of starting the wrapping by taking the end of the yarn and taping it with a small piece of tape about 1" from the end of the roping, pointing AWAY from the end. Then I start the wrapping at the very end of the rope, covering the taped yarn completely, hiding it. Wrap tightly until there is about 8" of yarn left. Tie the yarn in a half knot around the roping twice to hold and cut end to about 1". Start a new piece at the same spot, taping the end and beginning to wrap where you left off at the knotted yarn, covering the taped ends again. Continue in this way until the entire piece of roping is covered. At the end of the rope, tie the last of the yarn in knots and use some E6000 glue to secure the ends. Elmer’s does not work well, it soaks in too much.

 

Hint: Thin yarn takes FOREVER. Rug yarn is good but sometimes is hard to make look neat. Double strands of different colors look good for a change, but more than 3 strands are unwieldy to work with.

 

Hint: I have the kids put the long end of the yarn over their shoulder to keep it off the floor and to keep it from tangled.

 

Bend one end of the roping into a loop and wrap around and tie off to make a place to hang the sculpture. Tie a long piece of yarn through this loop and attach something to hang the sculpture at eye level from the ceiling. I use a bent paper clip into the drop ceiling supports. Have the kids cut many 8-10" lengths of yarn for ties and have them handy at the table. Begin to shape the sculpture by making big loops that cross over each other in a good arrangement, tying the intersections with a bow knot for easy removal. When the entire 9 feet of roping is in a good 3-D arrangement, go back to each intersection and make a very tight double knot, again using the E6000 to glue down the cut ends. The tighter the knots, the more firm the sculpture.

 

When this is accomplished I put out Pipe Cleaners, feathers and Beads. I demonstrate how to make a tassel, put beads on the yarn, wrap a pipe cleaner around a pencil to coil and how to attach these things. We also talk a lot about balancing the sculpture with these additions and adding interest with different levels of tassels, feathers, etc.

 

When the sculptures are close to being finished we do a "critique". This is a huge help. I explain the purpose: to help each other make the sculptures as good as possible and to make suggestions to each other on how to achieve better balance and 3-D qualities. We talk about how sometimes ‘less is more’ and the need to know when to stop adding things, finding the point where adding more is taking away from the project. The kids are instructed on what they can and cannot say- they must first say what they like about the project, then offer suggestions to help the project. I comment on the craftsmanship as well. The students get the rest of the period to make their changes, make up titles and name tags for display.

 

This is always a favorite project.

 

The grade level I teach this to is 5th grade. It takes about 4 classes (1.25 hr per class) to complete. Boys love this project even more than the girls. It is a busy project where the kids can chat and work at the same time and have fun, but still come out with a fabulous hanging sculpture they are proud of.