Vocabulary

CLAY TERMS AND HANDBUILDING TECHNIQUES 

1. Wedging= THE PROCESS OF KNEADING THE CLAY TO REMOVE AIR POCKETS AND MAKE THE CLAY BODY HOMOGENEOUS
2. Greenware = UNFIRED CLAY
3. Leatherhard = HARDENING CLAY THAT MAY STILL BE CARVED OR JOINED TO OTHER PIECES
4. Bonedry = STAGE OF DRYING WHEN MOISTURE IN THE CLAY HAS EVAPORATED THE CLAY BODY WILL BE DRY AND DUSTY
5. Bisqueware = CERAMIC WARE THAT HAS GONE THROUGH A FIRING PROCESS AT A RELATIVELY LOW TEMPERATURE AND IS STILL IN ITS POROUS STATE
6. Bisque Firing = THE FIRST FIRING OF A CLAY OBJECT
7. Kiln = A STRUCTURE BUILT TO FIRE CLAY AT A HIGH TEMPERATURE
8. Handbuilding = MAKING CLAY FORMS BY A NON-MECHANICAL PROCESS, SUCH AS PINCHING, COILING AND SLAB BUILDING
9. Coiling = ROLLS OF CLAY ATTACHED TOGETHER TO FORM POTTERY
10. Slab = HAND-BUILDING TECHNIQUE THAT INVOLVES SHAPING CLAY INTO A BROAD, FLAT, THICK PIECE
11. Pinching = INVOLVES SQUEEZING THE CLAY, USUALLY BETWEEN THE FINGERS AND THUMB
12. Scoring = SCRATCHING THE EDGES OF CLAY BEFORE JOINING THEM TOGETHER
13. Slurry = A FLUID SUSPENSION OF CLAY AND WATER USED IN JOINING CLAY PIECES
14. Slip = DIFFERS FROM SLURRY IN THAT IT IS GENERALLY THINNER. IT HAS A SMOOTH, THICK, CONSISTENCY AND IS USED FOR PAINTING AND DECORATING
15. Sculpture in the Round = OBJECTS ARE PRESENTED IN COMPLETE THREE-DIMENSIONAL FORM AND ARE NOT SEEN FROM ONE SIDE
16. Additive Techniques = ATTACHING CUT, COILED OR PINCHED PIECES TO CREATE JOINED THREE-DIMENSIONAL SHAPES OR HIGH RELIEVE
17. Reductive Techniques = ALSO KNOWN AS LOW RELIEVE, CARVING, GOUGING, CUTTING, ETCHING

_____________________________________________________________

INTAGLIO TERMS, MATERIALS, AND PRINTING TECHNIQUES

1. Drypoint = An intaglio technique in which marks are cut directly into a metal or plexi plate using a tool with a sharp point. It’s easier than other forms of etching as it requires less specialist equipment and no chemicals or acids.
2. Drypoint Plastic= Plexiglass which is easy to inscribe into and a drawing can be traced through it.
3. Drypoint Needle =Used like a pencil to incise lines into the plate.
4. Incisions and Burrs =Ridges of metal or acrylic displaced by the etching or drypoint needle which collects in the inscribed marks as well as under the textures on the sides of the etched lines.
5. Inking the plate =Oil or waterbased etching ink is softened with an ink knife, and placed on the printing plate until the ink covers the surface.
6. Matt Board = Ink applicator used to apply the ink onto the printing plate in a dragging motion. This also helps to fill the drawn lines with ink. The soft surface avoids scratching the plate.
7. Tarlatan cloth= The stiff material is made of cheesecloth with lots of starch. When balled up it is used to wipe the plate in circular movements, removing excess ink and pushing the ink into the burred lines.
8. Soft Cloth and Q-tips = Fabric is used to remove excess ink from the areas of your plate you do not want to print. When a point is creating with the fabric it can be used to wipe small areas of the plate for detail and wipe the edges and back of the plate so that a border is not printed onto the paper. The q-tip’s purpose is to clean off small areas and the edges of the plate.
4. Creating the Print = Printmaking paper is soaked in a bath of water for 1-10 minutes and blotted with a towel. Damp paper is laid on the plate, and they are run through an etching press together, transferring ink from both the incision and the burr, resulting in the drypoint’s characteristic fuzzy line. If the paper is too wet when printed it will blur the lines of the print. If too dry, the image will appear too pale.

_____________________________________________________________

GESTALT –Unified whole. 1920’s German psychologists developed a mode of organizing visual elements into groups or unified wholes. How the eye organizes what it sees.

DESIGN PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY– COMPOSITIONAL ELEMENTS

1.    Scale/Mass/Extension= INCREASING AND DECREASING SIZE. GROWING, STRETCHING, CROPPING ARE EXAMPLES.
2.    Number/Frequency/Density=CROWDED, HEAVY, VARYING THE THICKNESS, SPACING, AND NUMBER OF MARKS.
3.    Positive/Negative= FIGURE GROUND AND CONTRAST. BLACK ON WHITE OR WHITE ON BLACK.
4.    Orientation/Direction=MARKS THAT INDICATE MOVEMENT AND CHANGE IN DIRECTION, ROTATION, REFLECTION AND REVERSION
5.    Alteration=AT LEAST TWO IMAGES THAT CREATE DIFFERENT VARIABLES and COMPOSITIONAL ELEMENTS
6.    Sequence=ONE THING AFTER ANOTHER IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, CONTINUITY
7.    Rhythm=MOVEMENT BY REPETITION. REPEATED POSITIVE SHAPES SEPARATED BY NEGATIVE SPACES. IT CAN BE REGULAR AND HAVE VARIOUS SPEEDS OF SLOW AND FAST.
8.    Repetition=ELEMENTS ARE REPEATED IN PATTERN OR SYSTEM.
9.    Proportion=COMPARISON IN DIMENSION BETWEEN TWO OR MORE ELEMENTS OR RATIO IN A COMPOSITION. 
10.  Axis=APPLIED LINE OR DIRECT THAT RUNS FROM BOTTOM TO TOP AND TRAVELS THROUGH THE MIDDLE FOR BALANCE AND MOVEMENT. NON- STATIC.
11.  Focal point=WHAT THE EYE IS FIRST DRAWN TO ON A PICTURE PLANE. 
12.  Contrast=OPPOSITION
13.  Balance=OPPOSITES ARE EQUAL IN STRENGTH AND WEIGHT.
14.  Dominance=ELEMENTS HAVE A STRONGER PRESENCE THAN OTHER PARTS. CAN POSSESS CONTRAST, OPPOSITION, LARGER SCALE, COLOR DIFFERENCE, WEIGHT IMBALANCE.
15.  Symmetry=USE OF IDENTICAL OR SIMILAR ELEMENTS TO MIRROR EACH OTHER
16.  Proximity= DEGREE OF DISTANCE.
17.  Continuance= GROUPING IN A CONTINUING DIRECTION OFTEN SUGGESTING MOVEMENT.
18.  Closure=GROUPING INTO FORMS OR SHAPES. SIMILARITY, PROXIMITY, AND CONTINUANCE.